Constitutional debates in Islamist magazines in Turkey in the 1990s

This study analyzes the debates about the 1982 Constitution in Altınoluk, Panel, Yeni Zemin and Yörünge magazines in the 1990s. Considering the historical course of Islamism in Turkey, it has been seen that Islamist thought is divided into various phases. Prior to the 1990s, Islamism emerged in the form of discourses such as overcoming the state or/and transforming the state. However, the period's discourses, which started in the 1990s and are characterized as the period of adaptation, turned into revisionist themes such as rights, freedom, democracy, and human rights. Islamist thought tries to create an opportunity for appearance in the public sphere with these new sets of concepts instead of the radical attitudes in its discourses. This transformation in the discourse of Islamism is also reflected in the discussions of Islamists about the constitution. The constitutional debates observed in Islamist magazines are primarily based on "social consensus", "fundamental rights and freedoms", and "the principle of secularism and religious control of the state", which signifies adaptation instead of the being rivalry against the secular state foundations. The main discussion in the magazines examined is not about overcoming and/or transforming the state but about developing fundamental rights and freedoms. Therefore, the discussion topics about the 1982 Constitution in Islamist magazines also reveal Islamism's transformation in the 1990s.