Political, cultural and socio-economic developments in Konya between 1960-1980

Located in an easily accessible location in the center of Anatolia, Konya has also hosted many civilizations throughout history as it is atthe in tersection of eastern and western cultures. Konya, which was the capital of the Turkish Seljuk state always maintained its importance during the Ottaman Empire during the war of Independence the occupying forces wanted to capture the city, but they were not successful. After the second word war, multi party life, one of the indispensable instruments of democracy, was implemented in Turkey. Then the establish ment of the Democratic Party and its coming to power, the chronic problems of Konya, which entered into a great change and transformation in the political, social and cultural fields, were addressed in this period. In addition to continuing the investments made by the DP in Konya, the governments established after 1960 also aimed to make Konya an industrial city by opening new factories. The period 1960-1980 is one of the most active periods for both the world and Türkiye.In the period between these two coups, all global developments such as the USA's war on Vietnam, the Arab-Israeli war and the Cyprus problem were reflected in Konya. During this period, strikes initiated by workers working in factories in Konya were followed by student events, and over time, the protests initiated by students gave way to a right-left conflict. In this period we are examining, Konya is the fourth largest city in Turkey in terms of population. For this reason, politicians competed fiercely to be influential in Konya. So much so that the leaders of all political parties came to Konya outside of election times. In addition, ministers, prime ministers, kings and queens who came to Ankara for diplomatic visits stayed in Konya for a few days to visit the religious and cultural sites in Konya. Mevlana's stay in Konya had an impact on the realization of these visits. During this period, events commemorating Mevlâna were held not only in the country but also abroad, thus Konya became known abroad, especially in Europe, and this caused thousands of foreign tourists to come to Konya every year.