Türkiye's transforming politics from the construction process of secular hegemony to the construction of Islamist hegemony: A Gramscian analysis

It is possible to interpret the course of Turkish political history through the struggle between secular and Islamist movements. The conflictual relationship between Westernists and traditionalists during the Ottoman modernization period continued between secularists and Islamists during the Republican era. This conflictual relationship between secularists and Islamists has also played a significant role in shaping recent Turkish politics. The division between secularists and Islamists emerged over the question of "what should be the position of religion" in the relationship between religion, state, and politics. This division, which emerged through religion, generally had a cultural dimension until the 1980s, but began to encompass economic dimensions in the post-1980 period. This thesis analyzes Turkish politics through the struggle between secular hegemony and Islamist hegemony and uses a comparative method to examine the impact of the struggle between secular and Islamist movements on Turkey. It is based on Gramsci's approach to hegemony. While primarily a theoretical study, the thesis also possesses a qualitative dimension, as the speeches and statements of leaders are subjected to document analysis. The thesis identifies the period between 1923 and 2011 as the period dominated by secular hegemony in Turkish politics, while the period following 2011 was characterized by Islamist hegemony. In this study, Turkish politics is analyzed through ideological, cultural, and economic factors, and is subjected to analytical analysis in the context of different social groups and identities that emerged after 1980, as well as international developments. The post-1980 period represents a turning point in the transformation of Turkish politics. During this period, when developments in the international conjuncture significantly impacted Turkey in political, social, economic, and cultural spheres, policies implemented in line with the Turkish-Islamic Synthesis and liberal economic policies led to the rise of Islamist politics and its accession to power in the 1990s. While this rise of Islamist politics was brought to an end by the February 28 intervention, the oppressive policies implemented during this period resulted in secular hegemony giving rise to its own antithesis. Islamist politics, which gained power in 2002 by organizing more strongly under the AK Party and positioning itself against secular hegemony, has become the primary actor in the transformation of Turkish politics. As a result of the policies of secular and Islamist groups, significant gains have been made for democracy in Turkish politics, but also significant losses. In this context, when viewed from a democracy-centric perspective, it is possible to interpret the transformation of Turkish politics as a process of progress and regression. Indeed, every step taken in the name of democracy in Turkey has been met with resistance, and democracy has not been consolidated. It is observed that the democratic crises experienced during the period from the period when secular hegemony dominated Turkish politics to the present day, when Islamist hegemony has dominated, have essentially emerged following the onset of a crisis of hegemony. This crisis of hegemony, which generally occurs during the emergence of counter-hegemonic movements, has led the ruling powers to adopt an anti-democratic stance against these movements and resort to repressive state tools, resulting in the continuation of the struggle for hegemony. Based on this situation, which is an indicator of both the dynamic and dialectical structure of hegemony, it has been concluded that the struggle for hegemony in Turkey is not over but continues, and it is predicted that this struggle will continue in different media and with different actors with digitalization.