The reaction of the minority communities against the capital tax

Paying tax is a civic-duty that has to be exercised by the citizens of a state. States collect taxes for their own existence and for the prosperity of their citizens. Yet exceptional taxes might be collected in case of emergencies as it used to be in the Ottoman Empire. These sort of extraordinary taxes in the Ottoman Empire involved Avarız (extraordinary tax), Tekalif-i Şakka (taxes of şakka), the tax of İktisad-i Buhran (economic crisis) during İttihak ve Terakki (the Committee of Union and Progress) government and Tekalif-i Milliye (national taxes) Decrees during the Independence War of Turkey.When an ?emergency? is a matter in hand, the first thing that we call to our minds is ?war?. Even though Turkey didn?t go to war in World War II, Turkish people had to live under real wartime circumstances to the full due to the emergency caused by the war.During the war (between 1939-1945), war economy was enforced in Turkey. Excessive profits, black marketing and profiteering were some of the main problems of that period. In the end, economic crisis could not be hindered in spite of taking precautions.While the war was spreading all over the world, ?The Conscription of Wealth? was prepared by the demands of Şükrü Saraçoğlu, the Prime Minister, and it was imposed with the approval of TBMM (the Grand National Assembly of Turkey) and the President İsmet İnönü. That exceptional tax, which overlapped with the Economics in consideration of its contents and execution, has been discussed mostly so far. It determined different tax coefficients for Muslim, Non-Muslim and Foreigners.Young Turkish Republic?s trade life inherited from the Ottoman Empire under the Non-Muslim commercial hegemony was radically changed by the economy policy of the new state and they tried to arouse native Turkish bourgeoisie. The Conscription of Wealth was regarded as an opportunity in forming native Turkish bourgeoisie and it really played an influential role. It protected Muslim Turkish merchants but put Non-Muslim ones under serious obligations.This tax became an easily disputable matter because of tax breaks for some other groups. There was another discussion about overassessing. Non-Muslim Turks who could not pay their taxes were sent to labour camps. Therefore those camps were likened to the concentration camps in ?Hitler?s Germany?. Non-Muslims were afraid of those camps. Then, the validity of the tax diminished and in the end it was abolished.This tax, upholded by the prominent people of the state, was utilized as just a medium to administer social justice and to punish ?Rich People of the War?.Effective pens of the Press wrote according to the wind direction of those days. They stimulated people to pay the tax when it was imposed but defended its abolishment when it was abolished.The source documents of this study mainly included the press and research works of that period. Excerpts of those documents were used now and then. None of the excerpts (even the spelling mistakes) were changed.I would like to give my thanks to Dear Prof. Dr. Ali SARIKOYUNCU for being unsparing in helping me for this study. Also I would like to thank to all my department teachers, to all my friends and to my family whose spiritual support I always feel by my side.