Ataturk diaries to remain secret
Ataturk diaries to remain secret
Ataturk is an icon in Turkey
Turkish officials have decided against making public the letters and diaries of the wife of modern Turkey's revered founding father Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.
The issue over Latife Usakligil's documents had been hotly debated in the Turkish media as a 1980 court ban on their publication drew to an end.
Some Turks argued that the works would shed a more personal light on Ataturk and his short-lived marriage.
But others feared it might tarnish his image as a national hero.
The head of the Turkish History Foundation said Latife Usakligil's family have demanded that the documents continue to be kept secret.
"The issue is over. It is impossible for us now to release them," Yusuf Halacoglu told Anatolia news agency.
Much is known about Ataturk's public life - how he founded the Turkish Republic in 1923 and drove through an ambitious programme of Westernisation over the next decade.
He introduced the modern parliamentary system, made secularism the cornerstone of the Turkish state and gave full political rights to women.
Inspiration
But relatively little is known about his wife of just two years and their reportedly stormy marriage.
Latife Hanim, as she was known, was in her 20s and two decades younger than her husband when she married.
Memoirs of some of Ataturk's aides depicted her as an argumentative woman who was exasperated by her husband's drinking habits and would chide him in public.
However, her Western education, fluency in several languages and never wearing the veil is believed to have inspired many of Ataturk's reforms.
He divorced her in 1925. Although she lived until the 1970s she never spoke publicly about their marriage.
Ataturk died of cirrhosis of the liver in 1938.
The decision not to release the letters and diaries is a relief to those who feared they would be used to tarnish Ataturk's image.
"No-one in this country will have the power to make media monkeys out of Latife and Mustafa Kemal Ataturk," wrote columnist Emin Colasan in the Hurriyet newspaper.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4235691.stm
Honestly, it would be better for them to remain a secret.
The man clearly moved Turkey in the right direction, he should remain as their national hero.
If these diaries discredit him, it will simply be fuel for the Islamists who wish to turn Turkey into a theocracy, and that, is not good for anyone, neither the West, nor Turks themselves.
The truth shall set you free!
seriously he was a great man period! prefect? probably not....who is?
Perhaps the last pages lament the Armenian Genocide.(wink)
(waits for flame war to begin)
Originally Posted by gaijinsamurai
Damn that wack!
Last Updated: Friday, 4 February, 2005, 14:08 GMT
news is very old...
I thought you were above such obvious trolling. A pointless and unnecessary comment.
great thanks...l wouldnt expect so much fair and true comment from non -Turkish man...
these diaries his and her own private life...also l beleive there are no such things to be ashamed...
thanks a lot...from istanbul..
By the way, I was just kidding with that previous comment. Sorry if anyone took great offense.
The media is so quick to find dirt on heroes the people clearly adore, all for the sake of ratings.
In the west, the situation is pretty awful, there is quite often no one to look up to. Anyone who is anything finds their private life all over the tabloid pages which unfortunately taints their great deeds.
Frankly some things need to remain sacred for the sake of national unity, such as the private lives of leaders (assuming nothing illegal occurs in that)
Agreed. Ataturk was a great leader and more than any other person, contributed towards Turkey's progress in the 20th Century. There is no need to create senseless controversy or stuff for tabloids to feed on.
if a person who commits genocides can be named a great leader.....
read this:
Latife and Ataturk became wed in a civil ceremony. The marriage took place on 29 January, and though Western women wear veils at weddings, Latife's face was uncovered.
The same year, their eight children were adopted, but after an apparently stormy relationship, Ataturk divorced Latife on 5 August 1925.
Some of Ataturk's aides recorded that Latife was argumentative and was annoyed by her husband's drinking
and this:
Turkey continues to hold the memory of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk (1881-1938) in such high esteem that a clause in the penal code still means that to criticize the founder of modern Turkey, a person can receive a jail sentence of 15 years
is there a chance that anyone in Turkey can admit that the great leader was an impotent and an alcoholic?
And your point is?
Despite these supposed shortcomings which are common to many humans, this is surely no reason to prevent Turkey being proud of Ataturk.
Take a break.
N.B. There is no need for this to become yet another flame war. You started the thread, you spoilt it. I will close it if anyone else wishes to cause trouble.
The private lives of many great men is often disastrous, rampant skirt chasing, alcoholish, terrible relations with own family especially children are all common to great men.
Having a major impact on society or filling a major public role often has a pretty nasty side effect on one's personal life.
Then again, normal people are just as screwed up in private.
You are hardly in any position to so harshly speak of a man like him. He is the guiding light behind a vast modern nation, one of the most progressive in the Islamic world.
What is it exactly that you have done that is so great? Is your private life so well refined that he should roll over in his grave with shame?
DW, please correct me if I am wrong, but are there laws or at least customs in England which prevent pictures portraying the Queen in undignified moments? Afaik there is, but please correct me if I should be so wrong.
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