Defending the AKP

Two weeks to go, and the referendum on the constitutional changes as proposed by the AKP will be held. Even though it’s not an election, the campaigning is intense. So is the debate on the street, even going as far as physical fights between supporters and opponents of the changes. Whenever I join the debate, whether online or in real …

Get healthy by fasting!

There it was, on a huge rock in the middle of a village: oruç tut sıhhat bul, meaning ‘Get healthy by fasting’. It seems the connection between fasting during Ramadan and getting healthy is being made more and more often.

In the first place, it is of course crap to say that fasting during Ramadan makes you healthier. On the contrary: …

Unprofessional journalism

Every, really every foreign journalist working in Turkey, writes about the Kurdish question. It’s one of the most urgent topics in the country, there are a lot of interesting developments to report about and the stories are usually pretty sellable as well. And I haven’t heard of any foreign journalist getting into trouble (the last couple of years) with the …

A blessing in polygamy disguise

So, is Prime Minister Erdogan against adultery and polygamy or not? As far as I know, Erdogan hasn’t reacted yet to the debate that is going on. The subject: an advisor he appointed earlier this year, Ali Yuksel, who has three wives and intends to marry a fourth. It’s not possible to officially marry more than …

Oops, the historical view

It would have been too cruel, of course, to take Istanbul off the World Heritage List in the year that the city is European Capital of Culture. UNESCO decided not to transfer Istanbul to the World Heritage in Danger List. Just like last year, and the year before. And it doesn’t look like the yearly decision-making meeting of UNESCO is …

Who is behind the provocation?

That’s the big question these days in Turkey. There has been violence on the streets in two cities, resulting in four dead policemen, a few dead civilians, burnt police cars, roads blocked with overturned cars and angry crowds. Some person or some group, it is believed, must have provoked the violence. What makes emotions heat up as much as they …

Stone throwing kids: problem unsolved

Kids that throw stones at the police during demonstrations in the south east of Turkey (and in other places where many Kurds live, like in Adana and Mersin) will no longer be charged with being a member of a terrorist organization or for making propaganda for terrorists. The 196 children now serving a prison sentence for that offence will be …

Bye bye home office!

This is the first blog post that I have put online working from an office. It was weird this morning, after my morning run: I showered, got completely dressed, put my computer in a bag along with the files of stories I’m working on at the moment, and closed the door of my apartment behind me.

I’ve been working from home …

Night clubbing

It’s the beginning of the end for Istanbul’s famous night life, some say. The municipality has announced that they want to reduce the noise pollution that night clubs alongside the Bosporus create, and make them turn off all the music after midnight. You see, the Bosporus has two sides when it comes to music and dance. One: it offers a …