<TURKEY, modern republic in Asia
Minor and S.E. Europe (see *Ottoman Empire for previous
period).
[[There is no indication about World War I and the wars
afterwards of the Greek invasion under the order of the
League of Nations 1919-1923]].
[since 1923: Atatürk state - emancipation of
Christian and Jewish religion - language restrictions
against Hebrew]
In the peace treaty of Lausanne (July 24, 1923) Turkey
established complete sovereignty in Anatolia, the
southeastern part of Thrace, and some islands in its
territorial waters. The international status of the
Turkish republic was secured, and in the following year
(1924) the caliphate was abolished.
The Treaty of Lausanne secured the rights of the
religious and ethnic minorities (par. 39), who were
permitted to have their own social institutions, funds,
and schools (par. 40). In paragraph 41 the Turkish
government assured the minorities their personal status
as provided by their religious canons.
The Jews showed their Turkish patriotism in the new
republic: they relinquished the claims (col. 1456)
connected with their rights as a minority, and many
renounced their foreign nationality and became Turkish
citizens. Turkish Jewry was represented in parliament by
Solomon Adato (from 1946 until his death in 1953) and by
Henry Suriano (from 1954).
The Turkish republic was declared a secular state, and
Kemal Atatürk, its founder, attempted to erase all signs
of the religious-institutional influence of Islam and
also to maintain equality of Christianity and Judaism in
public life. Even the wearing of the "clerical" garb was
prohibited and permitted only to the heads of the
autonomous churches.
Tor the Jews the prohibition on teaching Hebrew in
schools was a hard blow. After Atatürk's death in 1938
many of the prohibitions he introduced were eased (e.g.,
the use of Arabic during the services in the mosques),
but the general attitude toward the religious minorities
remained unchanged.
Economic Activities.
[Jews become normal non-Muslims and don't play
significant role any more - second-class citizens]
In 1926 G. Bie Raondal, the U.S. consul general in
Istanbul, wrote:
"In the former Ottoman Empire they [the Jews] occupied
important government positions, but the tendency of the
new nationalism, ushered in by the republic, has been to
put them in the same relative position as other
non-Muslims, although they have never been persecuted in
Turkey. [Now they] have carved out for themselves a
place in every branch of the national life and are found
as traders, bankers, professional men, office workers,
and even laborers" (Turkey,
1926).
Since 1926 many changes have occurred in modern Turkey,
and the Jewish community has dwindled to an
insignificant minority from the economic aspect.
Although the severe blow of the capital tax (see below)
was only temporary, it had a psychological effect on the
Jewish community and was one of the causes of Jewish
emigration from the country.
Jewish national life did not develop in *Istanbul and
the towns which remained within the boundaries of
Turkey; the Zionist idea had only a few followers in the
capital. The negative attitude of the Turkish
government to Zionism was a heritage from Young Turk and
Ottoman times, and influenced Turkish Jews. However, the
idea of full integration in the Turkish state appeared
to be unrealistic.> (col. 1457)
Jews in Turkey 01: Atatürk state since 1923
