You asked for it.
Posted on 08/30/2006 1:16:20 PM PDT by knighthawk
ANKARA: An attack by Islamists on a young Turkish woman wearing a bikini on a beach has reopened the question of the direction that the country, overwhelmingly Muslim but traditionally secular, is now taking.
The incident happened earlier this month at the resort of Karaburun, near Izmir in the west of the country, the most Europeanized part.
The young woman had asked a group of headscarf-wearing women and their families not to soil the beach with the used diapers of their children, only to be called a prostitute because she was wearing a bikini. She was then attacked by the men in the group.
The affair might have been dismissed in a couple of paragraphs in the local press but the woman filed a complaint. Furthermore she is the daughter of a journalist on the mass-circulation Hurriyet newspaper which picked up the story and attacked the departure from secular, non-religious principles.
The attack became big news in a country where since the Justice and Development party (AKP), which has Islamist roots, came to power in 2002.
The powerful secular lobby, which includes the armed forces, has repeatedly condemned what it sees as the galloping Islamization of the country.
Luxury hotels have opened on the coast, which apply strict Islamist rules, offering guests, for example, beaches and swimming pools segregated by sex.
Sales of hasema swimming costumes that cover religiously observant women from head to toe and include a head covering are booming.
The phenomenon gives defenders of secularism another reason to argue that the values of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk (1881-1938), the father of modern Turkey, are being subverted by the activities of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his backers.
“The circles that back the AKP should not act with the mentality of those who think they can do what they like because their party is in power,” said Ertugrul Ozkok, editor in chief of Hurriyet, referring to the “social impertinence” of strict Muslims.
That kind of behavior, he said, could lead to a “feeling of revenge” in the pro-secular establishment which regards the wearing of the headscarf as a challenge to Ataturk’s principles and amounts to an outward sign of membership of political Islam.
Wives of most senior officials in the AKP wear the headscarf, including Erdogan.
The party has pledged to lift the ban on the wearing of the scarf in universities and the public sector but has been forced to retreat each time it has tried to do so.
The tourist industry is also worried, with the president of the country’s tourist investment association Oktay Varlier saying the bikini incident could damage a business that brought in 18 billion dollars (14 billion euros) last year.
“It is an isolated act but it tarnishes the image of the country abroad,” he said.
Newspapers have, meantime, reported other incidents on beaches involving Islamists.
A fundamentalist sect known as the Rufai set up a makeshift camp at Sile in the northwest near Istanbul and for two months stopped holidaymakers from walking along part of a public beach because of the presence of women in their group, the Radikal newspaper reported.
On Wednesday evening the tents were taken down following protests, the paper said.
In yet another incident a dancer with the Ankara ballet was attacked by Islamists because he swam in a creek at Seferihisar in the west of the country while head-scarved women were relaxing in the area, Cumhuriyet reported.
Islam is the result of letting a cult get out of control.
Islam-list
If people want on or off this list, please let me know.
But it is the religion of peace!
Typical encounter with islam. Take their cr_p or die.
I guess it was to ambitious of me to hope for a pic.
CONGRATS...YOU ARE THE WINNER OF FREE REPUBLIC'S -- FUNNIEST POST OF THE DAY!---
The powerful secular lobby, which includes the armed forces, has repeatedly condemned what it sees as the galloping Islamization of the country.The Turkish Constitution gives the military the responsibility to ensure that the government remains secular.
-Eric
It's too cold to wear a bikini to the beach.
Yes, but just not the two piece.
Islamists should not go near beaches or any other form of public entertainment or relaxation. Since they are inherently incapable of accepting civilized norms of behavior towards those with whom they disagree, they should all be confined to their homes to stew in their deranged Satan-loving fanaticism. /s (I think)
It's not possible to evaluate this story without pictures of the offending bikini.
You asked for it.
Also they need to quit throwing diosposable diapers full of baby sh!!t all over the beach, this happens all the time in Texas and mexico and it is incredibly filthy.
THEN tell us it's not okay to wear a bikini.
Yeah, now that's better! I'd go jihad on that.
Owl_Eagle
If what I just wrote made you sad or angry,
it was probably just a joke.
so much for civil society.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.