A LETTER FOR EKREM IMAMOGLU

 

With Gratitude to

Edip Cansever/Levent Yüksel/Volkan Konak/Hazal Ocak /Nazım/Ahmet Arif/Vedat Türkali/Umberto Eco/Ergin Günce/Bedri Rahmi/Refik Durbaş/Cemil Meriç/Orhan Veli (1)

and Ekrem Imamoğlu 

 

 

 “Ah brother Ahmet, a person is alike  to the place where he lives, alike to  the soil of that place, alike  to a fish swimming in its water. Oh, Ahmet brother, you can't laugh, Becuse one can laugh if the people of country  are laughing.” (2)

We have not been able to laugh since March 19th, 2025 . People can't laugh and we can't laugh. My memory turns back  to another  March day again ie March 30th, 2019. We were in the most beautiful view of Istanbul. Exactly 25 years or a quarter of a century had passed since 1994 . Since 1994 AKP had always been ultimate winner in all İstanbul elections, (3)

Our common point was Istanbul. We were sitting in a hill of Istanbul in Beltur cafe next to the Zeyrek Mosque/ Old Pontacrator.  Beltur was different that night. The pain of the heavy vertical hump of skyscrapers , which had not been loaded in Istanbul for 5000  years , but had been loaded in the last 25 years, was not felt that night. The unprecedented betrayal of Istanbul  was a distant nightmare at that very night. (4)  

 Greek Melodies echoed from the coffee .  Mullah Zeyrek told us about Yahya Kemal's poems, Pontakrator sung Agni Parthene.(5)  

Words and sounds were mixing together. The inheritance from Legendary King Bizas was  on the horn of the Ox. It whispered that the invincible armada would be defeated.  Four Sea of Istanbul whispered  all at once. Golden Horn-Bosphorus and Marmara said: 

”I will come out of this door after   tonight”  and gave voice to ”Sevenhill; Wind that touches her hair". (6) 4th sea i.e. Black Sea echoed from  the remote exit of the Bosphorus: “Hey, Black Sea Black Sea.” (7)

Black Sea: a common hometown. If we fold the map from Hopa to Sile, the coast of Kastamonu will definitely coincide with the coast of Trabzon

“my hand is an artisan's hand and my heart aches ”.(8)

 While Fatih's galleons were going to Trabzon port to conquer Pontus Empire , Candaroglu Ismail bey, who entrusted his crown to the Sultan the Conqueror in Sinop, took his heart in his hands and went to build a new Kastamonu on the narrow streets of Plovdiv. Trabzon and Kastamonu were connected by this common historical milestone at far corners of the   water of the same dark sea. (9)

“When I say Trabzon, a bunch of black laurels comes to mind.” (10)

These days, I think of a Trabzon which  remembers me a prison named after its neighbor sea : Marmara/Propontis, which has turned into an ugly water in which fishes barely swim.

Prison  name used to be Silivri. Silivri : Selymbyra. If you haven't immersed yourself in the adventure of the city dwellers who stand firm against the Latins who looted Istanbul depicted in Eco novel Baudilino, You feel cold in Silivri . (11)

Silivri/Selymbria is actually the last stop of the big Ignatius Road / Via Egnatia, which starts in the Adriatic and ends in Marmara.

Whoever did not besieged the New Rome/Constantinople  which was destined for the Fatih the Conqueror who was also linked toTrabzon like Ekrem?

Who did not seduce Its almond-eyed daughters?

 The Goths, the Visigoths, the Ostrogoths, the greedy  blind Venetian .

 If Enrike Dandalo's apology is made by  Pope after 800 years,  Istanbul is not a childs toy to play with.

Who knows these stories?

 Sure Mahir Polat knows.

 Comrade Mahir, hold on tight, we're going to make a film of  Baudilino; Tom Hanks will play the lead role. We stay and we dont go anywhere(12)

 Of course, There would be a price for  taking Istanbul out of the hands of  sects, so-called foundations that have exploited the hills and forests  and giving it back to the people of  Istanbul. (13)

“All those sufferings had a cause, wait with your greatness  and calmness; Süleymaniye.” (14)

 We dont forget America, who said “our boys succeeded” in 12th September Coup and handed over the country  to an ex candidate of the "Islamist"  Salvation  Party . We know well that  Turkes  said  “our ideas are prevailing” . Same Turkes   also had announced the May 27th coup. We dont forget  all those students  who were executed after 12th March 1971. 51 stars were always shining for the victory of fascism in this land. (15)

Today’s fascists who look like “apparatus”, which even the “Mexican Border” does not accept, have already started marketing dreams that will turn Gazza into Trump's property franchise.(16)

We have to struggle like Bruno, like Galileo, like Hallaci Mansur against those who do business with Evangelicals.

İn Turkey ; Nationalist Fronts don't end. The N.F. spirit does not end, but the country's  reserves finish.  We must say enough is enough . Allende's first name is Salvador, not Izabel. Che is not the theme of the song, He is symbol to resist American Imperialism(17).

The  most poetical professor of METU,   used to say . ”It  was as much a flower as Türkiye" . (18)

In fact, it is the victor who now seems defeated.

It was a  struggle between   those who fill Istanbul with concrete and those who want  more public space.  The flower as much as Türkiye is   an ornament on the jacket of Mayor Ekrem.

 It is the thread of the pseudo democracy that has been blocking the will of the people for exactly 70 years. Those who has  one-way ticket to democracy display their real agenda. (19)

Mayor Ekrem are seen in two verses :

 ”This country lies to Mediterranean from Asia as if a  head of a Mare gallop to sea” (20)

 “ One  thing that didnt  leave  me is your love"  .(21)

 Mayor  Ekrem has now gone beyond being a Mayor.

He has been the person who has  shown  us :  who "ruins" and "constructs" are actually the same.

He is the man who shows that guardianship cannot be destroyed by guardianship makers . Guardianship prevails but just changes its  shape. (22)

 Mayor Ekrem has put an apostrophe on the fate of “This Country”, not only  of Istanbul.(23)

 We will rewrite this paragraph from the beginning. “We will listen to Istanbul and Turkey with our hearts, even though our eyes and hands are tied”.

We will understand ”a white moon will rise from the beating of our heart behind the peanuts". (24)

It will be our story that will be told.

 

Notes :

1)

Edip Cansever (poet)

Levent Yüksel (Turkish singer who is famous with his İstanbul song)

Volkan Konak ( Turkish singer who died recently was also generally a secular opposition figure and came from same city with Ekrem İmamoglu)

 Hazal Ocak  ( Turkish journalist who  made news about around 100 billion dollar construction corruption  reported by exchequer)

Nazım Hikmet (Turkish poet who remained behind bars for 15 years and died in Soviet Union)

Ahmet Arif  (Turkish leftist poet who remained in prison for many years)

Vedat Türkali (Turkish leftist writer and poet)

Umberto Eco (Italian writer who wrote Baudilino)

Ergin Günce (Turkish academic and poet, left minded)

Bedri Rahmi  (Painter and poet who also came from same city with İmamoğlu)

Refik Durbaş (Turkish leftist poet)

Cemil Meriç (Turkish conservatist writer and thinker )

Orhan Veli (Turkish romantik poet)

2. Verses of poem by Edip Cansever : Blood voices in my Handkerchief    

 3. On 31st March 2019 Ekrem İmamoglu won the municipial elections in İstanbul with a slight margin. This election was renewed by AKP government.  Ekrem won again this time with great difference. This was the first defeat by AKP in İstanbul since 1994

4. Hazal Ocak gave a brief reference to Exchequer report that shows in almost 70 more projects the construction limits were exceed and this created an extra revenue approaching to 100 billion dolars. AKP reign shaped İstanbul silhoutte and changed it irrevocably.

 5. Pontacrator Church which is now a Mosque called Zeyrek is a perfect spot to watch İstanbul scene

6. Verses from Two famous songs of Levent Yüksel

 7.Verses from song of Volkan Konak

 8. Verses from poem of Refik Durbas which is also composed and became a favorite left opposition song 

9. Kastamonu which is my hometown is a Blacksea coast city. Fatih the conqueror conquested Kastamonu local feud İsmail bey while travelling to eradicate Pontus State. Pontus state was mainly located in Trabzon , east Black Sea city which is hometown of Ekrem İmamoglu

10. Verses from Bedri Rahmi poem depicting Trabzon city

 11. Silivri Jail is a 11.000 inmate prison which has very bad reputation among opposition people. "Silivri is cold" became an idiom which states if you talk too loud against government you end up in a prison cell.

 12. Mahir Polat served as head renovator of Istanbul heritage. He was also prosecuted. His health is not well and he was released but forced to stay at his own house . His Works are admired very much.

 13. These words actually belong to Ekrem İmamoglu. He promised to cut the funding of AKP oriented religious sects, foundations and psedo çivil society instutions by İstanbul Municipality.

14. Verses from Vedat Türkali poem which displays student opposition to Democratic Party oppression in 1950s

 15. During cold war Turkey had 3 Coups almost in every ten year. 1960 coup’s speaker Turkes became leader of Ultra Nationalist Party which is supporting AKP since 2015. Both 1971 and 1980 coups were mainly crushing left opposition. US Cold War doctrine always helped Turkish military to crush left opposition in Turkey. For the latest arrest of İmamoglu also, it is also rumoured that Trump administration gave explicit or implicit support, In return it is said that Türkiye will be warm to Israel and US other interest in region.

16. Mexican Border was a TV programme dating to early years of AKP which found audience from every political wiev. Today one of the journalist who took part in this programme ,İsmail Kılıcarslan became a harsh supporter of government and started to echoe Trump’s Gazze plans.

17. During late 70s   Turkish center right party made a grand coalition with extreme right. This was called Nationalist Front. This period is ill remembered for  Turkish democracy.

18. Verse from poem by Ergin Gunce, an economy professor from METU which is known by its leftist position. Günce died in a plane accident at a young age at early 80s

 19.  The words that see democracy not a goal but a tool belong government side.

 20. Verse from Nazım Hikmet poem

 21. Verse from Ahmet Arif poem

22. Erdogan supporters and Erdogan himself have always  been  proud by defeating guardianhip on democracy mainly  army’s guardinship. But unity of Powers brought by Turkish style presidential system turned into a guardianship pf democracy rejected by majority of Turkish people.

 23. This Country is a book by Cemil Meriç who is praised by mainly conservatists. But he is also against to oppresive stances like we experience nowaday.

24. Veryfamous verses of Orhan Veli who invented New Movement in Turkish poetry in 1940s. The poem is: “ I am listening to Istanbul as my eyes are closed.”