On the nation-state

In the film The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, adapted from J.R.R. Tolkien's work, there is a scene depicting the "Battle of Helm's Deep." Saruman's army has gathered in front of the fortress called Helm's Deep to destroy the land of Rohan. The Isengard army, composed of Uruk-hai, is numerous and terrifying. Behind the walls, women and children, waiting for their fate in fear, hear the sounds of this massive army making terrifying noises in the darkness of the night. 

When the Uruk-hai launch their attack, King Theoden of Rohan, who is waiting for the enemy on the ramparts, says in English: so it begins..

After the speech made by the President on July 12, 2025, this phrase came to my mind; So it begins..

When you search on internet search engines, you can find footage of the speech, but it is not easy to access the full text. 

The speech frequently mentions Turkish-Kurdish-Arab unity. It is stated that terrorism will end and the dawn of a strong Turkey is breaking. We learn that the Republican People's Party (CHP) will be left out and that the path will be pursued with the DEM Party added to the People's Alliance. 

The end of terrorism, the silencing of weapons, peace, and brotherhood. These are pleasant-sounding words. However, we need to think with a clear head. We need to understand and discuss the subject in its simplest form. 

We must speak concretely and clearly. Without making hours of deep analysis and repetitions like on the screens, we must understand what is happening with complete clarity.

The process we are in is actually being carried out to provide a foundation and justification for a very important constitutional amendment, in my opinion, a new constitution. 

The current 1982 Constitution has been amended many times. The rhetoric of "let's get rid of the coup constitution, let's make a civilian constitution" has no basis. Constitutional articles have been rewritten on almost all essential issues, including the government system. It is not, and cannot be, stated with concrete examples which current problem of Turkey the constitution is an obstacle to solving today. Because there is no such problem. When you reflect a little on what we are experiencing, you can grasp the main goal intended. 

The target is Turkishness and the nation-state.

Let's take a look at our Constitution and the concepts in terms of the founding ideology of our Republic.

The definition made by the Great Atatürk is extremely clear: "The people of Turkey who founded the Republic of Turkey are called the Turkish nation."  

The Republic of Turkey is a nation-state. Without any distinction of ethnic origin, religion, sect, or otherwise, as stated in Article 66 of the Constitution, "Everyone who is bound to the Turkish State by the bond of citizenship is a Turk."

The preamble of the Constitution of the Republic of Turkey mentions the Turkish Homeland and the Turkish Nation. Furthermore, Article 3 of our Constitution states, "The State of Turkey, with its territory and nation, is an indivisible entity." 

Our Republic was built on these principles. We became a nation on the basis of citizenship, independent of ethnic origin or religious affiliation. Contrary to nonsense like "the Republic was founded wrongly from the start," if we have not fallen into the situation of Iraq or Syria today, it is because of our being a nation. 

The Turkish Nation does not symbolize a division, but on the contrary, our unity. We are the Turkish Nation with our people from every ethnic origin. We have millions of people who have integrated with each other. 

Secularism and the nation-state. The moment we compromise on these two, it will be inevitable that we will face very painful consequences.

Constantly emphasizing Turkish-Kurdish-Arab unity by using concepts like brotherhood and peace shows that an attempt is being made to build a multinational structure, unlike our current nation-state. If you do not use the expression "Turkish Nation" in the Constitution or include the names of other elements, you will be talking about a different state. Dividing the right of sovereignty will lead first to separation and then to conflict. 

While the Ottoman Empire was collapsing, both the millet system and the ummah system were discussed. But it did not work. History and events have shown us that the survival of the state we established in Anatolia is only possible with a nation-state. 

At the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, terrible massacres took place in the Balkans, the Caucasus, and Anatolia. Millions of people, especially Turks, were displaced. Anatolia is now the only homeland for Turks. We have nowhere else to go. Getting caught up in dreams of expansion and growth could lead to a catastrophe like losing what we already have. Playing with the founding settings of the Republic 102 years later is playing with fire. 

Constitutions are not made for daily political requirements, the advice of foreigners, or the needs of others. They are social consensus texts written with blood and backed by the accumulation of history. Defending the nation-state is a matter of life and death for the Turkish Nation. Opening the nation-state to debate leads to irreversible consequences.