It’s unusual to see something this symbolic, and it’s rather tragic for Turkey. Sibel Hurtas of AL Monitor reports on Turkey apparently deciding that the future isn’t all that important:
On Feb. 10, a big demonstration was called on the university’s campus in the capital’s Cebeci district, which houses the faculty of political sciences and several other faculties. This time, riot police greeted the expelled academics and their supporters, using dogs and pepper gas to disperse the crowd. Some academics were manhandled and dragged on the ground. But the most memorable moment was perhaps when the police trod under their boots the black gowns the academics had laid down in protest.
Commenting on the episode, Albayrak said, “Nothing could have illustrated better how we are faced with a government that cares nothing about students and universities and takes interest in education only in terms of controlling it. By blocking our entry to the campus and treading on the gowns with their boots, they showed that the academia they want is not only an academia they can control but also one they can crush and overrun.”
Without education, especially in today’s world of challenges both natural and man-made, Turkey will have little choice but to buy solutions from other, more enlightened countries. The Turks’ fascination and support for Erdogan will leave them in a very unfortunate situation eventually. The interesting part is how Erdogan’s putative fear of Gulen, a religious leader, and his followers is the primary motivation for this anti-education drive. The nature of Gulen is not certain – Turkey claims he’s a terrorist, while non-Turks doubt it.
