As I have previously stated, the Turkish people are very proud of their founder Mustafa Kemal Ataturk (click), their country and their freedom.
At the moment there are protests over the perceived potential loss of the secular society, where although a predominately Muslim country, all religions are respected and allowed, and religion is kept out of politics. State and religion are kept separate.
Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul, the architect of Turkey’s EU membership, said he would stand as the ruling AK Party’s candidate for head of state. Many Turkish people are worried by his Islamist past and the fact his wife wears the Muslim headscarf, banned by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk in universities and public offices. They fear she will wear it as a first lady. They are worried that perhaps thier country may become like other Middle Eastern countries.
It is said that perhaps 1.2 million people took to the streets of Istanbul in protest, flying their country’s flag in a mass of red.
