6 - Cautionary Tale: Istanbul

Summary

No one may be dispossessed of his property or deprived of the possession of his property except in the public interest. In such cases the actual value of the expropriated property must previously have been paid. No one shall be constrained to make any sort of sacrifice, other than such as may be imposed in extraordinary circumstances and in conformity with the law.

Article 74, constitution of the Republic of Turkey, 1924

Thus the word arsa (a piece of urban land) in middle-class Turkish nomenclature has come to evoke a whole series of associations, much broader than that suggested by the literal translation of the word. It connotes a pattern of savings, embodies future hopes and aspirations, symbolizes a whole way of life.

Ayse Öncü, “The politics of the urban land market in Turkey, 1950– 1980” (1988: 48)

While responding to reactions from the opposition to the words “We will make Canal Istanbul out of spite”, President Tayyip Erdoğan said, “Friends, out of spite we will add beauty to our Istanbul, and this is what I call a crazy project. We want to serve our country. Our project is ready”, he said. Hürriyet.com, 27 February 2021

Whose property is it?

The historiography of Turkey is beset by contrasting themes of Oriental backwardness and Western modernism. Huri Islamoğlu (2012) argues for a less value-laden approach, using Marshall G. S. Hodgson's “unity of history”, without superimposing the question of which states were modern and which were not. Distinctions between East and West, centre and periphery and domination and subordination in the international order should be expunged. Instead, she argues, we should observe how states developed institutional responses to concrete questions such as property rights.

Comparative political economy offers this opportunity. Turkey represents an excellent case study of how real property rights affect regime support, because urban land is central to the political and economic calculus of politicians and the population alike.

Until the 2016 attempted coup Turkey had teetered along as an emerging economy and an emerging democracy. As of 2021 it has settled into an uneasy equilibrium as a neoliberal authoritarian state, often cast as a cousin of Russia. More accurately, it was a Soviet counterpoint during the Cold War, when anticommunism linked to secularism and nationalism defined the political elite and economy.