Lives that don't fit into identities

On July 11th, a significant event occurred in our socio-political history. The PKK, which had recently dissolved its institutional identity, took a second step, firing its weapons in a symbolic event in Sulaymaniyah. For years, we've been left speechless. So many declarations, so many books… Those who claimed that denying the existence of the Kurdish issue was the biggest obstacle to achieving lasting peace in our country and the region were demonized, prosecuted, and fired… So, what will happen now? How will this compromise between the state, the PKK, three political parties, and international powers affect other segments of society? Will the rights of academics prosecuted and excluded from universities for calling for peace be granted? Will Selahattin Demirtaş, Figen Yüksekdağ, HDP mayors, and members of the media, imprisoned for persistently raising the Kurdish issue, be released? Will the practice of trustees end?

Tomorrow is the anniversary of the French Revolution of July 14th. It's worth remembering the motto "Liberty-Equality-Brotherhood." We are aware that this step represents a significant opportunity. However, it's impossible not to agree with those who fear that this goodwill will be used to garner votes for the ruling party, and that palliative measures will be used to buy time until the elections, and those who are skeptical of a peace process independent of democratization. How can the discourse of "Kurdish Peace" be reconciled with the persecution of CHP mayors who granted Kurds seats on municipal councils through urban reconciliation? How will the public be convinced of this sudden "love"? Will the "Contract of Turkishness," imprinted on the consciousness of the masses for generations, not be questioned?

For those who haven't yet encountered the concept of the "Turkishness Contract," I'd like to recommend the book "The Turkishness Contract: Formation, Functioning, and Crisis" by Barış Ünlü, who was dismissed from his profession by a State of Emergency Statutory Decree in 2017 and holds a BA in economics, a MA in political science, and a PhD in sociology (Dipnot Publications, 15th Edition - 2024). Here's what Mr. Ünlü says: "Turkishness is a set of states and ways of seeing, hearing, perceiving, being informed, engaging, feeling, and taking a stance that can be observed in the vast majority of Turks, and that, while varying according to different social classes and ideological affiliations, exhibit commonalities and similarities across classes and ideologies... Turkishness states and performances are often manifested with great naturalness, unconsciously, almost reflexively."

Therefore, claiming to make peace with the Kurdish political movement, which has been antagonized for decades, will not be easy to gain public approval. It takes time for people to purge the chauvinistic sentiments etched in their subconscious and accept different identities. Artworks that appeal to people's consciousness and emotions can play a significant role in this process. Of course, I'm not referring to propaganda films commissioned by the state; this is something only democratic minds can achieve. And it can only flourish on the grounds where democracy, with all its institutions and rules, is fully functional.

A WOMAN WHO DOES NOT FIT IN ONE TYPE OF IDENTITY

I was actually going to dedicate my writing today to another book: Canan Gerede's memoir, "The Flower of Revolution." I met her as the woman who smuggled Yılmaz Güney to Europe. Later, she became one of my closest friends. Her roots lay in palaces, at diplomatic tables, and she spent a significant portion of her life in various cities around the world, experiencing passionate love affairs, separations, and betrayals. Despite having no political affiliation, she was a brave soul who, despite her humanism and idealism, determined to smuggle Yılmaz Güney, whom the state had turned against her and imprisoned, out of the country, and succeeded. A section of her memoir is devoted to Yılmaz Güney; but Gerede isn't just sharing her memories of Güney. She recounts her adventures, which began in New York and extended to Ankara, Athens, London, Buenos Aires, Taiwan-Taipei, and then to Europe, Japan, South Korea, and Casablanca, in sincere, simple language.

"Devrim Çiçeği" (Flower of Revolution) is a book that film lovers, in particular, will devour in one sitting. It recounts her passion for cinema, which began with the first film she saw in Athens at the age of seven; the films she made and failed to make; her relationships with renowned European filmmakers; and her bittersweet memories with renowned Yeşilçam directors and actors, from Atıf Yılmaz to Ömer Kavur, Erdoğan Tokatlı to Faruk Aksoy, Kadir İnanır to Erkan Yücel. Not only filmmakers but also Dr. Selçuk Gerede, Osman Kavala, İdil Biret, and Aslı Altan, to whom she was married for 16 years, play significant roles in Gerede's memoirs.

Young people today know Canan Gerede from her daughters, Bennu and Şiva. If only they could watch her documentary "Abidin Dino" and three of her fiction films. Gerede, who broke the rules of Yeşilçam with her first film, "Robert's Movie," created a film that broke the boundaries. Her subsequent films, "Love is Cold from Death" and "Partition," achieved significant success at both domestic and international festivals. Her career was originally set to begin with an adaptation of Lorca (Blood Wedding). However, after Erkan Yücel, who played one of the leads in "Journey to China," lost his life in a car accident during the first days of filming, she didn't complete the film. "Love is Cold from Death" won her the Best Director award at the Antalya Film Festival, making her the first woman to win the Best Director award at the festival. Oh, and she's also an actress. She starred in Atıf Yılmaz's "Seyahatname" for TRT. Of course, we can't watch that one either; kudos to anyone who can find the film.

"I've lived and continue to live a shattered life... I've shaped it piece by piece using Legos. With rights and wrongs... Sometimes the Legos shifted, fell apart, but I didn't give up and built anew. I couldn't fit into one life: creating films gave me the opportunity to live multiple lives. But I still can't get enough of knowledge, adventure, discovery, and, of course, my dreams," said this beautiful, free-hearted woman who couldn't fit into the molds of either Yeşilçam or our country, but you never know; anything is expected of her.