Transcript for:
Power and Religion in Modern Turkey

Turkey wants to be powerful. It wants to revive its national pride. Flags are a common sight, as are the images of two men.

Kemal Ataturk, he is modern Turkey's first president and he represents a secular republic. And then of course there is the image of the current president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Now he wants to be the father of a new Turkish... identity one shaped by religious faith however Turkey remains deeply divided over what should dominate secularism or religion unlike other Turk Erdogan is putting Islam first he believes that that religion ties the country together.

That message is well received in the pious rural population. They adore Erdogan for allowing people to wear headscarves in government offices and schools, something that was restricted in the past. But Erdogan's critics say that he has misused last year's failed coup attempt to boost Islamic nationalism. What does that mean in practice?

I'm about to meet a young AK Party member in this mosque. It's new and financed by the government. Hamad says that it represents what Erdoğan calls the new Turkey.

This new Turkey is self-confident. For a while we got used to losing, but now we know that we can win again. We can be strong and be a great nation because that's what we were in the past. Erdoğan supporters crushed the coup attempt and they see their victory as an opportunity to create a new nation.

Deb basing their newfound power on Islam. Turkey's fate is tied to politics and religion. It was like that in the past, and it's like that now.

The separation of religion and state does not exist. That's a secularist concept. And that seems outdated now. Mohamed became a member of Erdogan's AK party just a few years ago, after the wave of mass civil unrest centered around Istanbul's Gezi Park.

When I saw the protests, I understood that there are people who do not want Erdogan as a leader in Turkey. Instead of being with them, I have chosen to be on the side of my president. He believes Turkey is under attack.

But Mohamed is not only religious and an Erdogan supporter, he's also a lawyer. So how does that influence his decisions? He tells me outside the mosque over a cup of tea.

The coup attempt has made being a lawyer in this country difficult. That's because it's hard to give people the feeling that justice is being carried out properly. We don't know who is connected to terror organizations.

Mohamed says that his independence as a lawyer is important, but that during the current state of emergency people should be on the side of the government and the nation. That's what we need to do. for him is what a real Turk would do.

Nationalism has always existed in Turkey, even during Ataturk's secularism. What's different today? I'm meeting Fatih Yaşle, a professor of nationalism studies. Islamic nationalism is more dangerous than secular nationalism. It's much more hostile and polarizing, and it divides the country.

Erdoğan makes promises that we'll build our national brands, produce planes, ships and national cars, and he brings out the primitives. form of nationalism inside the people. Fatih says it's only a matter of time before he loses his job or even ends up in jail like many of his colleagues as a result of speaking out against Erdogan.

He says the situation has to change. Meanwhile, more mosques are being built. Erdogan's blend of Islam and nationalism is embraced by half of the population.

For them, it's the path back to old glories and pre-Ataturk Ottoman times.