Constitutional Era Research Articles

یک قرن و دو خیزش به سوی جنبش آزادی زنان

Since the time of the constitution, the Iranian women’s movement has joined the battlefield with three demands: the right to vote, the right to education, and the right to form an organization. This movement is known as the “Women’s Rights Movement” in reference to its demands and historical context. This movement might be regarded the initial phase of the Iranian women’s movement. Despite women’s success in accepting their legal and true identity to society over the past century, discriminatory laws at every historical juncture, from the constitutional era to the era of the National Oil Movement, and from the reform era known as the first Pahlavi White Revolution to the Islamic Revolution, targeted a portion of their identity. Despite being the target of consecutive arrows of various forms of discrimination, women not only insisted on the identification of their legal movement, but at the end of the 20th century, by highlighting their bodily identity, they stood up to regain their bodies confiscated by government discrimination. This period, the seeds of which were sown in women’s daily struggles from the mid-sixties to Homa Darabi’s self-immolation in the seventies, with women’s movements to enter the stadium, Sahar Khodayari’s self-immolation in the nineties, the phenomenon of the girls of the Revolution Street and White Wednesdays in the late nineties and In the last year of the twenty-first century, the emergence of the Iranian MeToo movement: Narr These movements in the first half of the twenty-first century, along with the secular and religious women’s opposition to the ban on screening, the ban on pregnancy prevention, and the plan to increase the population, have propelled the women’s movement into the physical stage or the women’s liberation movement. This article discusses the role of “non-movements” who prepared the women’s rights movement to enter the phase of the women’s liberation movement from a positive and cause-and-effect perspective, while enumerating the characteristics of this two-stage process. Referencing the scientific definitions of the two phases of the legal movement and the women’s freedom movement, this essay examines the impact of individual and collective activities on the growth of the women’s freedom movement. For instance, from the first movement of Taherah Qara Al-Ain to remove the hijab to the phenomenon of the girls of the revolution, from the singing of Qamar al-Maluk Waziri to singers and dancers on the streets today, and from the confiscation of concubines to the rise in popularity of white marriage. From unmarried women’s pregnancies to sperm donation banks to denying pregnancies imposed by the government and males at home, the women’s rights movement has definitely shifted towards the women’s liberation movement since the turn of the century.

AHMET CEVAT EMRE'S ACTIVITIES ABROAD IN THE CONTEXT OF MEMORY (1920-1922)

Ahmet Cevat Emre, 1 Eylül 1876-10 Aralık 1961 tarihleri arasında yaşayan Cumhuriyet Dönemi’ne Geçiş Dönemi aydınlarından biridir. Yıldız Hanım ve Hasan Hulki Bey’in tek çocuğu olan Ahmet Cevat Emre Girit’in Resmo şehrinde dünyaya gelmiştir. 1897’de Harbiye Askeri Mektebi ikinci sınıf öğrencisiyken İttihatçı arkadaşı Mahir Sait Pekman’a yardım etmesi nedeniyle II. Abdülhamit tarafından yetmiş sekiz İttihat ve Terakki Cemiyeti üyesi ile birlikte Trablusgarp’a sürülmüştür. Sürgün hayatı, on bir sene sürmüştür. II. Meşrutiyet ile birlikte İstanbul’da gazetecilik; daha sonra 1910 yılında Satı Bey, Tevfik Fikret, Mustafa Suphi ve Ruşen Eşref gibi isimlerle birlikte Dârülmuallimîn-i Âliye’de öğretmenlik yapmıştır. Meşrutiyet yıllarında okullarda okutulan üç gramer kitabından biri olan “Lisan-ı Osmani” adlı eseriyle “Gramerci Cevat” lakabını almıştır. Sürgün hayatından itibaren düşünce yapısında değişimler gözlemlenen Ahmet Cevat Bey, Balkan Savaşları ile Osmanlıcılık akımı çerçevesinde “Balkan Mezalimi Neşri Vesaik Cemiyeti” fahri sekreteri olarak Türk halkına yapılan zulümleri Batılı devletlere anlatmak amacıyla Avrupa’ya gitmiş ve orada beklediği etkiyi alamayınca emperyalizme savaş açmıştır. Bu sırada İngiliz istihlak kooperatiflerinden de etkilenmiştir. Birinci Dünya Savaşı yılları ile ilgili hakkında detaylı bilgiler olmasa da 1914-1918 yıllarında yirmi dokuz adet okul kitap yazmıştır. Ahmet Cevat Emre, Mütareke Dönemi’nde Mustafa Kemal’in başarılarını gözlemlerken Mütareke sonrasında İstanbul’da yapılan mitinglere katılmıştır. Matbuat Cemiyeti üyesi olarak Akşam ve Tasvir-i Efkâr gibi gazetelerde İtilaf Devletleri karşıtı yazılar yazmıştır. Ayrıca Akşam gazetesinde “Atimiz İçin” başlıklı İttihat ve Terakki yönetimi ve Enver Paşa hakkında eleştirel yazılar yazmıştır. Mehmet Asım Us ile yazdığı “Anadolu Yavrusunun Kitabı”nı satmak amacıyla Bakü ve Moskova’ya gitmiştir. İstanbul’da İtilaf Devletleri tarafından aranırken, Bakü’de Enver Paşa hakkında yazdığı yazılar nedeniyle Talat Paşa tarafından İngiliz casusu olarak tutuklanmak istemiştir. Bu nedenle Dârülmuallimîn-i Âliye’den tanıştığı Mustafa Suphi’nin yanına sığınmış ve Türkiye Komünist Partisi’nde çalışmaya başlamıştır. Ahmet Cevat Emre, Mayıs 1928’den itibaren Mustafa Kemal Atatürk ile dil devrimlerinin inşasında da büyük rol oynamıştır. Ölümünden beş sene sonra “Tarih Dünyası” dergisi sahibi Niyazi Ahmet Banoğlu tarafından değiştirilerek yayımlanan “920 Moskova’sında Türk Komünistleri” adlı hatıraları gündem olmuştur. 
 Bu çalışmada, Ahmet Cevat Bey’in değiştirildiği tespit edilen Moskova hatıraları, döneme ait ilgili resmî kaynaklar ve mevcut argümanlar çerçevesinde incelenip ele alınarak eksik kısımların tamamlanması amaçlanmaktadır. Ahmet Cevat Bey’in Moskova hatıraları incelendiğinde bazı tarih hataları olmakla birlikte başlıca olayların seyrinin doğru gittiği, komünizm faaliyetlerinin ise resmî kaynaklarla karşılaştırıldığında hatıralarda yer almadığı ve bazı önemli olaylara tam olarak değinilmediği anlaşılmıştır. Bu amaçla Ahmet Cevat Emre’nin Bakü ve Moskova’da bulunduğu süre içindeki faaliyetlerine, resmî kaynaklara göre TKP faaliyetlerine ve Niyazi Nazif Tepedelenlioğlu’nun Ahmet Cevat Emre ile ilgili yaşadığı bir hatıraya yer verilerek döneme katkı sunulmaya çalışılacaktır.

The Relations Between the Ottoman State and the Armenian Patriarchate in the Process of the World War I

The Istanbul Armenian Patriarchate was the religious and political leadership authority of the Ottoman Armenians. In view of this status, the patriarchate was undoubtedly one of the important actors in the Armenian issue. Incidences during the process of the emergence and developments of the Armenian issue occasionally led to confrontations between the patriarchate and the state, and sometimes even with other powers of the Armenian population. The patriarchate, that acted as an intermediary authority for the two parties regarding both the state’s expectations and demands of the Armenian population, also served as a mediating and balance enforcing authority. In view of this, the patriarchate was confronted with many problems. Although the legal status of the patriarchate did not change with the Constitutional era, the political process during this period had a major impact on the patriarchate. This study will be examining the patriarchate’s expectations from the state and mutual relations since the beginning of the Constitutional era, and attempt to reveal the outcome of developments during the war on the state-patriarchate relations. In addition to patriarchate’s relations with the state before and during the war, the stance of the Etchmiadzin Catholicosate towards the patriarchate and the state’s expectations from the patriarchate will be among the main topics of this study.

Yozgat High School from First Constitutional Era to Today

Çalışmamızın konusu Osmanlı İmparatorluğu’nda eğitim modernizasyonu neticesinde inşa edilen Yozgat Lisesi binasıdır. II. Mahmud (1808-1839) döneminden itibaren başlatılan eğitimde yenileşme hareketleri kapsamında, 1869 Maarif-i Umumiye Nizamnamesi yürürlüğe sokulur. Nizamname eğitim alanında uygulanacak değişimin teorik ayağını oluşturmaktadır. Modernizasyonun uygulama aşamasında yeni binalar inşa edilir. Binaların yapımı için sancak yönetimleri tarafından komisyonlar oluşturulur. Bu komisyonlar tarafından arsa alımı ve binanın planı ile ilgili keşif defterleri merkeze gönderilir. Keşif defterinde gereken harcamalar kalemler halinde belirtilir. Yozgat’ta bahsi geçen modernizasyon çalışmaları kapsamında Yozgat Lisesi binası için benzer prosedürler uygulanır. Binanın inşasına orta öğretimin bir kademesi olarak îdâdi adı altında 1895 yılında başlanır. Ancak inşaat maddi imkânsızlıklar nedeni ile II. Abdülhamid döneminde (1876-1909) tamamlanamaz. İnşa sürecinin uzun sürmesi nedeni ile tek bir elden inşa edilemeyen binanın, II. Abdülhamid döneminde tasarlanan cephe ve plan anlayışından farklı bir şekilde inşa edildiği görülmektedir. Kullanımı açısından binanın ilk etapta 1924 Tevhid-i Tedrisat Kanunu ile ortaokul, 1933-1934 eğitim-öğretim yılından itibaren lise olarak hizmet verdiği bilinmektedir. Çalışmamızda binanın ilk tasarlandığı şeklinin ne olduğu, sonradan hangi değişikliklerle inşasının tamamlandığı, zaman içerisinde binada görülen eskime ve tadilatların ne olduğu, kendi çağdaşları ile mukayesesi, sanatsal ve üslup özellikleri üzerinde durulmaktadır. Yozgat Lisesi mimari açıdan bütün ayrıntıları ile ele alınarak bilim literatürüne konu edilmektedir.

Organization for Breeding the Horse Lineage during the Second Constitutional Era: The Case of Islah-ı Nesl-i Feres Cemiyeti

Bu makale, II. Meşrutiyet sonrasında 11 Nisan 1912’de iyi cins at yetiştirmek, at yarışları düzenlemek, biniciliği geliştirmek amacıyla padişahın himayesinde kurulan Islah-ı Nesl-i Feres Cemiyeti’nin faaliyetlerine odaklanmıştır. Osmanlı Devleti’nde atın çekim gücü ve taşıma kapasitesi, tarımsal ekonomi ve savunma açısından hayati bir öneme sahipti. Ancak XIX. yüzyılın ilk yarısından itibaren ihtiyaçlara göre at neslinin ıslahı ve çoğaltılması hususunda bazı sıkıntılar mevcuttu. Zira tımar sisteminin bozulması ve Yeniçeri Ocağı’nın kaldırılması at yetiştiriciliğine zarar vermişti. Askeri ve tarımsal ihtiyaçları karşılamak için modern haralar kurulsa da bu çaba yeterli olmadı. Arz sıkıntısı ve satın alma düzenlemeleri, Osmanlı ordusunun lojistiğini tehdit eder boyuta ulaştı. Bu nedenle Osmanlı Hükümeti, Avrupalı devletlerde olduğu gibi nitelikli atlarda yerli bir pazarın yaratılmasına yönelik politikalar üretmeye başladı. Hükümet, at cinsinin ıslahını sağlayan vasıtalardan birisi olan at yarışlarını düzenlemek için 1912’de Islah-ı Nesl-i Feres Cemiyeti’ni kurdu.

South Marmara Islands as the Center of Arms Trafficking in the Marmara Sea (1890-1914)

The most important of the South Marmara Islands, namely the Paşalimanı, Avşa and Ekinlik islands are in an extremely strategic point geographically because they are close to the Kapıdağ peninsula and located at the mouth of the Dardanelles. A majority of the population of the islands being non-Muslim and Greek -particularly after Greece broke away from the Ottoman state in 1829- increased the strategic importance of the region even further. In addition to grape and distillery produce, shipping to distant ports and in particular the Greek ports constituted a significant source of the island’s income. The developments that occurred in the Balkans and lack of power since the end of the 19th century in conjunction with the Greek and Armenian movements within the Ottoman Empire gave birth to a new form of illegal economy-arms trafficking-on the Marmara Islands. We see that this illegal activity intensified significantly after the Russo-Turkish War during the reign of Abdulhamid II and the Second Constitutional era. This study will be focusing on the periods of Abdulhamid II and the Second Constitution, examining the illegal arms trade, the reasons for the Marmara Islands being the center of this illegal trade, and the political and administrative initiatives of the Ottoman State to prevent this trade.

From the Late Ottoman Empire to the Single-Party Era. The Changing Traits of Premature Turkish Populism

Populism, one of the six fundamental pillars of Kemalist ideology, officially entered the Turkish constitution in 1937. However, its origins date back to the II. Meşrutiyet Dönemi (Second Constitutional Era) of the Ottoman Empire. Yusuf Akçura, Ahmet Ağaoğlu, and Hüseyinzade Ali, the intellectuals of the II. Meşrutiyet Dönemi, formulated Turkish populism under the influence of Russian Narodniki, although this concept was interpreted differently during and after the single-party era. Many studies assume that Turkish populism is a rigid and unchangeable concept. However, despite this assumption, it has continually renewed itself and reflected the economic and social conditions of the period. Thus, this study aims to demonstrate how the understanding and practice of populism have changed from the late Ottoman Empire period to the single-party era.

A Postmodern Perspective of Istanbul in the Second Constitutional Era: “In the City of Shadows and Dreams”

Edebi türlerdeki en önemli unsurlardan biri olan mekân, kimi zaman olay ve kurgunun önüne geçerek aktif bir role bürünür. Tanzimat edebiyatında ön plana çıkan mekân unsuru, modern dönemde çeşitli amaçlarla adeta başkahraman konumuna gelmiş, romanın mekânı kimi zaman “mekânın romanı” hâline dönüşmüştür. Pek çok sanatçı ve aydına ilham kaynağı olan İstanbul, hem tarihî arka planı hem de kozmopolit yapısı nedeniyle bu tür mekânların başında gelir. 20. yüzyılın sonlarında edebiyat dünyasına katılan ve postmodernist çizgide eserler veren isimlerden biri olarak Murat Gülsoy, tarihsel türdeki tek romanı “Gölgeler ve Hayaller Şehrinde” adlı eserinde İkinci Meşrutiyet dönemini işlemiştir. Türk fikir dünyasının önemli aydınlarından olan Beşir Fuat’ın oğlu Fuat’ın, arkadaşı Alex’e yazdığı mektuplarla kurgulanmış olan eserde yıllar sonra ülkesine dönen bir Türk’ün gözünden 1908-1909 yılları arasındaki İstanbul ele alınır. Şehrin adım adım dolaşılıp mektuplar aracılığıyla kaydedilmesiyle eser, bir seyahatname hüviyetine büründürülür. Gülsoy “Gölgeler ve Hayaller Şehrinde” adlı eserinde bir şehrin romanını yazmış, şehre adeta bir şahsiyet atfetmiştir. Tarihi olayların, kültürel değerler ve halk anlatılarıyla harmanlandığı bu romanda İstanbul, meşrutiyet hazırlıkları ve sonrasındaki haliyle hem iç, hem de dış mekânlarıyla birlikte canlı bir biçimde resmedilmiştir. Çalışmada postmodernist metinde mekân kavramı tarihsel algı üzerinden değerlendirilecek, Paris’te yetişmiş bir Türk gencinin gözünden İkinci Meşrutiyet döneminin İstanbul’u irdelenecektir.

To migrate or not to migrate: the effect of institutional reforms on immigration decisions of Ottoman citizens to the US

ABSTRACT In the age of mass migration, the US became economically crucial with the development of Atlantic trade and attracted labour flows from the rest of the world. Meanwhile, the Ottoman Empire was suffering severe economic and political problems. The Ottoman citizens of various ethnic origins, such as Turks, Jews, Armenians and Arabs, moved to different countries, including the US, for economic and political reasons. This paper examines the effect of institutional reforms in the Ottoman Empire during the Second Constitutional Era on immigration decisions of different ethnic groups to the US. Data come from the US census data of IPUMS (the Integrated Public Use Microdata Series) for 1910. The empirical results show that the institutional reforms could reduce emigration from the Ottoman Empire through granting additional civil liberties. However, this effect works heterogeneously for different ethnic groups. This result points out the importance of institutional improvements in home countries on reducing migration outflows.

Criminalization, Securitization and other Forms of Illegalizing Indigenous Contestations in Chile: Responses from Constitutional Law and Inter-American Jurisprudence on Mapuche People’s Rights

AbstractThis article critically examines the contemporary ‘securitization paradigm’ adopted throughout the Chilean jurisdiction. Emphasis is placed on its explicit misuse and its arbitrary effects on the Mapuche people in light of Chile’s anti-terrorism legislation. The law thereby assumes a twofold function. ‘Judicialization strategies’ are employed by different organs of the State, resulting in the criminalization and ultimately the silencing of indigenous protest and forms of representation in the public space. These potentially transform relations between the State and its subjects, demanding a repositioning of indigenous agendas and representation under the constitutional umbrella. Conversely, judicialization also assumes a mediating role through the virtuous effects of international law and Inter-American human rights jurisprudence. The newly commencing constitutional era may further spur such developments, potentially exerting essential decolonizing effects on State institutions and society at large.

Shīʿī Ideas of Slavery: A Study of Iran in the Qājar Era Before and After the Constitutional Revolution

The wave of struggle againstthe slave trade which began in eighteenth century Europe reached the Middle East and countries in Persian Gulf in the nineteenth century. In its efforts to end slave trade, Britain concluded treaties with Ottomans, sheikhs in Oman, and the king of Masqat. This concentrated the trade of enslaved Black people from Africa in Iran. The study of this period in Iran is important because Muḥammad Shāh, the then ruler in Iran, believed that since any order that bans the slave trade is against Islam, concluding any accord in this regard was beyond his control and was related to sharī ͑a. This Essay discusses and compares the opinions of Shīʿī scholars in the Qājar era, when the question of the abolition of slavery was first posed via British diplomatic channels, and subsequently during the Constitutional Revolution 1905 (Enghelāb-e Mashrūteh), to see if the introduction of Human Rights concepts at the time had any effect on fatwas about slave trade. This is done by the study of historical documents, including royal correspondence, exchange of letters among Shīʿī scholars, and scholarly fatwas. This Essay argues that jurisprudential opinions continued to regard slavery as permissible within the sharīʿa despite political and diplomatic pressures to abolish it and despite the importance of the principles of freedom and equality in the Constitutional era.

Shīʿī Ideas of Slavery: A Study of Iran in the Qājar Era Before and After the Constitutional Revolution

The wave of struggle againstthe slave trade which began in eighteenth century Europe reached the Middle East and countries in Persian Gulf in the nineteenth century. In its efforts to end slave trade, Britain concluded treaties with Ottomans, sheikhs in Oman, and the king of Masqat. This concentrated the trade of enslaved Black people from Africa in Iran. The study of this period in Iran is important because Muḥammad Shāh, the then ruler in Iran, believed that since any order that bans the slave trade is against Islam, concluding any accord in this regard was beyond his control and was related to sharī ͑a. This Essay discusses and compares the opinions of Shīʿī scholars in the Qājar era, when the question of the abolition of slavery was first posed via British diplomatic channels, and subsequently during the Constitutional Revolution 1905 (Enghelāb-e Mashrūteh), to see if the introduction of Human Rights concepts at the time had any effect on fatwas about slave trade. This is done by the study of historical documents, including royal correspondence, exchange of letters among Shīʿī scholars, and scholarly fatwas. This Essay argues that jurisprudential opinions continued to regard slavery as permissible within the sharīʿa despite political and diplomatic pressures to abolish it and despite the importance of the principles of freedom and equality in the Constitutional era.

Contracts in restraint of trade: Pacta sunt servanda and constitutional values: From Magna Alloys to Beadica

Since the advent of the constitutional era, the law of contract and the maxim pacta sunt servanda have been the subject of much jurisprudential discourse. Restraint of trade agreements have, on occasion, been regarded by our courts as distinct from other contracts, with some judges believing that such contracts should be treated with more circumspection and outside the confines of the principles applicable in our law of contract. In Magna Alloys the Appellate Division laid down the general principle that, prima facie, contracts in restraint of trade are valid and enforceable. The employee bears the onus of showing that the restraint is unreasonable and contrary to public policy. Some jurists believe, however, that the application of constitutional principles requires a revision of our jurisprudence in relation to contracts in restraint of trade. This article analyses some of the judgments dealing with the concept of pacta sunt servanda and the application of constitutional values in the decision-making process, and shows that there is no need to cavil against the existing jurisprudence and to treat contracts in restraint of trade as sui generis or more stringently. Although most of the authorities quoted in this article deal with our law of contract in general, such principles have been held by the Supreme Court of Appeal and the Constitutional Court to apply equally to contracts in restraint of trade.

The influence of Bato Star Fishing (Pty) Ltd v Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism and Others in shaping South African Tax Administration

Before the commencement of the constitutional state era (due to the promulgation of the Constitution of the Republic South Africa, 1996 (‘the Constitution’)) in South Africa, taxpayers’ rights were not protected when taxpayers engaged with the revenue office, now known as the South African Revenue Service (SARS). Taxpayers had no right to just administrative action and could not challenge the exercise of SARS’ powers on administrative grounds. Croome and Olivier argue correctly that during the pre-constitutional era, taxpayers were entitled to expect that SARS would comply with the general principles of administrative law, comprising the principles of audi alteram partem (‘hear the other side’), nemo iudex in sua propria (‘no one may be a judge in his own cause’) and the commonlaw principles of judicial review of administrative acts (see Croome & Olivier, Tax Administration (Juta 2010) 21). Further, SARS was not obliged to provide reasons to taxpayers for decisions taken by them as long as the decisions were reached in accordance with its wide legislative powers (see Croome & Olivier, (Juta 2010) 21). This means that taxpayers did not have any ammunition to challenge the exercise of SARS’ powers on administrative grounds prior to the commencement of the constitutional era, where no reasons were provided. The position mentioned above has changed and SARS’ actions can now be measured against the fundamental rights entrenched in Chapter 2 of the Constitution and the administrative principles laid down in the case of Bato Star Fishing (Pty) Ltd v Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism and Others 2004 (4) SA 490 (CC) (‘Bato Star Fishing’).

Early signs of polyphony in constitutional literature: a case study of carnival elemnts in charand parand by Ali Akbar Dehkhoda

Among the notable literary texts that emerged during the Iranian constitutional period for criticizing tyranny and monopoly in political, social, and cultural affairs was Charand Parand by Ali Akbar Dehkhoda. It was a significant text due to the realistic depiction of both formal and informal political discourses. The importance of this article which is based on discourse theory lies in how it challenges the dominant discourse of power in Dehkhoda's work. The purpose of this research is to apply the theory of dialogism and the role of Bakhtin's carnival elements in Charand Parand, in order to study the polyphonic category and the role of carnival elements in creating a polyphonic atmosphere and confronting authoritarian discourse. The article attempts to answers the question: how the Cognitive stylistics methods provide the liberal writer of constitutional era with opportunities to speak and be heard forand of spoken and marginalized discourses and voices.

Developing Jurisprudence beyond the Horizon

This paper scrutinises the Supreme Court decision that nullified Kenya’s presidential election in 2017. It emphasises that, thanks to judicialisation of politics in Kenya’s current constitutional era, the judiciary is placed at the centre of resolving electoral disputes. Basing arguments on articles 20 and 38 of the 2010 Constitution, the paper draws attention to the shortfalls in the Supreme Court’s reasoning in its decision to nullify the election. It is suggested that, a proper right-centric approach, one that is conscious of the people’s sovereign will in a political democratic process, would have led the court to question whether the election result expressed the will of the electorate. Thus, it is argued that the precedent’s standard on nullification of an election has proved inadequate and has eroded the institutional integrity of the Court. With an eye on the next general elections, recommendations are made on how the Supreme Court may improve this condition.

National Creditors: National and Local Banks (Establishment Environment, Capital Structures, Political Links)

The practice of establishing joint-stock companies as a means to of economic development dates as far back to the pre-Tanzimat period in the Ottoman Empire. This idea gained wider currency during the Second Constitutional Era.
 The period in question witnessed a remarkable increase in the number of newly-established companies, which also included banks. Thus, the present study is intended to analyze these banks within the framework of the National Economy (Milli İktisat) policies and state-market relations adopted under the Committee of Union and Progress CUP rule.
 As its methodology, the study adopts a selective analysis of banks established in line with the National Economy policies. In this respect, it examined the organizational structure, origin and objectives of banks, regions and their interactions with their respective host communities and regions by the basis of the prevailing economic policies of the period.

A MISSED OPPORTUNITY TO SETTLE THE LAW ON DNA TESTING IN PATERNITY DISPUTES YD (now M) v LB 2010 6 SA 338 (SCA)

On 17 September 2010, in (YD (Now M) v LB (2010 6 SA 338 (SCA)), the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) unanimously delivered what should have been a ground-breaking decision in the use of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) testing for paternity disputes. This was an appeal against the decision of Murphy J, in order to determine the child’s paternity. An order for DNA tests was granted by the court a quo against the mother and her daughter, Y, to determine whether Mr LB (B) was the biological father of Y in the case of unmarried persons. If the tests proved that he was the father, he would then be entitled to full parental rights. This judgment should have been ground-breaking for two main reasons. First, YD was the first SCA judgment dealing with the use of scientific tests in paternity disputes. Until then, different provincial divisions had reached different conclusions on the court’s power to compel either a minor or an adult to submit to the tests. Thus, YD was an ideal opportunity for the SCA to unify “the provincial divisions”, that is, to bring certainty of law regarding DNA testing for paternity disputes. Second, the decision came at a time of the constitutional era and the era of the Children’s Act (38 of 2005) with its section 37, which deals with parties not willing to submit to DNA testing in paternity disputes. In particular, section 37 is meant to be a statutory intervention seeking to achieve a compromise position where the court is faced with the evil of having to force a recalcitrant adult to submit himself or the minor child, against his or her will, for testing where paternity is disputed. Hence, this was an opportunity for the SCA to put section 37, which had not been tested before a court of law, into perspective. However, the court missed this golden opportunity. Therefore, the purpose of this note is to provide a critical analysis of the SCA’s decision of YD. It begins with a brief overview of the legal position prior to the judgment of YD and concludes by reviewing the possible effects of the YD judgment.

Muhibbân Dergisinin II. Meşrutiyet Dönemi Sosyal Hadiselerine Yaklaşımı

When the Abdülhamid’s despotic rule was abandoned, freedom of the press in the Second Constitutional Era’s earlier times paved the way for the emergence of numerous periodicals. The newspaper Muhibbân owned and edited by Hacıbeyzâde Ahmed Muhtar [Yeğtaş], a baba of the Bektashi Order, was one of the periodicals, which was born in 4 September 1909 in Istanbul, covering topics ranging from religion, literature, mysticism (Ṣūfī in this context), to sociology. In this study, Muhibbân’s 26 issues published in the three periods of publication were examined regarding the newspaper’s attitude towards social life in the Second Constitutional Era and social events. Our study concluded that the newspaper created by the Alevi and Bektashi tradition tried to favor Bektashism, embraced ethnic and sectarian diversity, had a tolerant publication policy, and presented social events of the time. It had news about news from tekke (dervish lodges) and ṭarīqas (the Ṣūfī paths) and events such as weddings, funerals, fires, and strikes in Ottoman society. This shows that the newspaper placed importance on actuality. Muhibbân, which also had an interest in events taking place outside of the Ottoman Empire, approached these events in terms of Islam, ṭarīqa, freedom of religion and praying. In accordance with the journalism mentality of the time, it used to publish articles written in plain and clear Turkish so that everyone can understand. It strongly criticized Abdulhamid the Second and this era since it supported Constitutional Administration. It advocated that problems within society should be solved by law and justice.Keywords: Second Constitutional Era, Muhibbân, Alevi and Bektashi, Social Events, Hacıbeyzâde Ahmed Muhtar.

State-Yazidi Relationships in the Ottoman Empire Regarding Obedience, Belief and Military

State-Yazidi Relationships in the Ottoman Empire Regarding Obedience, Belief and Military Abstract Yazidis or Ezidis are a Kurdish speaking religion group, living in the Sheyhan and Sinjar region around Mosul as well as rural areas of Diyarbakır, Urfa and Mardin. Yazidism is an ethno-religious faith, which is specific to certain families and in which any person out of this belief is not accepted. There are still unresolved debates about when and by whom Yazidism was founded, its origin, and basic belief figures. Islamic scholars argue that the Yezidism was founded by the community known as Adeviye Sect, maintained by the followers of Adi. b. Müsafir,(555/1160) a Sunni sufi, after his death but then deviated from the belief of Islam in time and became an aberrant religion. Some also claim that this belief has survived as a remnant of Iranian religions such as Zarathustra, Mani and Mithraism (Mihrperest). The Ottoman Empire, occupied the surrounding of Mosul and Diyarbekir in 1514, started to have relationships with the Yazidis. Following this date, the state-Yezidi relationships in the Ottoman Empire regarding obedience, belief and military started. When the Yazidis followed the rules specified by the state, they were granted agricultural lands and areas, and they were accepted to be citizens. However, when they did not obey and revolted, they were accused of being disbeliever, not performing prayers and being aberrant, for this reason, they were punished. In this regard, the attitude of the state towards heterodox groups was determined not by religion and belief, but rather by sovereignty and obedience in the classical period of the Ottoman Empire. With the period of Tanzimat, the state-Yazidi relationships, which was centered on obedience, was first transformed into “Ottomanism”, in which all citizens were accepted equal based on belief and military, and then Pan Islamism. Yazidi clergymen and leading figures refused to join the military by urging that their religion did not allow this. Faith and belief were at that time essential for the Ottoman Empire-Yazidi relationships, which was previously based on obedience and revolt. A number of projects were performed for communities and groups which were wanted to be included in the Pan-Islamism and prevent them from being targeted by foreign interventions. In this respect, in addition to the activities of heyet-i tefhimiye, fırka-i ıslahiye, irşad committees, religious education, school and mosque construction activities were initiated. The offer of the Yazidis to solve military problems by paying a certain amount of money like Christians and Jews was not accepted by the state. After the second constitutional era, the demands of the Yazidis regarding a treatment such as exemption from military service in return for jizya or paid military service as a separate religion like Christians and Jews began to be discussed among the Ottoman bureaucrats and administrators. They stated that the group declaring themselves as Yezidi and believing in this respect had to be accepted as Yazidi in accordance with religious and sect freedom, the State had to recognize the religion of the Yazidis and their spiritual leaders had to benefit from the laws applicable for the spiritual leaders of non-Muslim groups. In this article, it is sought to answer the belief problems of the Yazidis and the question of whether the factor of obedience or belief were more determinant in Ottoman-Yazidi relationships. In this research it is claimed that in the classical period when the Ottoman Empire was powerful, its attitude towards the peripheral belief groups and communities was determined by obedience, not by religion and belief. After the Tanzimat, when the external pressures were dominant, these groups were tried to be included in the center by correcting their beliefs by means of military services. This article is divided into three parts: In the first part, the founder and naming of the Yazidi belief, which constitute the main problem of their history, will be examined. In this context, this section will discuss their relations with Satan and Yazid figures, which they define with a different physiognomy. The second part will analyse the Ottoman-Yazidi encounter in the classical period. The third part will focus on military service, which became the main problem in the state-Yezidi relations after the Tanzimat era. The contradictions in the beliefs of the Yazidis also an important part of this article. Therefore, the mühimme defters and the other archive documents were also used in this study to understand the Ottoman Empire's approach to Yazidis and the other-similar heretic groups in the classical and the Tanzimat period. This article will fill an important gap by comparing the functioning of the Ottoman state mechanism in the classical and Tanzimat era. Keywords: .