Revolution in the Taksim Republic Monument

Few thousands of workers (“reasonable number” according to the Istanbul Governor), trade union members, students and political party members could gather in the Taksim Square and celebrated the May Day yesterday. Turkish media said, a taboo has been broken since 1977. Workers also put flowers to the Taksim Republic Monument and waved red flags and banners around it.

Although the monument is a symbol of the Square but many people don’t know much things about it. Especially two secret figures of the statues: the Soviet generals. Because it was also a taboo to mention about them during the Cold War era.

Mikhail Frunze, an important leader of the October Revolution, and Kliment Voroshilov, a Marshal of the Soviet Union, are standing behind the Ataturk, Ismet Inonu and Marshal Fevzi Cakmak‘s statues. What is the reason of their presence? When the Ottoman Empire was occupied after the World War I, in 1918, the Soviet Union, ruled by Lenin, gave  military aid to the Turkish National Movement against the same enemy, imperialist western countries during the Independence War. Both generals were sent by Lenin to Ankara in 1921 and they established good relations with Mustafa Kemal. They went to the battlefield, gave advises and tactics. They left the country with good wishes in 1922. General Firunze became a national hero and died in 1925 (or killed by Stalin). His comrade general Voroshilov visited Ankara in 1933 again. He defended Russia against Germany in World War II and was appointed to Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet. He died in 1969. After establishing new Republic of Turkey in 1923  Ataturk started his western style reforms in many fields. He ordered to make many statues and monuments to break taboos that had existed from Ottaman times that restricted the depiction of human form, this was done in compliance with the Islamic Rules. Italian sculptor Pietro Canonica was commisioned for several monuments including the Taksim Republic Monument in Istanbul among the others in Ankara, Izmir and Samsun. Two Soviet general’s figures, who had played active role the relationship between two countries, were added into the monument by Ataturk’s order for showing appreciation to the Soviet Union in 1928.

After World War II the political winds shifted, the old friend Soviet Union, ruled by Stalin, turned to enemy. Therefore, Turkey joined to NATO during the Cold War. To talk about communism, Marxism were banned strictly. Many people were arrested, tortured, exiled or killed because of their thoughts. Of course text books didn’t mention about the Soviet aids in the Turkish Independence War. Researchers couldn’t write about the two generals in the monument. This was totally secret and forgotten until The Popular History (Populer Tarih) Magazine was brave enough to publish an article about it in 2002, 13 years later the Berlin Wall collapsed. 

Today, talking about the two revolutionary Soviet generals’ statue is not a taboo anymore. But neither tourists, who take pictures of the monument, nor citizens, who wait for somebody in front of it, know them. Even the workers…

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Workers in Taksim

I was wrong. The government led (some) workers go to Taksim Square.

Since my childhood, on every My 1st same things have been happening. Workers want to celebrate the May Day in Taksim Square.  Because of May 1 1977 Masaccre government doesn’t let them enter to the area. When they insist police forces attack to demonstrators by batons, tear gas and water cannons. The square and it’s around turn to battle place. Same thing also happened last year.

However, the government announced that May 1st would be a holiday this year. This was a hopeful news. Maybe the Labor Day would be celebrated peacefuly in this time. When I woke up at 4 am I looked at the on-line news. Unfortunately not much things has been changed. Police were chasing, biting people and using pressurized water and tear gas again. So I published same cartoon that I drew last year: Placing Police in the Republic Monument in Taksim Square. When I sent this cartoon to my friends they loved it last year and I think it was the most powerful idea to explain the situation. The state was protecting the square that had become a taboo against worker’s movement. The monement was a symbol of the government.

After few hours sleeping I checked my e-mails. One of my friends, Soner, wrote me that Cartoonist Latif Demirci drew same idea  in Hurriyet,  Turkey’s most circulated newspaper. Actually, I knew drawing similar jokes happens many times in cartoon world but I was upset a little bit. I had been drawn the cartoon before him but I could share it with only few friends. 

In Turkey, events and agendas change so quickly. When I looked at the news about the May Day again, I saw that the government had led limited numbers of workers to the Taksim Square. Few hundreds of selected people by the worker’s unions and some politicians were around the monument. Some of them had climbed on it and waved banners and flags peacefully, in police control. So neither my cartoon nor Latif’s one were valid anymore. 

While the lucky minority was celebrating the Labor Day peacefully in the square, I knew that many people who wanted to enter to Taksim were being bitten, gassed, and arrested by the police. Then, I drew this short animation that shows out of the picture.

Obama in Iraq

Obama in Sultanahmet

*Mr. Erdogan: “I Like cats, too. But, I can’t stand their cartoons”

Lenin Statue Bombed

One of Russia’s most famous statues of Vladimir Lenin has been bombed, leaving the Bolshevik revolutionary with a gaping hole in his rear.

The bronze statue, in the city of St Petersburg, was badly damaged before dawn on Wednesday, when the blast blew a hole in Lenin’s coat.

No-one was hurt in the attack, the motive for which was unknown.

The news from BBC

The news from MSNBC

Sardine Can

Packed like sardines is an American idiom that always makes me laugh. It is a part of big city life we have to obey at rush hours. People who don’t know each other get together in a metallic vehicle, usually subway cars. I inspired from MTA for a comic story:  sardine-can

A tribute to Fukuda

Japanese  graphic designer and artist Shigeo Fukuda died on January 11. He was expert at communicating messages minimal means. “I believe that in design, 30 percent dignity, 20 percent beauty and 50 percent absurdity are necessary,” he told the design Magazine Idea. His minimal, optical and witty  work influenced many artists and designers (including me) all around the world.