The journal forum: 1954-1960 in Turkey

Abstract

In the ten years (1950-1960) of Democrat Party rule in Turkey, intellectuals were obliged to create some alternative centers of power, particularly in view of government's oppressive policies towards the universities and the press. Forum Journal constituted one such center of criticism. Forum's writers -most of whom were educated in the republican regime- opposed the DP's pragmatic approach to politics and wanted to center political life on reason and to eliminate conservative attitudes. Most of the writers were from the Faculty of Political Science in Ankara University. Forum started to be published in April 1954. Forum did not aim at a struggle to acquire political power. Forum had an influence on almost the whole of the Turkish intelligentsia in the years 1954-1960. The institutions and ideas suggested by Forum were realized to a large extent with the Constitution accepted after the military intervention in the year 1960. For example, the establishment of a second chamber of the legislative assmebly -the Senate-, the constitutional court, the state planning organization, autonomous universities, independence of judges, free press, granting rights to strike and collective negotiations to workers, free opposition, the principal of social equality..etc that had all been discussed in the pages of Forum, found place in the Constitution 1961. So it is possible to claim that Forum Journal with its great contribution for the reconsolidation of the democratic regime demonstrated the higly significant role in Turkish political life. Forum writers treated the military intervention in 27 May 1960 as the liberator of Turkish democracy although it caused a temporary break in the democratic regime. This study which is based on the evaluation of Forum Journal will be a serious contribution considering the journal's support in military intervention of 1960 in Turkish political life.