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After a century-long silence, the holy liturgy served in the Armenian Sourb Khach (St. Cross) Church of Akhtamar on September 19 has extremely enraged Turkey’s nationalist forces trying to prevent the gathering of Armenians in the ancient Christian sanctuary at any cost. Nevertheless, the religious ceremony was conducted and the Armenians from different parts of the world got together in Akhtamar Island of Van to send their prayer to God. The fury of Turkish nationalists got even deeper. Chairman of Turkey’s opposition “National Movement” Party (MHP) Devlet Bahçeli made an appeal to take immediate response actions.

By the way, the party is a political branch of the “Bozkurt” right-wing extreme grouping. The organization has about 80 branches worldwide. Its activists have been charged with different terrorist actions, including the assassination attempt against the Pope Jonh Paul II in 1981, attempted by Turkish Mehmet Ali Agca.

Following the liturgy in St Cross Church, D. Bahçeli turned officially to Kars governor stating his intention to hold collective namaz with his party members at the Ani ruins October 1. Bahçeli said the collective namaz will be carried in the temple which was turned to a mosque in 1064 under the ruling of Turkish conqueror Arpaslan.

“On the first day of the Mejlis sitting, October 1, I will go to Kars to hold Friday prayer in Fetihe mosque at the Ani ruins,” Bahçeli said. According to Turkish sources, Bahçeli’s statement was even applauded by Kars governor.

So, Bahçeli is planning to travel to Ani with over 40 members of his party for collective Friday namaz…

Let’s note that Bahçeli -led initiative is not a counter blow to Armenians having served holy liturgy, neither it is a response action against Turkish leadership having permitted the liturgy, but rather it is a blow to:

1. Turkey’s constitution
2. Namaz ritual
3. Turkish people
4. The founder of the Republic of Turkey – Kemal Ataturk

To be more concise:

1. Nationalist leader’s action of collective namaz first of all contradicts to country’s basic law, Constitution. Even Turkish Minister of Culture and Tourism Ertuğrul Günay has declared it lately. Responding to Bahçeli’s unprecedented statement Günay told reporters: “In essence, such collective namaz is anti-constitutional. Turkey’s Constitution and law On Parties ban speculation on religion by political parties.”

It means Bahçeli illegally speculates on religious factor. One may also suppose that this demonstrative religious fervor is indeed merely a propaganda instrument. Parliamentary elections are due in Turkey in 2011, and Bahçeli needs to win over into his electorate Islamists who mostly used to support Erdogan’s Justice and Development party (JDP-AKP) in the elections.

2. It is generally known that many Christian sacred places – cathedrals and churches in Turkey’s administrative territory have been turned into dumps and stables. Sacred places in Ani Ruins are also in a sad condition, dirty and deserted. And Bahçeli and his supporters want to offer namaz in that dirty place, while Islam requires offering namaz in a clean place. That is why Turkish Minister of Culture and Tourism recommended Bahçeli instead of violating the constitution and religious rites to find a clean place to personally offer namaz there.

3. Bahçeli publicly voiced an intention to pray in the former cathedral turned into a mosque under Alparslan. Thus he seems to have unintentionally confirmed the historical fact that the Turkish population is not native in that region, Turkish nomadic tribes invading from Middle Asia to Asia Minor seized the lands of the local peoples.

4. By offering collective namaz at the Ani Ruins Turkish nationalists, in essence, betray their ideological leader, founder of the Republic of Turkey, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. Devlet Bahçeli and his co-partisans, in fact, openly deviate from Kemal Ataturk’s provisions, particularly, principle of secularity. The very Ataturk founded secular republic in Turkey in 1923. Ataturk carried out a series of anti-Islamic reforms – women’s emancipation, transformation of state Islamic institutions to secular organizations, introduction of Western laws, clothes, calendar, alphabet, etc. Obviously, Nationalist Movement Party’s initiative to offer collective namaz at the Ani Ruins delivers a blow to Kemalism. We can once again confirm that a new subtrend, Eurasian Kemalism has appeared, and it is an abrupt turn from Western values to Eastern.

Thus, if Devlet Bahçeli and his co-partisans offer collective namaz at the Ani Ruins on October 1, its means violation of Turkey’s Constitution, violation of namaz rituals, and betrayal of Ataturk’s principle of secularism.