Transformation of Islamic political identity in Turkey: Rethinking the West and westernization

Abstract:

As opposition to the West and westernization used to be the basis of Islamic political identity in modern Turkey, the recent effort of the Islamists at rethinking this historical positioning, it is argued, has paved the way for the emergence of a new form of Islamic identity as reflected in the program and practice of the ruling Justice and Development Party. Thus this study, first, explains how the positioning of the Islamists vis-à-vis the West and westernization constructed an Islamic political identity; then explores the circumstances that led the Islamists to reconsider their positioning; and finally evaluates the impact of this discursive shift on the identity formation and policy orientation of the ruling Justice and Development Party.