On the evening of January 10, I was on my way to Bitez because I was going to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Progressive Youth Association (İGD) in Bodrum, and perhaps to see my struggle friends whom I had not seen for 46 years. İGD was founded on January 5, 1976, maybe it was a commemoration mixed with a celebration five days late, but the organizers of the event did a very good thing, thank you...
Like everywhere else, especially in many districts of the Aegean, there are thousands of socialists who have come of age. Some of them are active in politics, most of them are ‘self-developing’ in their own belated way, and some of them are just living in one way or another. In Bodrum, most of those who are active in politics are in the Left Party...
This is a topic for a separate article, but let me tell the history of a struggle as logically as possible and at the same time mixed with my own inner longing. When I was 14-15 years old, in 1978, I joined the Progressive High School Students, not to pursue a utopia, but to fight against a system I hated... Let me state right away that I have never experienced such regret, as someone who watched with disgust the soggy conversations of some old leftists who had integrated into the system, talking about the ‘futile struggle' after two doubles and telling half-faked heroic stories on the fourth double.
I have no regrets and a lot of self-criticism!...
Starting before 1980, I continued this organized struggle during and after the ’September 12 Military Dictatorship’, until the United Communist Party of Turkey (TBKP) was dissolved. I said ’September 12 Military Dictatorship’, maybe some may find it strange, that was the determination of the Communist Party of Turkey (TKP) and we adopted this determination... I still think it is a correct determination! Anyway, after the TBKP was dissolved, I continued this organized work until the establishment of the Socialist Unity Party (SBP). Frankly, I did not feel like taking part in the process of the United Socialist Party (BSP). Almost twenty years of my life started with Progressive High School Students and lasted until the closure of the TBKP. I have no regrets, I have a lot of self-criticism! The most important issue that I criticize myself mercilessly is that I lived in a drift for about ten years! That will remain on my agenda as a moral accounting until the day I die... However, I can say with peace of mind that I am glad I met Progressive High Schoolers when I was 14!
‘Urban’ and Intertwined with Society
Why is it ‘good’?... For the following reasons... The İGD was a relatively more liberal organization in its internal functioning compared to other socialist organizations. And I should say ‘urban’ as much as possible, because the village-town culture that prevailed in many other organizations was very much absent in our organization. From male-female relations to organizational hierarchy... We gave more importance to education and reading. I think there are several reasons for this; first of all, of course, being the youth branch of the TKP. This organic connection brought many advantages: For example, the slogan ‘Our path is the path of the working class’ was more than just a slogan. Before 1980, we used to support strike preparations in the unions, we knew the struggle of the workers to some extent... Maybe this is how we were able to stay away from uvriyerism. Kemal Türkler, the president of the Confederation of Revolutionary Trade Unions (DISK), was a member of the TKP. So were a significant number of the teachers in the Unity-Solidarity movement at TÖB-Der... We learned a lot from those teachers and rationalized our early youthful excitement thanks to them. And of course, we cannot forget the Progressive Women's Association (İKD) and Bakia Beria Onger, who ran for mayor of Istanbul and received significant votes and did exemplary election work! It is safe to say that they were the ones who brought women's rights to the agenda and popularized them, the pioneers of today's ‘egalitarian feminism'.
Both Widespread Across the Country and Committed to Real Socialism
İGD was perhaps the youth organization with the largest number of young working members. What I remember from the summer I spent in Batman in 1979, due to my father's temporary duty, is that the most organized socialist youth organization in this city, which was then a district of Siirt, was the İGD, and they acted together with the sister organization Revolutionary Eastern Culture Ocakları (DDKD). In other words, the İGD was in contact with almost all socio-cultural and socio-economic segments in one way or another...
And of course, for better or worse, we were a youth organization that followed real socialism. For this reason, both before and after the 80s, İGD was a member of the World Democratic Youth Federation (DDGF) and the International Student Union (IUU). For example, I attended a congress of the DDGF in the Republic of Cyprus... I had the opportunity to chat with many socialist youth, from Nicaraguan Sandinists to Cuban youth, from Czechs to Belgians. We knew the importance of international solidarity.
Unending Struggle After 80
In the post-1980s, Progressive High School Students and Progressive Youth were one of the only organizations that were capable of stamping, placarding and hanging banners on the streets and avenues... And we continued to organize without interruption. Thanks to this, we were able to play an important role in the establishment of student associations at universities. Let me put it this way, at the end of the 1980s, the number of Progressive Youth at Istanbul University alone was more than the number of members of many socialist parties today! The number of young people reached by our publication, the secretly printed ’İleri‘, was many times that number. And not only in high schools and universities, but also in the neighborhoods, organizing activities were going on under those difficult conditions. Let me share what I know from my own experience; we were present in Gültepe and Çağlayan, in Esenler, Soğanlı and Mahmutbey, in Ünalan, Maltepe and Kartal... Maybe we were much smaller than before the 80s, but we were there... If I am not mistaken, the number of members of İGD before the 80s was close to 50 thousand, if we include the sympathizers in the first circle. According to Alaattin Taş, who summarized the history of the İGD at the event in Bitez, the number of core cadres had reached 13,500. It didn't disappear afterwards, but according to my calculation, we could only reach one-twentieth of that number towards the end of the 80s.
Succumbing to the Spirit of the Age
So was it right for this tradition, the TKP, to dissolve itself in order to become a wider, mass party? When I look at it today, I still don't have a clear answer. The reason was the collapse of real socialism, after all, and we were part of that system! The founding efforts of the SBP, BSP and ÖDP were also for that purpose. None of them even came close to what was intended. Childhood illnesses, organizational chauvinism and ideological deformity are some of the reasons, but they are not enough. Sometimes the spirit of the age triumphs over the ‘will of steel', diluting ideologies and making them morally lumpen! I think this is what happened in the end.
Today, ILD, İGD, İKD still exist and are active... Four socialist parties and formations claiming to be the heirs of the ‘Historical TKP‘ cannot share these names. The TKP, the Workers' Party of Turkey (TİP), the Communist Movement of Turkey (TKH) and the Social Liberation Party 1920 (TKP1920)... And there are large and small organizations that claim to follow in the footsteps of the real 'Historical TKP'. It would be a shame to criticize these organizations here, without striving to do better!...
Isn't Choosing to Retire from the Struggle the Funeral Prayer of the Soul?
And I'm going to say something strange, maybe some will call it Pollyannaism, but in these years when the global system is in turmoil, maybe there is a need for such an organization again. It is time for one or more formations that are specific to today, that are definitely organized, that have filtered out the nonsense of woke culture, that have some reference to tradition and have future goals. There is a serious lack, isn't there?
And let me make another suggestion... There were more than 100 people at the hotel in Bitez last night! That's how many people were in that hotel alone, and maybe there are many more, because I know that there were people who couldn't attend the event for various reasons. That's more than the district organization of any socialist party! It is good to chant slogans like “İGD is alive, fighting”, but isn't it more beautiful that those who were once from İGD are still active in politics? Isn't it true that there are those who are active in the Left Party, TKP, TİP, TKH, TKP1920, in chambers, associations, and even in the Republican People's Party (CHP) and the Patriotic Party... Don't you like any of them? Well, then what is there to prevent another organization! You cannot retire from İGD, right? Wherever you are, there is always something to do! And for those who are more than half a century old... It is best to contribute until death!