Will spring come again?
That is the question.
March 21 is not just a date on the calendar. It is the awakening of nature, the breathing of the earth, the retreat of darkness. Newroz is the symbol of renewal, resurrection and freedom. So it is not just about the season. It is a matter of mood, a social threshold, a mentality.
Let us remember.
In the 2023 presidential election, one of the most powerful promises was “Spring will come again”. This was not just an election slogan. It was the accumulated longing of the society turned into a sentence. The longing for clean politics, the search for a unifying language, the need for hope in a society tired of tension. Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu was seen as the carrier of this feeling at that time. As a figure who brought different segments of society together around the same hope and represented the expectation of spring.
And where are we today?
Today we see that not only the government, but also the main opposition and even small opposition structures are being dragged into the same harsh, dirty, corrosive political language. The problem is no longer just who governs. The problem is that politics as a whole has lost its value.
Because politics is not only a struggle for power. It is also a matter of morality. It is a matter of style. It is a matter of boundaries. It is the decency of not doing to others what you do not want to be done to yourself. If this ground weakens, society's faith in the word as well as in the ballot box weakens. People move away not only from politicians but also from politics itself.
Let's be clear.
If there is to be a purification in politics, this will of course disturb some people. But the real danger is not being uncomfortable, but getting used to decay. Because decay does not come all at once. First the language deteriorates. Then the measure is lost. Then everything normalizes. This is exactly what we call institutional decay. Not just the wear and tear of structures, but the erosion of values from within.
Therefore, protecting institutions is not a dry defense of bureaucracy. It is protecting the backbone of the country. It is patriotism.
Of course this struggle is not easy. But history always tells us the same thing. Even the harshest winter does not last forever. This is what Newroz reminds us. Even if the darkness lasts longer, life does not stop under the ground. It quietly accumulates, gathers strength, and when the time comes, it comes to the surface.
Now the question is again before us.
Will spring come again?
The answer to this question is not only in the hands of politicians. Nor is it only in the ballot box. The answer lies in society's moral stance, its courage to defend the truth, its will not to surrender to decay.
With this in mind, I wish Newroz to be not just a celebration but an awakening.
Happy Newroz.