Omari Gates
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan sparked outrage in Australia and New Zealand after a series of controversial comments in 2019. In the wake of the Christchurch mosque shooting, Erdogan claimed that the attack was part of an assault on Turkey and Islam, and warned that anti-Muslim Australians would be sent back in coffins as their ancestors had been during the First World War Gallipoli campaign. The comments were deemed highly offensive and reckless by Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, who summoned Turkey's ambassador and demanded a retraction. Erdogan's remarks also drew criticism from New Zealand, with Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters travelling to Turkey to raise concerns. Despite widespread condemnation, Erdogan stood by his statements, arguing that Western nations needed to address rising Islamophobia and ensure the safety of Muslim communities.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Nature of Comments | Offensive, reckless, incendiary, inflammatory, and anti-Islamophobic |
| Reason for Comments | Erdogan was campaigning for local elections |
| Target Countries | Australia and New Zealand |
| Comments | Erdogan suggested that Australia and New Zealand had sent troops to fight in the First World War's Gallipoli campaign due to their opposition to Islam. He also said that anyone who comes to Turkey with anti-Muslim sentiments would be sent back in coffins "like their grandfathers were" during the Gallipoli campaign. |
| Countries' Response | Australia and New Zealand summoned the Turkish ambassador and demanded that Erdogan take back his comments. |
| Erdogan's Response | Erdogan said that his words were taken out of context. |
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What You'll Learn
Erdogan's comments on the Christchurch mosque shooting
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan made several comments about the Christchurch mosque shooting, sparking an acute diplomatic spat with New Zealand and Australia. In the wake of the attack, Erdogan presented the incident as part of an assault on Turkey and Islam, drawing comparisons to attacks carried out by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, ISIS). He also warned that anti-Muslim Australians would be "sent back in coffins" like their ancestors during the First World War's Gallipoli campaign.
Erdogan's comments were in response to the Christchurch mosque shooting, where a self-avowed white supremacist from Australia killed 50 worshippers at two mosques. The attacker live-streamed the attack and spread a manifesto on social media, claiming it was an assault against Muslim "invaders". Erdogan denounced the rising hatred and prejudice against Islam, showing excerpts of the attacker's video to thousands of people at his rallies. He also aired the video on Turkish television, despite efforts by New Zealand to halt its spread.
The Turkish President's comments sparked outrage in Australia and New Zealand, with Prime Minister Scott Morrison of Australia and Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern of New Zealand condemning the remarks as "highly offensive" and "reckless". Morrison summoned the Turkish ambassador and demanded that Erdogan take back his comments. He also cautioned that travel advice for Turkey was under review. Similarly, Ardern sent Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters to Turkey to raise concerns about Erdogan's comments and "set the record straight".
Erdogan's remarks about the Christchurch mosque shooting were part of a larger narrative he has promoted, accusing Western nations of rising Islamophobia and a lack of concern for the safety of Muslim communities. In an opinion piece in the Washington Post, Erdogan called on Western leaders to learn from New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and embrace Muslims living in their respective countries. He also compared the Christchurch attacker to the Islamic State group, stating that there is “no difference between them."
The controversy surrounding Erdogan's comments highlights ongoing tensions between Turkey, Australia, and New Zealand, particularly regarding the interpretation of the Gallipoli campaign during World War I. While Erdogan claimed that the involvement of Australian and New Zealand troops in Gallipoli was due to their opposition to Islam, officials from both countries strongly rejected this notion, considering it an insult to the memory of their soldiers and a violation of the pledge of friendship made by the founder of modern Turkey, Kemal Ataturk.
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The Gallipoli campaign and WWI
In 2019, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan made comments that were deemed offensive by the Australian Prime Minister, Scott Morrison. Erdogan suggested that Australia and New Zealand had sent troops to fight in the First World War's Gallipoli campaign due to their opposition to Islam. He also warned that anti-Muslim Australians would be "sent back in coffins" as their ancestors had been at Gallipoli.
The Gallipoli campaign was a military campaign during World War I, fought on the Gallipoli Peninsula in the Dardanelles Straits from February 1915 to January 1916. The campaign was led by the Entente powers, including Britain, France, and the Russian Empire, against the Ottoman Empire, one of the Central Powers. The goal was to take control of the Turkish Straits, expose the Ottoman capital of Constantinople to bombardment, and cut it off from the Asian part of the empire.
The campaign began with an amphibious landing on the peninsula in April 1915, with troops from Australia and New Zealand (ANZAC) setting up camps. The invasion force faced strong Ottoman defences, including gun emplacements and minefields, and suffered heavy casualties. Despite reinforcements from Britain and its Dominions, little progress was made, and the campaign resulted in a costly failure for the Entente powers.
The Gallipoli campaign holds a significant place in the collective memory of Australia and New Zealand, with annual commemorations and memorials honouring those who fought and died. It is also considered a defining moment in Turkish history, leading to the Turkish War of Independence and the founding of the Republic of Turkey in 1923. Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, who rose to prominence as a commander at Gallipoli, became the founder and president of the new republic.
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Rising Islamophobia in Western nations
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan sparked a diplomatic row with Australia and New Zealand in 2019 when he made comments about the Christchurch mosque shooting, which he framed as an attack on Turkey and Islam. Erdogan also warned that anti-Muslim Australians would return in "coffins" like their ancestors who fought in the First World War's Gallipoli campaign. In response, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison summoned Turkey's ambassador and demanded a retraction from Erdogan, calling his comments "highly offensive" and "highly reckless".
Erdogan's comments come in the context of rising Islamophobia in Western nations. This phenomenon has been attributed to various factors, including quasi-racialist stereotypes proliferated by Western media, the "war on terror" campaign, and the rise of Islamic extremist groups. The term "Islamophobia" entered common usage following the publication of the Runnymede Trust's report in 1997, with Kofi Annan asserting in 2004 that the word had to be coined to address "increasingly widespread bigotry". During the Yugoslav Wars in the 1990s, Serbian far-right militants incited by Slobodan Milošević's Islamophobic rhetoric, perpetrated a genocide against Bosniak Muslims.
Islamophobia has been described as a "phobia" of multiculturalism and the transruptive effect that Islam can have in Western societies. It often manifests as religious intolerance, harassment, violence, and incitement against Muslims. Islamophobia has risen to "alarming levels" globally, according to UN experts, with Muslims reporting feeling disrespected by those in the West. In Europe, each country has anti-Muslim political figures, and Wolfram Richter, a professor of economics, warned that Europe might repeat its historical mistakes, stating, "My main fear is that what we did to Jews we may now do to Muslims. The next holocaust would be against Muslims."
In light of these rising tensions, Erdogan called on Western nations to address Islamophobia and ensure the safety of their Muslim communities. While his comments were criticised by Australia and New Zealand, they also sparked conversations about the need to foster respect, tolerance, and equal treatment for Muslims in Western societies.
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The video of the Christchurch attack
On March 15, 2019, Brenton Tarrant, a 28-year-old Australian far-right extremist, live-streamed a video on Facebook as he fatally shot 51 people in two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand. The video, which was filmed on a Go Pro camera attached to Tarrant's head, showed Tarrant killing 50 people and injuring several others. Three Turkish nationals were among those wounded. Before opening fire, Tarrant shouted "Subscribe to PewDiePie", referencing a meme about keeping the YouTube star as the most-subscribed-to channel on the platform.
The video was quickly replicated and shared widely on other platforms, including YouTube and Twitter. Many people were angry that media outlets published the footage, and Facebook said it removed 1.5 million versions of the video in the first 24 hours after the attack. However, copies are still being uploaded to YouTube faster than they can be removed.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan showed excerpts of the video at campaign rallies, despite widespread criticism and efforts by New Zealand to halt its spread. Erdogan used the video to denounce what he called rising hatred and prejudice against Islam and to criticise New Zealand and Australia for sending troops to Turkey in the Gallipoli campaign during World War I. He also warned anti-Muslim Australians that they would be "sent back in coffins" like their grandfathers at Gallipoli.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison condemned Erdogan's use of the video and his "highly offensive" and "reckless" comments. Morrison summoned the Turkish ambassador and said Erdogan's remarks insulted the memory of Anzacs and violated a pledge made by the founder of modern Turkey, Kemal Ataturk. New Zealand's Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters also travelled to Turkey to raise concerns about Erdogan's comments and the video.
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The legacy of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk
Mustafa Kemal Ataturk was a Turkish field marshal, revolutionary statesman, and the founding father of the Republic of Turkey. Serving as its first president from 1923 until his death in 1938, Ataturk is widely regarded as the father of modern Turkey, having led the country through a period of sweeping reforms and modernisation following the defeat of the Ottoman Empire in World War I.
Ataturk's reforms, known as Kemalism, transformed Turkey into a secular, industrialising nation. He altered virtually every aspect of Turkish life, from women's suffrage and fashion to the Muslim call to prayer and the constitution. Ataturk's ideology was rooted in patriotism blended with humanist ideals, and he believed that "culture is the foundation of the Turkish Republic". He promoted the study of pre-Islamic Turkish cultures and civilisations, such as the Phrygians, Lydians, Sumerians, and Hittites, even naming banks after them to attract public attention to Turkey's past.
Ataturk's legacy is complex and multifaceted. On the one hand, he is revered by many Turks as the founder of the Turkish Republic, with his ideas and legacy forming the "beating heartbeat of the republic". His role in securing the Ottoman victory at the Battle of Gallipoli during World War I further solidified his importance in Turkish history.
On the other hand, Ataturk's aggressive secularism and the banishment of Islam from public life have been criticised by some. In recent years, there has been a debate about his legacy, with the rise of the religiously conservative AK Party, which has chipped away at some of his anti-Islamic policies.
Ataturk's legacy extends beyond Turkey's borders as well. In the context of the Christchurch mosque shooting in New Zealand, Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison accused Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of betraying Ataturk's promise to forge peace between their two nations. Erdogan's comments, which invoked the Gallipoli campaign and suggested that Australia and New Zealand had sent troops due to their opposition to Islam, caused a diplomatic spat between the countries. Morrison invoked Ataturk's pledge etched at Gallipoli, which honoured the memory of those buried there, regardless of their origin.
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Frequently asked questions
Turkish President Erdogan accused Australians of invading Turkey during the First World War because of a fear and hatred of Islam, and warned that anti-Muslim Australians would be "sent back in coffins" as their grandfathers were at Gallipoli.
Australians were aghast at Erdogan's comments, with Prime Minister Scott Morrison summoning Turkey's ambassador and demanding that Erdogan take his comments back. Morrison also cautioned that travel advice for Turkey was under review.
No, Erdogan did not apologise. Instead, he doubled down on his comments, saying that Australia and other Western nations needed to tackle Islamophobia and ensure the safety of Muslim communities.
