Yalçın Küçük (born 1938) is a Turkish socialist writer, economist, historian and
media pundit, recognized for his historical studies on the late-Ottoman and Republican periods in the history of Turkey and Soviet economic development from a Marxist perspective and also his interest in
crypto-Judaism
Crypto-Judaism is the secret adherence to Judaism while publicly professing to be of another faith; practitioners are referred to as "crypto-Jews" (origin from Greek ''kryptos'' – , 'hidden').
The term is especially applied historically to Spani ...
in Turkey (
Sabbateanism) and criticism of the
Justice and Development Party.
Background
Küçük was born in Iskenderun. His father's ancestry is Turkoman while his mother's is Caucasian. He went to the Kabataş High School, followed by Ankara University
Ankara University () is a public university, public research university in Ankara, the capital of Turkey. It was the first higher education institution founded in Turkey after the History of the Republic of Turkey, formation of the Turkish republ ...
. He graduated in 1960 with a degree in political science
Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...
.[
]
Career
His first job was in the State Planning Board, where he eventually oversaw the Long Term Planning department. In 1966 he found a position at the Middle East Technical University
Middle East Technical University (commonly referred to as METU; in Turkish language, Turkish, ''Orta Doğu Teknik Üniversitesi'', ODTÜ) is a prestigious public university, public Institute of technology, technical university located in Ankara, ...
. He was fired after the 1971 coup. Before the coup he wrote calling for a "Socialist Revolution" and a socialist administration in Turkey in the leftist publications '' Yön'', ''Emek'', ''Ant
Ants are Eusociality, eusocial insects of the Family (biology), family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the Taxonomy (biology), order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from Vespoidea, vespoid wasp ancestors in the Cre ...
''.[ He is also well known for his bitter criticisms of another strategy called " National Democratic Revolution" ().
In 1973, he became a reserve officer at the Polatlı Artillery school (military service is compulsory in Turkey) and served in the 1974 Turkish military operation in Cyprus. Afterward he ran the economy department of the establishment newspaper, '']Cumhuriyet
''Cumhuriyet'' (; English: "Republic") is the oldest up-market Turkish daily newspaper. It has been described as "the most important independent public interest newspaper in contemporary Turkey". The newspaper was awarded the ''Freedom of Press ...
''.[ He also ran the economy bulletin of the Anka news agency.][
He soon devoted himself to leftist causes, such as editing the newspaper ''Yürüyüş'' and relaunching of the Workers Party of Turkey (). The party kicked him and some others out in 1978; so, they launched a magazine called ''Socialist Power'' () the next year.][
In 1979 he joined ]Ankara University
Ankara University () is a public university, public research university in Ankara, the capital of Turkey. It was the first higher education institution founded in Turkey after the History of the Republic of Turkey, formation of the Turkish republ ...
but was again dismissed after the next coup, in 1980. He returned to academia at Gazi University
Gazi University () is a Public university, public research university located primarily in Ankara, Turkey.
It was founded in 1926 by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk originally as the Gazi Education Institute (Turkish language, Turkish: ''Gazi Eğitim Ens ...
, and retired in 1987.[
]
Retirement
In his retirement he continued to write for ''Social Deliverance'' () and ''Always Forward'' (). In 1993 he interviewed the leader of the Kurdistan Workers' Party
The Kurdistan Workers' Party, or the PKK, isDespite the PKK's 12th Congress announcing plans for total organisational dissolution, the PKK has not yet been dissolved de facto or de jure. a Kurds, Kurdish militant political organization and armed ...
, Abdullah Öcalan
Abdullah Öcalan ( ; ; born 4 April 1948 or 1949), also known as Apo (short for Abdullah in Turkish; Kurdish for "uncle"), is a founding member of the militant Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).
Öcalan was based in Syria from 1979 to 1998. He ...
in Syria's Bekaa Valley. Numerous photographs were leaked depicting Öcalan providing Küçük with a tour of the camp, and dining with him.[
Küçük's photographs with Abdullah Öcalan were in fact published in his own books and journals edited by Küçük himself in the 1990s during his contact with PKK. He asserted on various TV channels and in interviews that these photographs were neither secret nor a cause for shame. As a social scientist and a socialist he analyzed what he claimed was the most powerful insurgency against the Turkish state. Kurdish political organizations other than the PKK claimed that Küçük "Kemalized" Öcalan by persuading him to turn his back on separatism.
He left for ]Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
in 1993 as a protest against president Süleyman Demirel
Sami Süleyman Gündoğdu Demirel (; 1 November 1924 – 17 June 2015) was a Turkish people, Turkish politician, engineer, and statesman who served as the List of Presidents of Turkey, 9th President of Turkey from 1993 to 2000. He previously serv ...
and the fact that a brothel owner, Matild Manukyan, was the highest taxpayer, but returned after the 1997 "post-modern" coup. However, he was sentenced to two years in prison for spreading separatist propaganda (his interviews with Öcalan). He briefly had a show on Sky Türk called ''Pens and Swords'' () but it got pulled allegedly after complaints from the government and the former chief of general staff, Yaşar Büyükanıt
General Mehmet Yaşar Büyükanıt (1 September 1940 – 21 November 2019) was the 25th Chief of the Turkish General Staff of the Turkish Armed Forces, from 28 August 2006 to 28 August 2008.
Biography
General Yaşar Büyükanıt was born in Is ...
.[
His houses in Karakusunlar, ]Ankara
Ankara is the capital city of Turkey and List of national capitals by area, the largest capital by area in the world. Located in the Central Anatolia Region, central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5,290,822 in its urban center ( ...
and Balat, Istanbul
Istanbul is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, constituting the country's economic, cultural, and historical heart. With Demographics of Istanbul, a population over , it is home to 18% of the Demographics ...
were searched in January 2009 in the context of the ongoing Ergenekon investigation. His lawyer, Dursun Ermiş, arrived at Küçük's home in Ankara to field journalists' questions. The search warrant was issued by the Ninth Heavy Penal Court in İstanbul. The police were searching for documents pertaining to the Ergenekon network.
Selected bibliography
Küçük is a prolific writer:
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kucuk, Yalcin
Crypto-Judaism
Academic staff of Middle East Technical University
Kabataş Erkek Lisesi alumni
Ankara University Faculty of Political Sciences alumni
1938 births
People from İskenderun
Living people
20th-century Turkish historians
Turkish economists
Turkish socialists
Workers' Party of Turkey politicians
People convicted in the Ergenekon trials
Prisoners and detainees of Turkey
Turkish prisoners and detainees
Journalists imprisoned in Turkey
Turkish conspiracy theorists
Turkish Marxists
Academic staff of Ankara University
Academic staff of Gazi University
21st-century Turkish historians