When it comes to the country, science is a detail - Memories

İsmail Beşikci, who gives priority to science and scientific method against the official ideology that ignores or distorts the facts in line with the interests of the dominant, is one of the unique examples of how the freedom of thought, which is tried to be prevented by the collective power of all the devices of this ideology, is acquired.
Beşikci's Memoirs consist of the memorable notes of a pointless journey, from the late 1960s to the present day, which exposes the fact-blindness of the academic and intellectual life in Turkey in every medium, without begging for mercy and without sheltering in victimization, despite the brutal attacks of the powerful and privileged side.
Between the lines of the life of a thinker who parted ways with academia early because he insisted that sensitivity towards facts should be shown in place and time, unlike academia, which advises him that everything should not be said or written at all times and places: research, books, from university to prison, from one prison to another, A modest narrative of more than 17 years of detention, with trials in various courtrooms and trial defenses...

Abdurrahim Ozmen

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PREFACE

How to look at the past? How to evaluate the past? There are many memories and stories in a person's past. How should these be recorded and evaluated? These memories, stories, people's minds
It is standing there in a chaotic manner. It is almost trapped in a person's mind. The best, healthiest way to visualize and record these is to write.

When you start writing these memories and stories, the lid of that part of the mind opens and memories emerge one by one. As I write, the cover opens more and more, and memories and lived events are scattered around. As you write, it is possible to go to the bottom of the mind and reveal memories and experiences.

During the writing process, documents are naturally remembered and come to the fore. Thus, the process of remembering and writing becomes deeper. Writing, remembering and documenting influence each other and pave the way for a healthier look at the past and a more healthy evaluation of the past.

It is important to show the date and place where the facts and factual processes took place. This issue has been given great attention.

This book does not include childhood and youth memories. These memories are undoubtedly important. This is intended as a separate book.

Memories were prepared in 2019-2020. Various versions of the text were sent several times to friends such as İbrahim Gürbüz, Ruşen Arslan, Celal Temel, Talat İnanç, İbrahim Küreken, and their evaluations were received.

Here I would like to point out a point about the name of the book.

In more than fifty years of trials, I have always tried to state that science is factual. I stated that both social sciences and sciences are factual. In this context, I emphasized that social and cultural categories such as Kurds and Kurdish can and should be examined with the concepts of science. But during this process, those who reported me, the security forces, the prosecutors, the courts, and those who were disturbed by my mentioning the Kurds, due to their reaction to the Kurds issue, began to make statements that belittle science and express its unnecessaryness, such as "When it comes to the Homeland, Science is a Detail". It is possible to watch the responses to these criticisms and defenses against the accusations in many sections of the file. In this regard, it would be insightful to consider the social and political relations of fifty or sixty years ago and the denial dosage of categories such as Kurds and Kurdish. Memoirs are a criticism of this attitude of the official ideology and a defense of science.

Dr. Abdurrahim Özmen made a great effort as editor in preparing the file for publication. Thank you for your warm interest...

In the preparation of the series, Dr. Can Şeker's great effort is in question. Thanks.
The preparation of my articles and books and overcoming the grievances and experiences that followed were thanks to my wife, Leman Beşikci, enduring the grievances and injustices in question. I present this book to my beloved wife, Leman Beşikci, who we lost very recently (April 12, 2021).


İsmail Beşikci
Ankara, April 2021