Istanbul
Rüştü develops the host and parasite motif: the Turks are the unwitting
host to a dangerous parasite that can destroy them.
Rüştü turned from the parasite motif to the metaphor of cross-dressing,
asserting in Akşam (Evening), that his “duty” was to “rip the [inner lining
and surface of the] false cloak in which we have concealed ourselves for
two and a half centuries.”^14 He asks Dönme if they think that by putting
up framed inscriptions such as “In the Name of God,” or “The Merchant
is the Beloved of God,” in their stores they would either become Muslims,
or trick Muslims into believing they shared the same faith. “The fashion,”
he argues, “of cheating people with names, words, and appearances has
passed.” He was on a mission to prove to all that Dönme were not Turks
and not Muslims.
Interior Minister Ferid, when asked by a reporter from Akşam whether
it was true that Rüştü had submitted a petition concerning the Dönme,
responded that Rüştü had told him in Ankara that the Salonikans known
as Dönme needed to identify themselves completely with Turkishness and
Islam.^15 Although they appeared as Turks and Muslims, in fact, they main-
tained their special position, and Rüştü argued that they were hypocrites.
There were some religious fanatics among them, but even the few “enlight-
ened ones” who were not believers assisted each other and financially sup-
ported each other, thus displaying that they desired the group to continue
to flourish. Rüştü urged him to take action, and the interior minister stated,
“Without a doubt, the government will carefully examine this problem.”^16
Interviews of Rüştü were published in Vakit all through January 1924.
The first, on January 9 , carried the byline of the Ankara correspondent
Hüseyin Necati. In this interview, Rüştü detailed the Dönme customs he
learned from his mother and father and Dönme attitudes toward Turks.^17
His mother had explained to him the importance of abstaining from
lamb for the entire year, except during the Festival of the Lamb, which he
learned later allegedly was the day when four to fifteen couples gathered
for ritualistic sex. She also emphasized not marrying outsiders and being
wary of Turks. His mother compared Turks to onions, and asked rhetori-
cally whether he had ever heard of an onion that was not bitter. Rüştü also
describes the three separate Dönme communities, characterizing the first
(Karakaş) as conservative and completely Jewish, even praying in “Jew-
ish.” The second group (Kapancı) was made up of enlightened ones, who
gave little importance to the Dönme religion, yet did not mix with Turks,
and mainly concerned themselves with their business interests. The third