ABSTRACT
On 12 September 1980 the army seized power in Turkey to save the country from a severe political, economic and social crisis. Turkey's politicians had shown themselves incapable of the necessary action. Mustafa Kemal Ataturk s message may be generalized in two basic points: nationalism and secularism. Ataturk's influence on Turkey's development has remained complex and far-reaching. During Menderes's era, it was already becoming clear that Kemalism had to be seen as a dynamic force working towards a new Turkey rather than a fixed development scheme or a final aim for political, social, cultural and economic development. The constitution started off with the implicit assumption of broad consensus among political and ideological forces. Kemalism is being defined more broadly in the political culture of the country. Kemalism was always more of a theory for society than one which had grown out of society.
