Like the Kurdish problem, predominantly Sunni Turkey has had an age-old Alevi problem. Like the Kurdish problem, there are efforts today by the government of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan to solve this problem, too. These efforts also tie in with Ankara’s steps aimed at appeasing the Shiites in the Middle East.

Some Alevi organizations have welcomed these efforts by the government, which President Abdullah Gul has also been contributing to. But not all are convinced of their sincerity and, given past disappointments, appear justified.

Turkey’s Alevi problem cuts deep — having a bloody history — and has resulted in tragic events in recent times. One tragic case was the “Kahramanmaras incidents” in 1978, when more than 100 Alevis — mostly poor Kurds, including women and children — were massacred by a politically manipulated nationalist Sunni rabble.

Another equally tragic incident occurred more recently on July 2, 1993, when 35 representatives of the Alevi intelligentsia were burned alive when another incensed Sunni rabble set fire to the Madimak Hotel in the city of Sivas during a cultural event.