BBC: The role of Islam in Turkish society is a subject of continual debate. Secularists are protesting against what they see as the government's increasingly Islamic agenda, and as Sarah Rainsford found out, the latest battleground could be across the butcher's counter.
"We're going filming at a pork butcher's and a pig farm," I told my Turkish cameraman in a text message. Slightly anxious, I added: "Is that OK with you?"
A moment later a message from Gokhan flashed back.
"Yes," he wrote. "I like a good pork steak!"
He is not the only one.
Another Turkish friend told me that eating pork, which is forbidden by Islam, is increasingly popular in secular high society here.
She described this as an act of defiance by some Turks who fear religious dictates have begun creeping into their lives since a government led by devout Muslims took power.
But those people could soon be looking for a new way to rebel because Turkey's pork industry is on the brink of extinction. The Demise of Turkey’s Pork Butchers >>> | April 26, 2008
The Dawning of a New Dark Age (Paperback - UK)
The Dawning of a New Dark Age (Hardback - UK)
