Istanbul’s Bellydancers and DJs Fight for Survival as Turkey’s Night-time Economy Takes a Hit

A bellydancer performs for guests at the Sebebi Çok Teras, a night spot in central Istanbul.
THE GUARDIAN: With inflation at more than 100%, and a ruling party hostile to Istanbul’s vibrant nightlife culture, performers and bar owners are facing severe struggles

It’s 11pm at a rooftop restaurant overlooking Istanbul and the patrons are ready to party. In a corner, neon lights illuminate a DJ pumping Turkish pop music to long tables of patrons increasingly loose on raki, Turkey’s aniseed-flavoured national drink. Some have already got out of their chairs to dance, when suddenly the music shifts: the bellydancers have arrived.

A male bellydancer in a pink crop top dances, followed by a blond bellydancer in a rhinestone bra, and then Aslı Can, who enters the room in a storm of high kicks and hair flips.

It’s a typical meyhane night – the name for a traditional restaurant where people spend hours drinking listening to music and watching bellydancing, a staple of Turkish social life for centuries.

As the trio move between the different tables, jostling and wiggling with patrons, they begin their tricks – Can at one point does a full backbend over a table as she dances. Within half an hour, her top is stuffed full of 100 lira notes. » | Ruth Michaelson and Deniz Barış Narlı. Photography by Bradley Secker for the Guardian | Wednesday, July 5, 2023

Turkey: Did Erdogan's Unorthodox Approach to Bring Down Inflation Actually Work? | DW Business

Jun 5, 2023 | Turkish inflation has fallen below 40% for the first time in 16 months. We speak to Erdal Yalcin, professor of international economics at Konstanz University of Applied Sciences. We ask him: is this a meaningful figure?

Erdogan's low interest rate policy is in line with Islam. His economic policy is unorthodox only to Western economists; his policy is very orthodox if considered in the light of Islamic economics. Erdogan is, after all, trying to re-Islamize the country. He is out to undo Ataürk's secular legacy. – © Mark Alexander

What's behind Turkey's Ballooning Trade Deficit | DW Business

Aug 29, 2022 As Russia's invasion of Ukraine grinds on, its impact continues to be felt far beyond Ukraine's borders. In Turkey, the war has cast a shadow over President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's economic ambitions.

Turkey's trade deficit has ballooned over the last seven months on the back of rising commodity prices. In July, the monthly gap reached almost 11 billion dollars, which is a record level. The imbalance between imports and exports from January through July was 144 percent higher than a year earlier, according to Turkey’s state statistics agency. Add to that the rapid depreciation of the lira, and Turkey's problems don't look set to end soon.

Turkey’s Doctors Are Leaving, the Latest Casualty of Spiraling Inflation

THE NEW YORK TIMES: Doctors, worn down by grueling hours and violence, are emigrating in rising numbers, undermining one of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s signature achievements.

ISTANBUL — Anxiety rose after an assistant doctor died last fall when she plowed her car into the back of a truck after a long shift.

Then there were the growing cases of violence. An assistant doctor abandoned his career after a patient stabbed him in the stomach and hand. A pregnant nurse was hospitalized after being kicked in the belly.

The worsening economy and soaring inflation, which has reduced some doctors’ salaries close to the level of the minimum wage, has brought many to a tipping point, driving them in growing numbers to search for better opportunities abroad.

Their departures are a sad indictment of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who burnished his own reputation by expanding universal health care over his 18 years in power. It was one of his signature achievements. For many of his supporters, that action alone remains their main reason to support him.

But the strains of those overhauls wrought by Mr. Erdogan, in addition to those brought by the pandemic — and now galloping inflation — have undermined the very professionals on whom the health system depends.
Doctors complain of a grinding workload, diminishing returns for their work, a drastic loss of respect for the profession under Mr. Erdogan, and an increase in physical violence from their own patients.

More than 1,400 Turkish doctors left their posts to work abroad last year, and 4,000 over the past decade, according to the Turkish Medical Association, the largest association of medical professionals in the country. Many more are preparing applications and have requested certificates of good standing from the organization, officials said. » | Carlotta Gall | Monday, February 7, 2022

Turkey: Soaring Inflation Puts Erdogan under Pressure | DW News

Dec 16, 2021 • Turkey's lira crashed 7% in just a few minutes to a record of nearly 15 lira to the dollar. At the same time, inflation is soaring. Under pressure from President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the central bank is expected to cut its policy rate later this week.

Turkish Lira Plunges, Loses Nearly 40% of Its Value This Year | DW News

Nov 24, 2021 • It's been an especially tough past few days for the Turkish lira. It remains near all-time lows against the dollar. The country recently cut interest rates at the insistence of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan despite the warnings of economists. The consequences are borne by normal Turks. Many are now angry.