Turkey Bans Alcohol Sales as Part of COVID-19 Lockdown

Recep Tayyip Erdogan, a conservative Islamist politician, has been the President of Turkey since 2014 (Wikimedia Commons).

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan banned alcohol sales in Turkey on April 29 as part of the country’s COVID-19 lockdown measures. The ban of alcohol coincides with Islam’s holy month of Ramadan, and some see the decision as an extension of Erdogan’s push to Islamize Turkey.

The lockdown in Turkey is a result of rising COVID-19 cases. In the week prior to the decision, health officials reported more than 60,000 confirmed cases in a day. 

Under the new guidelines, alcohol stores, which are called tekels, that have been deemed non-essential must close. Additionally, the sale of alcohol is also banned in supermarkets and other shops. 

Following the decision, consumers have expressed their contempt for the policy. Turks protesting online used the hashtag, #alkolumedokunma (#Don'tTouchMyAlcohol). Opponents of Erdogan’s AKP party have argued online that the ban is unconstitutional, encouraging Turkish people to ignore it. 

Since the ban was announced, large lines to buy alcohol appeared on the streets. Supermarkets reported that their wine and liquor shelves were cleared out. 

The dissent is partly political. Some secular Turks feel that the alcohol ban is a part of Erdogan’s long-term attempts to curb alcohol consumption in Turkey altogether.

In the past, he called for the country’s national drink Raki, an alcoholic spirit, to be replaced with Ayran, a non-alcoholic yogurt drink. 

Under Erdogan’s regime, alcohol has become increasingly more expensive and inaccessible. In 2018, a bottle of raki cost 102.1 Turkish lira ($21.7 at the time), but by 2021, due to a tax hike, that price had increased to 326.99 lira ($44.38). Additionally, obtaining a permit for selling alcoholic beverages has become significantly harder. 

Critics of the regime view Erdogan’s alcohol policy as an extension of a broader policy goal to de-secularize Turkey. 

Erdogan’s party, which has been in power since 2002, has become a public voice for political Islamism. For example, Erdogan is boosting construction for the country’s Imam Hatip religious schools, encouraging religious education among young people.

According to Turkish Journalist Mehves Evin in her Duvar news column, the alcohol ban, the schools initiative are core pieces in Erdogan’s “social engineering” for Turkey. 

“I don't think this has to do with coronavirus,” said Istanbul resident Adem Gulan in an interview with Reuters. “I believe the government thought 'let's ban it from now so that people slowly get used to it.'"