Moreover, while Kemal Ataturk restored Turkish national pride by creating the secular Turkish republic, his legacy is mixed, for it includes both Turkey’s strong attraction to the West and a militarization of public life. The latter explains much of the repressive attitude towards free speech and independent opinion that has characterized much of Turkish public life – a straitjacket that has left little room for real negotiations with Turkey’s restless Kurds or for resolving the division of Cyprus.