Turkish judiciary at its best
The top justice officials are crying out loud because of the last headscarf frenzy. Perfectly understood. However, the same judiciary did not have much progress on Dink and other murder cases, local courts continue to ban world's biggest websites etc. I wish they could be sensitive also at these issues...
here is a roundup on the newest headscarf tension, Kurdish issue, Alevites...
Turkish penal code -Times Online
"The End of Democracy in Turkey? [Michael Rubin]
While many in Europe and the State Department cheered the election victory this summer of the Justice and Development Party (AKP) in Turkey as a sign that political Islam and democracy can mix, subsequent signs from Turkey are troubling.
The AKP is now moving to replace 5,000 of Turkey's 9,000 judges and prosecutors with Islamists and political loyalists. Opposition parties are appealing to the Constitutional Court, but the AKP has already pplaced a party loyalists to head that bench."
As PM Erdogan puts the last touches on a new constitution drawn by AKP, president of Turkey’s highest court Hasim Kilic said that Turkey does not need a brand new constitution. In his interviews with the business daily Referans and the mainstream daily Milliyet, Kilic suggested that by making amendments to certain articles that need change, the existing constitution can satisfactorily be modified."
Jamestown Foundation Turkey in Denial of al-Qaeda Threat By Rusen Cakir Despite several suicide car bombings tied to al-Qaeda and the threat of further strikes, Turkish counter-terrorism is overwhelmingly focused on the Kurdistan Workers' Party. Turkish public opinion remains unconvinced of the threat posed by al-Qaeda, with some even doubting its existence. Which makes Turkey, with its US-ties and secular underpinnings, perfect fodder for mayhem
NYT Head Scarf Debate Intensifies in Turkey
An intellectual and writer, who in 2003 noted that a few generations will have to suffer the headscarf ban before it is abolished, has said lifting the ban at universities may alleviate the problem but as long as the service-giver and service-taker distinction prevails, the problem will persist.
EDM STATEMENTS BY STATE OFFICIALS HIGHLIGHT THE PARADOXES OF TURKISH SECULARISM
The headscarf ban is one of the symbols of the power struggle within the state in Turkey. The ban is pretty simple: Females wearing the headscarf are not allowed onto university campuses nor, consequently, to attend classes.
İhsan Bal
Leyla Zana and Aysel Tugluk represent two different fractions within the Democratic Society Party (DTP). The first is seen as pan-Kurdish whereas the latter claims being the MP of the entire country as well as stressing Kurdish nationalism."
Avraham's One Village - JEWISH & benei Noach's ONE VILLAGE ***Barukh haba***: Barry Rubin, "Turkey And The Middle East: An Updated Assessment".
"The End of Democracy in Turkey? [Michael Rubin]
While many in Europe and the State Department cheered the election victory this summer of the Justice and Development Party (AKP) in Turkey as a sign that political Islam and democracy can mix, subsequent signs from Turkey are troubling.
The AKP is now moving to replace 5,000 of Turkey's 9,000 judges and prosecutors with Islamists and political loyalists. Opposition parties are appealing to the Constitutional Court, but the AKP has already pplaced a party loyalists to head that bench."
MEMRI Turkish Media Blog - Full Entry
"President of High Constitutional Court Thinks Turkey Does Not Need Brand New ConstitutionAs PM Erdogan puts the last touches on a new constitution drawn by AKP, president of Turkey’s highest court Hasim Kilic said that Turkey does not need a brand new constitution. In his interviews with the business daily Referans and the mainstream daily Milliyet, Kilic suggested that by making amendments to certain articles that need change, the existing constitution can satisfactorily be modified."
Jamestown Foundation Turkey in Denial of al-Qaeda Threat By Rusen Cakir Despite several suicide car bombings tied to al-Qaeda and the threat of further strikes, Turkish counter-terrorism is overwhelmingly focused on the Kurdistan Workers' Party. Turkish public opinion remains unconvinced of the threat posed by al-Qaeda, with some even doubting its existence. Which makes Turkey, with its US-ties and secular underpinnings, perfect fodder for mayhem
JURIST - Paper Chase: Turkish court reimposes YouTube ban for offensive content
Bianet : Turkey - Joint Call for Abolition of Article 301
Article 301 revised and ready for debate
Preparations to amend the controversial Article 301 of the Penal Code are complete and the government will soon submit it to Parliament as a bill, the justice minister said overNYT Head Scarf Debate Intensifies in Turkey
Turkish Headscarf Issue Continues Dividing Nation
[MONDAY TALK] Karaca: Wholesale resolution necessary to liberate headscarf
An intellectual and writer, who in 2003 noted that a few generations will have to suffer the headscarf ban before it is abolished, has said lifting the ban at universities may alleviate the problem but as long as the service-giver and service-taker distinction prevails, the problem will persist.Turkey’s headscarf problem
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's statement made on Jan. 14 during his visit to Spain that wearing a headscarf cannot be considered a crime even if it was a political symbol (as argued by hard-line secularists), has suddenly put Turkey's controversial headscarf ban once more at the top of the political agenda.Headscarf frenzy
The headscarf controversy is yet once again dominating Turkish dailies and televisions with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s recent suggestion that even if the Islamic headscarf was indeed a “political symbol,” as some claim, there was still no reason to ban it.Headscarf debate
The fear of reactionaryism in Turkey is an anachronistic one that stems from the memorization of the ancient texts of the official ideology.State bureaucracy and nation’s will clash once again
The headscarf controversy seems to have turned into a war between the state bureaucracy, which is in favor of the ban, and the opponents of the ban with the involvement of top courts in the debates.Headscarf and 301
Turkey has been discussing the headscarf ban imposed upon adult females at universities and the controversial Article 301 of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK). Frankly speaking, I am sick of witnessing the agenda of this country, in which I have spent my whole life, remaining dominated by these sorts of discussions.EDM STATEMENTS BY STATE OFFICIALS HIGHLIGHT THE PARADOXES OF TURKISH SECULARISM
AKP's destination: Another postmodern 'coup d'état?'
Orhan Kemal CENGIZ'Headscarf commission' to find viable solution
A day after the country's chief prosecutor issued a strong warning against easing the ban on headscarves in universities, the Islamist-rooted ruling party has drawn new battle lines by settingIntellectual bankruptcy of the old elite
The secularism debate in the country has become a crucial yardstick to measure the intellectual caliber of the old elite and their oligarchic bureaucracy.Headscarf problem or elitists feeling defeated
The unnecessary and exhausting war of symbols in Turkey continues. In a tumultuous region where our country is fighting terrorism, inflation, unemployment, other economic problems, the chaos in Iraq and dozen more major problems, what are the "elites" of this country discussing? The headscarf!What does headscarf consensus mean? by MÜMTAZER TÜRKÖNE
The headscarf ban is one of the symbols of the power struggle within the state in Turkey. The ban is pretty simple: Females wearing the headscarf are not allowed onto university campuses nor, consequently, to attend classes. Hopes high for a final solution to headscarf problem
The headscarf debates, which restarted following Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s remarks on easing the restriction on the Muslim headscarf, became more heated when the chief prosecutor of a top court weighed in, saying abolishment of the headscarf ban would be against Turkey’s secular and unitary structure.President Gül: 1999-2004 lost years
President Abdullah Gül late Wednesday described the five-year period following the capture of the imprisoned leader of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), 1999-2004, as "lostThe DTP needs to change tack
Semih İDİZSocio-economic disparity and the Kurdish issue
Nejdan YILDIZTurkish Weekly Opinion - Kurdish Political Dilemma in Turkey
İhsan Bal
Leyla Zana and Aysel Tugluk represent two different fractions within the Democratic Society Party (DTP). The first is seen as pan-Kurdish whereas the latter claims being the MP of the entire country as well as stressing Kurdish nationalism."
Turkey’s Alevis and their demands
The reason for the existence of the Directorate of Religious Affairs (Diyanet) is to prevent the members of the Sunni-Hanafi segment of Islam from becoming a threat to the state.Kurdish problem in Iraq: an American perspective by Emre Uslu & Önder Aytaç
Have the Kurds of Iraq really opted to stay within the Baghdad regime, at least de jure? Will they insist, no matter what the consequences, on the inclusion of Kirkuk in their territory?Yusuf Kanlı: The 'majority' complex
The prime minister is definitely right in getting outraged with the “memorandum-like” statements coming from the judiciary. Rather than issuing “preemptive statements” the judiciary should concentrate on the issues in front of itself. What the chief prosecutor of the Supreme Court of Appeals and the Council of State did separately last week were very much in tune with the “preemptive strike” mentality introduced to modern state administration jargon by U.S. President George W. Bush. If there is a violation of the Constitution; if the fundamental principles of the constitutional order of the country are being eroded; if there is a “counter revolutionary” activity, than it is the duty of theAvraham's One Village - JEWISH & benei Noach's ONE VILLAGE ***Barukh haba***: Barry Rubin, "Turkey And The Middle East: An Updated Assessment".
