An EU-Turkey Reset Project Syndicate by Martti Ahtisaari, et al. Never have the European Union and Turkey needed one another more, and yet rarely have they been so distant. The EU should redouble its efforts to revitalize the relationship, strengthening both its criticism of Turkey’s democratic backsliding and the credibility of the accession process. Turkey and EU … Read more
Tsipras was in public today, talking to ordinary citizens… Erdoğan gets angry when he sees citizens walking and smoking. He wants standing in silence (!) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A2A-BEwM5n8 Turkish officials mark WWI Gallipoli victory Turkish officials have marked the 100th anniversary of the Gallipoli Victory, the battle that marked a turnaround against the Allied Forces in favor … Read more
Stakeholder Reactions to Öcalan’s 10 Measures to Resolution Bianet :: English Several stakeholders of Turkey’s resolution process reacted to PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan called for a PKK congress in spring to decide on quitting arms and 10 measures. Here is a compilation by bianet English. Interior minister addresses intelligence service for leaking Oslo talks Interior Minister Efkan … Read more
Anger over new powers for Turkish authorities online BBC Trending What’s popular and why Restricted access to the internet in Turkey saw widespread demonstrations in Istanbul last year Continue reading the main story Last year Turkey entered the headlines for briefly blocking Twitter and YouTube. Now, with both unblocked, activists are using them to highlight a … Read more
Ekrem Dumanli: Turkey’s witch hunt against the media washingtonpost.com – Jan 1 – Ekrem Dumanli is editor in chief of the Zaman daily newspaper in Turkey. When I first appeared in court after last month’s raid on my newspaper in Istanbul and 80 hours of detention, I asked the judge: “Two columns and a news … Read more
Unlike many previous accounts that are withheld, Fuat Avni does not violate users’ privacy but provides insights about the government. I could not verify yet, but I hear Twitter might actually try a legal process to undo the request. We will see… Twitter withholds account of whistleblower Fuat Avni in Turkey Today’s Zaman Twitter withheld access to the Twitter account … Read more
Turkish deputy PM slams women ‘having vacation without husbands’ Bülent Arınç defends his criticism against ‘laughing women’ with a puzzling complaint about ‘pole climbers’ Spam messages reign in Turkish presidential hopefuls’ campaigns Turkey’s presidential hopefuls have continued campaigning by sending text messages to mobile phone users Turks Divided on Erdogan and the Country’s Direction pewglobal.org – Jul 30, 2:55 … Read more
However, he is not a marginal figure. He represents the governing party that’s transforming Turkey… And by the way, he repeatedly makes similar statements, most remain in domestic sphere. But this laughing issue seems to have gone beyond Turkey… Sometimes he functions like a political troll. As the AKP is under pressure in both domestic politics (check … Read more
Secular Turkish Government Permits Religious Symbol Four female lawmakers were welcomed into Parliament with Islamic head scarves, which for some was an unwelcome break with secular traditions and for others a sign of the nation?s maturing democracy. The peace process and the enmity of politics One of the persisting responses to Turkey?s Kurdish issue and … Read more
One in every four marriages in Turkey involves child bride: NGO from Hurriyet Daily News Families are increasingly applying to courts to change the date of birth of their daughters. From Church to Mosque to Museum Back to Mosque from NYT > Turkey by By ANDREW FINKEL Demands by Turkey?s religious right that former … Read more