Freedom of religion in Turkey
Encyclopedia
Laïcité
French secularism, in French, laïcité is a concept denoting the absence of religious involvement in government affairs as well as absence of government involvement in religious affairs. French secularism has a long history but the current regime is based on the 1905 French law on the Separation of...
originates from Atatürk's 'Six Arrows' of Republicanism
Republicanism
Republicanism is the ideology of governing a nation as a republic, where the head of state is appointed by means other than heredity, often elections. The exact meaning of republicanism varies depending on the cultural and historical context...
, Populism
Populism
Populism can be defined as an ideology, political philosophy, or type of discourse. Generally, a common theme compares "the people" against "the elite", and urges social and political system changes. It can also be defined as a rhetorical style employed by members of various political or social...
, Laïcité
Laïcité
French secularism, in French, laïcité is a concept denoting the absence of religious involvement in government affairs as well as absence of government involvement in religious affairs. French secularism has a long history but the current regime is based on the 1905 French law on the Separation of...
, Revolutionism, Nationalism
Nationalism
Nationalism is a political ideology that involves a strong identification of a group of individuals with a political entity defined in national terms, i.e. a nation. In the 'modernist' image of the nation, it is nationalism that creates national identity. There are various definitions for what...
, and Statism
Statism
Statism is a term usually describing a political philosophy, whether of the right or the left, that emphasises the role of the state in politics or supports the use of the state to achieve economic, military or social goals...
. The Government imposes some restrictions on Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
and other religious groups and on Muslim religious expression in government offices and state-run institutions, including universities.
Religious demography
| Armenian Orthodox Christians | 65,000 |
| Jews | 23,000 |
| Greek Orthodox Christians | 2,500 |
| Baha'is | 10,000 |
| Syrian Orthodox (Syriac) Christians Syriac Orthodox Church The Syriac Orthodox Church; is an autocephalous Oriental Orthodox church based in the Eastern Mediterranean, with members spread throughout the world. The Syriac Orthodox Church claims to derive its origin from one of the first Christian communities, established in Antioch by the Apostle St.... |
15,000 |
| Yazidi Yazidi The Yazidi are members of a Kurdish religion with ancient Indo-Iranian roots. They are primarily a Kurdish-speaking people living in the Mosul region of northern Iraq, with additional communities in Transcaucasia, Armenia, Turkey, and Syria in decline since the 1990s – their members emigrating to... s |
5,000 |
| Jehovah's Witnesses Jehovah's Witnesses Jehovah's Witnesses is a millenarian restorationist Christian denomination with nontrinitarian beliefs distinct from mainstream Christianity. The religion reports worldwide membership of over 7 million adherents involved in evangelism, convention attendance of over 12 million, and annual... |
3,300 |
| Protestants Protestantism Protestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the... |
3,000 |
These figures were repeated in the 2009 report of the US Department of State. with the difference in figures of up to 3,000 Greek Orthodox Christians and an additional 3,000 Chaldean Christians. The number of Syriac Christians and Yazidis in the southeast was once high; however, under pressure from government authorities and later under the impact of the war against the terrorist Kurdistan Workers Party
Kurdistan Workers Party
The Kurdistan Workers' Party , commonly known as PKK, also known as KGK and formerly known as KADEK or KONGRA-GEL , is a Kurdish organization which has since 1984 been fighting an armed struggle against the Turkish state for an autonomous Kurdistan and greater cultural and political rights...
(PKK), many Syriacs migrated to Istanbul, Western Europe, or North and South America. According to the Turkish sociologist Ahmet Taşğın the Yazidis in Turkey numbered 22,632 in 1985. Until 2000 the population had dropped to 423. The same academic said that 23,546 Syriacs were living in Turkey in 1985. Their number dropped to 2,010 in the year 2001.
Legal and policy framework
The 1982 Constitution establishes the country as a secular state and provides for freedom of belief, freedom of worship, and the private dissemination of religious ideas. However, other constitutional provisions regarding the integrity and existence of the secular state restrict these rights. The Constitution prohibits discrimination on religious grounds.The two main Islamic streams in Turkey are Sunni
Sunni Islam
Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam. Sunni Muslims are referred to in Arabic as ʾAhl ūs-Sunnah wa āl-Ǧamāʿah or ʾAhl ūs-Sunnah for short; in English, they are known as Sunni Muslims, Sunnis or Sunnites....
and Alevi
Alevi
The Alevi are a religious and cultural community, primarily in Turkey, constituting probably more than 15 million people....
. In Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
Alevi are the minority, estimated at 17 percent of the Muslim population. In the late 1970s many violent clashes were based on the conflict between the two Islamic orientations. In December 1978 militants in Kahramanmaras stirred up feelings amongst the Sunni population against the Alevi inhabitants of the town, resulting in the killing of more than 100 citizens. On 2 July 1993 Alevi intellectuals were attacked in Sivas. The Sivas massacre
Sivas massacre
The Sivas massacre refers to the events of July 2, 1993 which resulted in the deaths of 37 people, mostly Alevi intellectuals, and two hotel employees. Two people from the mob were also dead...
resulted in the death of 37 people.
Religious education is compulsory in primary and secondary education (Article 24 of the Constitution). Mainly Sunni theology
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
is taught. Many Alevi
Alevi
The Alevi are a religious and cultural community, primarily in Turkey, constituting probably more than 15 million people....
s alleged discrimination in the government's failure to include any of their doctrines or beliefs in religion courses. In October 2007 the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR)
European Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg is a supra-national court established by the European Convention on Human Rights and hears complaints that a contracting state has violated the human rights enshrined in the Convention and its protocols. Complaints can be brought by individuals or...
ruled in favor of an Alevi parent who in 2004 filed a suit claiming the mandatory religion courses violated religious freedom. Since then, the government added 10 pages of an overview of the Alevi belief system to the textbook for the final year of religious and moral instruction.
In December 2008 the Minister of Culture participated in the opening of the first Alevi Institute and apologised to the Alevis for past sufferings caused by the State. In January 2009 the Prime Minister attended an Alevi fast-breaking ceremony for the second consecutive year. The government held workshops aimed at discussing openly problems and expectations of the Alevis.
The government oversees Muslim religious facilities and education through its Directorate of Religious Affairs
Diyanet Isleri Baskanligi
In Turkey, the Presidency of Religious Affairs is an official institution established in 1924 after the abolition of the caliphate. Founded by the Grand National Assembly of Turkey as a successor to Sheikh ul-Islam, it represents the highest Islamic religious authority in the country...
, which is under the authority of the Prime Ministry. The Directory regulates the operation of the country's 77,777 registered mosques and employs local and provincial imams, who are civil servants. Sunni imams are nominated and paid by the state. The Alevi
Alevi
The Alevi are a religious and cultural community, primarily in Turkey, constituting probably more than 15 million people....
s pray in cemevi
Cemevi
A Cemevi means literally a house of gathering in Turkish, and is a place of fundamental importance for Turkey's Alevi-Bektashi populations and traditions. It is not a place of worship in the strict sense of the term; the accent is laid on its aspect as lieu of assemblage...
s. "Cemevleri" (places of gathering) have no legal status as places of worship in the state. However, Kuşadası
Kusadasi
Kuşadası is a resort town on Turkey's Aegean coast and the center of the seaside district of the same name in Aydın Province. Kuşadası lies at a distance of to the south from the region's largest metropolitan center of İzmir, and from the provincial seat of Aydın situated inland. Its primary...
and Tunceli municipalities ruled in 2008 that Alevi cemevleri are considered places of worship. Three municipal councils recognised Cem houses as places of worship and granted them the same financial advantages as mosques. Administrative courts in Antalya, Ankara and Istanbul ruled that Alevi students should be exempted from attending the mandatory religion and ethics course. A similar ruling by the Izmir administrative court was confirmed by the Council of State. In 2009, the state's TV channel, TRT, announced its plan to air programs reflecting the interests of the Alevi
Alevi
The Alevi are a religious and cultural community, primarily in Turkey, constituting probably more than 15 million people....
minority.
A separate government agency, the General Directorate for Foundations (GDF), regulates activities of non-Muslim religious groups and their affiliated churches, monasteries, synagogues, and related religious property. The GDF recognizes 161 "minority foundations," including Greek Orthodox foundations with approximately 61 sites, Armenian Orthodox foundations with approximately 50 sites, and Jewish foundations with 20 sites, as well as Syriac Christian, Chaldean, Bulgarian Orthodox, Georgian, and Maronite foundations. The GDF also regulates Muslim charitable religious foundations, including schools, hospitals, and orphanages. The GDF assesses whether the foundations are operating within the stated objectives of their organizational statute.
In 1936 the Government required all foundations to declare their sources of income. In 1974 amid political tensions over Cyprus, the High Court of Appeals ruled that the minority foundations had no right to acquire properties beyond those listed in the 1936 declarations. The court's ruling launched a process, under which the state seized control of properties acquired after 1936.
Minority religious groups, particularly the Greek and Armenian Orthodox communities, have lost numerous properties to the state in the past. In many cases, the Government has expropriated property on the grounds that it is not being utilized. At least two appeals were filed in this regard: the Fener Boys School and the Buyukada Orphanage (the latter closed in 1964). These cases are often appealed to the Council of State
Turkish Council of State
The Turkish Council of State is the highest administrative court in the Republic of Turkey and is based in Ankara. Its role and tasks are prescribed by the Constitution of Turkey within the articles on the supreme courts....
("Danıştay") and, if unsuccessful there, to the European Court of Human Rights
European Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg is a supra-national court established by the European Convention on Human Rights and hears complaints that a contracting state has violated the human rights enshrined in the Convention and its protocols. Complaints can be brought by individuals or...
(ECHR). On July 8, 2008, the ECHR ruled that the country had violated the Ecumenical Patriarchate's property rights to the orphanage on Buyukada Island. In compliance with this ruling, the deed to the building was returned to the Ecumenical Patriarchate on November 29, 2010.
The law restricting religious property rights was amended in 2002 to permit minority foundations to acquire property; however, the Government continued to apply an article which allows it to expropriate properties in areas where the local non-Muslim population drops significantly or where the foundation is deemed to no longer perform the function for which it was created. There is no specific minimum threshold concerning such a population drop, rather it is left to the discretion of GDF. This is particularly problematic for communities with smaller populations, such as the Greek Orthodox community.
The Caferis, the country's principal Shi'a community, numbering between 500 thousand and 1 million (concentrated mostly in eastern Turkey and Istanbul), do not face restrictions on their religious freedoms. They build and operate their own mosques and appoint their own imams; however, as with the Alevis, their places of worship have no legal status and receive no support from the Diyanet.
Churches operating in the country generally face administrative challenges to employ foreign church personnel, apart from the Catholic Church and congregations linked to the diplomatic community. These administrative challenges, plus restrictions on training religious leaders and difficulties getting visas, have led to decreases in the Christian communities. In December 2008, however, the Government provided year-long work permits to non-Turkish clerics working at the Ecumenical Greek Patriarchate. Non-citizen clerics had previously used tourist visas, requiring them to depart the country every three months.
Restrictions on religious freedom
Government policy and practice contributed to the generally free practice of religion; however, state policy imposes some restrictions on religious groups and on religious expression in government offices and state-run institutions, including universities.According to the human rights organization Mazlum-Der, the military charged individuals with lack of discipline for activities that included performing Muslim prayers or being married to women who wore headscarves. In December 2008 the General Staff issued 24 dismissals, five of which pertained to alleged Islamic fundamentalism. In November 2006 the Government reported 37 military dismissals of which it claimed 2 were associated with religious extremism. An additional 17 were reportedly expelled in August 2006 for unspecified disciplinary reasons. In August 2008 the Government reported no military dismissals, while in its December 2008 session it issued 24 dismissals, five of which pertained to alleged Islamic fundamentalism.
In July 2007, the Jehovah's Witnesses
Jehovah's Witnesses
Jehovah's Witnesses is a millenarian restorationist Christian denomination with nontrinitarian beliefs distinct from mainstream Christianity. The religion reports worldwide membership of over 7 million adherents involved in evangelism, convention attendance of over 12 million, and annual...
received a letter of certification confirming their official registration as the "Association for the Support of Jehovah's Witnesses." In 2007, Police arrested 25-year-old member Feti Demirtas and sent him to prison on 9 occasions for conscientiously objecting to military service, as his religion requires. At the end of June 2009, two members of the faith remained in prison for conscientious objection. One of the objectors, Baris Gormez, had been charged six times for "disobedience of orders" and had been in prison since 2007. According to Jehovah's Witness officials, harassment of their members included arrests, court hearings, verbal and physical abuse, and psychiatric evaluations.
Article 219 of the penal code prohibits imams, priests, rabbis, or other religious leaders from "reproaching or vilifying" the Government or the laws of the state while performing their duties. Violations are punishable by prison terms of 1 month to 1 year, or 3 months to 2 years if the crime involves inciting others to disobey the law.
In 2009 the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Istanbul
Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople
The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople , part of the wider Orthodox Church, is one of the fourteen autocephalous churches within the communion of Orthodox Christianity...
continued to seek to reopen the Halki seminary on the island of Heybeli in the Sea of Marmara. The seminary was closed in 1971 after the Patriarchate, to avoid the seminary being administered by the state, chose not to comply with a state requirement to nationalize. In March 2007 the Yedikule Surp Pirgic Armenian Hospital Foundation in Istanbul dropped an ECHR claim when the Government agreed to return two properties and pay approximately $20,000 (15,000 Euro) compensation for court expenses to the foundation.
No law explicitly prohibits proselytizing or religious conversions; however, many prosecutors and police regarded proselytizing and religious activism with suspicion. Police occasionally prevented Christians from handing out religious literature. The Government reported 157 conversions, including 92 to Islam and 63 from Islam to a different religion. Proselytizing is often considered socially unacceptable; Christians performing missionary work were occasionally beaten and insulted. If the proselytizers are foreigners, they may be deported, but generally they are able to reenter the country. Police officers may report students who meet with Christian missionaries to their families or to university authorities.
In 2007 authorities continued to enforce a long-term ban on the wearing of headscarves by students at universities and by civil servants in public buildings. The Constitutional Court has interpreted secularism in a way that doesn't allow for a person to wear religious symbols (e.g. a head scarf or a cross
Christian cross
The Christian cross, seen as a representation of the instrument of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, is the best-known religious symbol of Christianity...
) in governmental and public institutions, and particularly while attending public schools and state universities. A ruling of 5 June 2008 stated that the parliament had violated the constitutional principle of secularism when it passed amendments (supported by the AKP
AKP
-Companies:* Aamir Khan Productions, an Indian motion picture production and distribution company, based in Mumbai.-Political parties:* Justice and Development Party of Turkey , a Turkish political party* Ang Kapatiran, a Philippine political party...
and the MHP
MHP
MHP may stand for:*Minsk-1 Airport*Montana Highway Patrol*Monty Hall problem*A mental health professional*Milliyetçi Hareket Partisi - a Turkish nationalist political party*Multimedia Home Platform...
) to lift the headscarf ban on university campuses.
Nevertheless, in its decision on November 10, 2005 in Leyla Şahin v. Turkey
Leyla Sahin v. Turkey
Leyla Şahin v. Turkey was a 2004 European Court of Human Rights case brought against Turkey by a medical student challenging a Turkish law which bans wearing the Islamic headscarf at universities and other educational and state institutions...
, the Grand Chamber of the European Court of Human Rights
European Court of Human Rights
The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg is a supra-national court established by the European Convention on Human Rights and hears complaints that a contracting state has violated the human rights enshrined in the Convention and its protocols. Complaints can be brought by individuals or...
ruled that such a ban was "legitimate" to prevent the influence of religion in state affairs. Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Its headquarters are in New York City and it has offices in Berlin, Beirut, Brussels, Chicago, Geneva, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Paris, San Francisco, Tokyo,...
, however, supports "lifting the current restrictions on headscarves in university on the grounds that the prohibition is an unwarranted infringement on the right to religious practice. Moreover, this restriction of dress, which only applies to women, is discriminatory and violates their right to education, freedom of thought, conscience, religion, and privacy."
Religious affiliation is listed on national identity cards, despite 1982 Constitutional Article 24 which provides that no one shall be compelled to reveal religious beliefs. A few religious groups, such as the Bahá'í, are unable to state their religious affiliation on their cards because they are not included among the options; they have made their concerns known to the Government. Despite a 2006 regulation allowing persons to leave the religion section of their identity cards blank or change the religious designation by written application, the Government continued to restrict applicants' choice of religion. Applicants must choose Muslim, Greek Orthodox, Christian, Jew, Hindu, Zoroastrian, Confucian, Taoist, Buddhist, Religionless, Other, or Unknown as their religious affiliation.
According to the country report of the US Department of State for 2007 and 2008 there were no reports of religious prisoners or detainees in the country. On 24 July 2009, Turkish police arrested almost 200 people suspected of being members of Hizb ut-Tahrir
Hizb ut-Tahrir
Hizb ut-Tahrir is an international Sunni. pan-Islamic political organisation but keeps it open for all including shias,some of its beliefs are against sunni school of thought, whose goal is for all Muslim countries to unify as an Islamic state or caliphate ruled by Islamic law and with a caliph...
.
In November 2007 five members of this non-violent group had been detained in Adana and in June 2008 eight alleged members had been detained in Erzurum.
Abuses of religious freedom
After the April 18, 2007, killings in Malatya of three ChristiansBible publishing firm murders in Malatya, Turkey
The Bible publishing firm murders in Malatya took place on April 18, 2007 in Zirve Publishing House, Malatya, Turkey. Three employees of the Bible publishing house were attacked, tortured and murdered by five Muslim assailants.- The attack :...
, Turkish victim Ugur Yuksel was denied a Christian burial and given an Islamic/Alevitic burial instead. Turkish victim Necati Aydin was buried in a Protestant churchyard in Izmir. The Governor of Malatya was initially hesitant to permit the burial of the German victim in Malatya. He told the German victim's widow that no Christian should be buried in Turkish soil. However, after negotiations between German Government and Turkish Government officials, the victim was buried in a private Armenian cemetery in Malatya.
In October 2006 a prosecutor pressed criminal charges against Hakan Taştan and Turan Topal, two (Muslim) converts to Christianity for violating Article 301 ("insulting Turkishness"), inciting hatred against Islam, and secretly compiling data on private citizens for a Bible correspondence course. If convicted, the men could be sentenced to six months to three years in prison. On the basis of reports that defendants were approaching grade and high school students in Silivri and attempting to convert them to Christianity, police searched one man's home, then went to the men's office and confiscated two computers, as well as books and papers. The three plaintiffs claimed that the Christians called Islam a "primitive and fabricated religion" and described Turks as a "cursed people." The accused denied all charges.
On May 28, 2009, court proceedings continued in the 2006 case against two Muslim converts to Christianity charged with "insulting Turkishness," in violation of Article 301 of the Penal Code, inciting hatred against Islam, and secretly compiling data on private citizens for a Bible correspondence course. The court called five witnesses to appear at the next hearing, set for October 15, 2009. During this hearing some witnesses testified to the effect that they did not know the defendants. The court in Silivri
Silivri
Silivri is a city and a district in Istanbul Province along the Sea of Marmara in Turkey, outside of metropolitan Istanbul, containing many holiday and weekend homes for residents of the city. The largest city in the district is also named Silivri...
adjourned the hearing to 28 January 2010 to listen to three more witnesses.
Societal abuses and discrimination
There were reports of societal abuses or discrimination based on religious belief or practice. Religious pluralism was widely viewed as a threat to Islam and to "national unity." A few Muslims, Christians, Bahá'ís, and members of other religious communities faced societal suspicion and mistrust. Anti-missionary and anti-Christian rhetoric appears to have continued among government officials and national media sources such as HurriyetHürriyet
-External links:* * ** * *...
and Milliyet
Milliyet
Milliyet is a major Turkish daily newspaper founded in 1950.-History:Milliyet came to publishing life at the Nuri Akça press in Babıali, Istanbul as a daily private newspaper on 3 May 1950...
. Government ministers, such as Mehmet Aydin, Minister of State in charge of religious affairs, called missionaries "separatist and destructive."
In recent years religiously motivated attacks on persons were reported. Best known are the killings of three Christians in Malatya
Bible publishing firm murders in Malatya, Turkey
The Bible publishing firm murders in Malatya took place on April 18, 2007 in Zirve Publishing House, Malatya, Turkey. Three employees of the Bible publishing house were attacked, tortured and murdered by five Muslim assailants.- The attack :...
on 18 April 2007 and the assassination of Armenian journalist Hrant Dink in Istanbul on 19 January 2007. Details on religiously motivated attacks on persons can be found in the annual reports of the US State Department, like the ones for 2007 2008 and 2009.
See also
- List of Mosques
- List of synagogues in Turkey
- Human rights in TurkeyHuman rights in TurkeyHuman rights in Turkey are theoretically protected by a variety of international law treaties, which take precedence over domestic legislation, according to Article 90 of the 1982 Constitution....