Decision to abolish headscarf ban hurts Turkey internationally
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Michael van der Galiën
As a foreigner visiting Turkey today, it is awkward to see how much has changed in only one year and even six months time. One year ago I visited Turkey and the country was relatively stable. Six months ago there was a controversy regarding how to elect the president of this great nation-state, but although it was a grand debate, there were virtually no protests. Of course people also talked about the PKK (outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party) and what to do about this terrorist organization, but one did not get the feeling that the situation was overly tense.
Today, however, the situation is different. Suddenly the country has become incredibly introspective. All Turks are talking about, it seems, is the decision of Turkey's Parliament to abolish the headscarf ban in public spaces, and more specifically in schools and universities. It is remarkable to see that those debating this issue seldom take the time to point out how this development is looked upon in the rest of the Western world, and then especially Europe. This is especially remarkable because Prime Minister Erdoğan often says he wants Turkey to join the European Union.
Image versus reality:
When AKP (Justice & Development Party) voters talk about Europe in this regard, and they almost never do, they act as if the constitutional changes are welcomed by the EU, because it is a sign that Turkey is maturing; finally, it seems, Turkey can truly be called a Democracy, they say.
The reality is completely different however. The headscarf ban was not anti-Democratic as such. It was laicist, secular. Secularism is not the opposite of liberal democracy, not even when the majority of the people is (overly) religious. West-Europeans, unlike supporters of the AKP, understand that. We also understand that in some countries, strict secularism is necessary to protect freedom (which is the true role of the government).
Erdoğan often talks about how Turkey should try to join the EU but his advocacy in favor of abolishing the ban tells us that the does not truly want to join the EU. Europeans, every single one of them, are highly skeptical about Turkey. They (we) often think that, as a Spanish friend told me recently, the majority of Turks are overly religious but that they are kept in check by a modern elite. They are afraid that this elite cannot control these masses much longer, however, which is why they do not want Turkey to join the EU: Once Turkey joins, they fear, Islamists will take over and the EU will have a massive problem on its hands.
Now that the Turkish Parliament has voted in favor of changing the Constitution in this regard, European Turkey-sceptics (I am, or better, was not one of them) feel vindicated. They argue that they saw this coming and that the situation will become �worse.� �Wait 20 years,� they say, �and Islamists will control the entire country.� People like Geert Wilders (Netherlands), Filip DeWinter (Belgium) and Le Pen (France) will use the recent developments in Turkey to scare Europeans even more, which can result in only one thing: Turkey will not be allowed to join the EU.
Europeans only have one main fear these days, and it is Islamism. Many believe that moderate Muslims do not exist, let alone moderate Muslim countries. PM Erdoğan is now telling them that they are right, or that is at least how most Europeans interpret it.
If Turks are serious about joining the EU they should (ironically to some) pray that the Constitutional Court overrules their Parliament. If that does not happen, Europe-minded Turks should organize protests and, more generally, do everything in their power to undermine the AKP. It is their only chance to take Turkey into the 21st century and to continue on the path laid out by Turkey's great founder, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk.
Not only a domestic issue:
The headscarf ban is mostly a domestic issue but it is also an international issue simply because the world is becoming increasingly smaller and because countries are joining forces more and more, which means that they become even more dependent on each other. That does not mean that a country like Turkey should solely make decisions that make the rest of the Western world happy, but it does most certainly mean that Turks have to take the opinions of foreigners and especially EU-Europeans in regard. Ignoring Europe's wishes and concerns will result in Turkey becoming poorer and less developed than she is right now. It seems to me that Turks cannot afford to let this happen.
Many EU-Europeans fear that this is only the start of a reactionary revolution in Turkey. Erdoğan is cozying up to Iran these days (energy) and now the government he leads is opening the doors to fundamentalists in universities and schools. That might be a oversimplification, but the key word here is might.
�Might� is and should not be good enough for Europeans who think and debate about whether or not Turkey, a Muslim nation, should be allowed to join the secular EU.
Turks who believe that Turkey's fate and that of Europe are intertwined should pay attention.
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Michael van der Galiën is the co-founder and editor of PoliGazette (http://poligazette.com), Dutch correspondent for Pajamas Media (http://pajamasmedia.com), and chief political reviewer at Monsters and Critics. He lives in The Netherlands. (mpfvandergalien@gmail.com)
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