The right to establish, own, and maintain places of worship is set out in the international human rights standards that Turkey is a party to. Yet religious communities face serious obstacles – both formal and informal – preventing this, Forum 18 News Service notes. Only the state-run Diyanet can open…
A senior Turkish Protestant has said his country's small Christian churches still face severe hardships, despite recent pledges by the government to improve protection of religious rights. ‘We can't deny certain positive steps - since 2005, we've been able to apply for legal status as registered associations,’ said Zekai Tanyar,…
Turkey's Foreign Minister said NATO is preparing to deploy patriot missiles to bolster border defences with Syria. The surface-to-air missiles will be able to shoot down aircraft up to 160 kilometers away. His comments appeared to contradict a statement from the Turkish Prime Minister who said, ‘We do not have…
Judges in Turkey’s southeastern city of Malatya have announced the preparation of an indictment in the case of three murdered Christians that is expected to reveal a shadowy network that incited five young men to carry out the crime. The Third Criminal Court of Malatya is expected to announce the…
The June 12 election signalled a political change heralding the start of evictions within the central working-class Istanbul neighbourhood of Tarlabasi; to make way for an ambitious project to beautify the city. Continual evictions leave residentswho will not or cannot move for financial or other reasons fearful. Bahattin Argis said,…
Many in Turkey see an urgent need to reform primary and secondary school education to facilitate freedom of religion or belief. This is because aspects of the school system play a role in fuelling a type of nationalism behind intolerant attitudes, violent attacks and possibly even murders experienced by vulnerable…