Turkey and its Christians: Discussion of Armenia: Turkey inches toward EU
TURKEY AND ITS CHRISTIANS: THE CROSS AND THE CRESCENT
Economist, UK
Dec 19 2007
Why Christians feel under threat in today's Turkey
AFPTHIS has been a bad year for Orhan Ant. As a Protestant missionary
in Samsun, on the Black Sea, he has had death threats and his church
has been repeatedly stoned. Local newspapers called him a foreign
agent. A group of youths tried to kidnap him as he was driving home.
His pleas for police protection have gone unheeded.
Mr Ant is not alone. All over Turkey, Christians are under attack. In
January Hrant Dink, an ethnic Armenian newspaper editor, was shot dead
in Istanbul by a teenager who said he had "insulted Turkishness". In
April two Turks and a German, all evangelists, were murdered in
Malatya. Their killers bound and tortured them before slitting their
throats. In December an Italian Catholic priest was knifed by a
teenager in Izmir. Another Italian priest was shot dead in Trabzon
in 2006.
Many blame the attacks on a new ultra-nationalism, tinged with Islamic
militancy, that has swept across Turkey. Unemployed teenagers in the
Black Sea region seem especially prone to it. "The plight of Christians
is critical," says Husnu Ondul, president of the Ankara-based Turkish
Human Rights Association. Like many others, he believes that the "deep
state", comprising a few judges, army officers and security officials
who need enemies to justify their grip on power, is behind the attacks.
That may seem far-fetched. Yet evidence leaked to the media in the
Dink and Malatya cases points to collusion between the perpetrators
and rogue elements in the police and the army. It also suggests that
the Istanbul police were tipped off about Mr Dink's murder a year
before it was carried out. "So why did the Istanbul police do nothing
to prevent it?" wonders Ergin Cinmen, a lawyer for the Dink family.
Respecting the religious freedom of non-Muslims is essential to
Turkey's hopes of joining the European Union. Laws against Christians
repairing their churches have been relaxed. Overriding objections
from pious constituents, the ruling Justice and Development (AK)
party has just restored an ancient Armenian church in eastern Turkey. {!!}
School textbooks are being purged of an anti-Western bias.
Yet many Christian grievances remain. The prime minister, Recep
Tayyip Erdogan, resists calls to reopen the Greek Orthodox Halki
seminary on Heybeli island off Istanbul, shut down in 1971. Turkey
refuses to recognise the ecumenical title of the Greek Orthodox
patriarch, Bartholomew I, the spiritual leader of over 200m Orthodox
Christians. The patriarch, a loyal Turkish citizen, has lobbied hard
for Turkey's EU membership. But this has only reinforced suspicions
among ultra-nationalist detractors, who accuse him of trying to
"Christianise" Turkey and wanting a Vatican-style state in the heart
of Istanbul.
Never mind that the Greek Orthodox church in Istanbul has dwindled
to 4,000 souls, many of them too old to follow their children abroad.
Nor that the patriarch must under Turkish law be a Turkish citizen, a
rule which is making it difficult to find a successor to Bartholomew
I. "They [ie, the Turks] apparently won't regard the conquest of
Constantinople as complete until the patriarchate ceases to exist and
all Christians have been frightened away," suggests one restorer of
icons in Istanbul.
The government has yet to approve a draft bill to help non-Muslims
recover thousands of properties that have been confiscated by the state
and either sold or left to decay. The Aya Yorgi church in Istanbul's
Edirnekapi district, which was badly damaged in an earthquake, is one
sad example. Its walls are cracked, its roof is leaking; a marble angel
lies in pieces on the floor. "All we ask is to be permitted to rescue
our church, but we cannot hammer a single nail," complains Bishop
Dionysios, a Greek Orthodox prelate who still conducts services there.
Many Christians concede that AK has treated them better than its
secular predecessors did. They blame the deep state for their recent
troubles. But the excuse of the deep state's power is wearing thin
after AK's big victory in July's general election. "With such a strong
mandate, the government's failure to meet our demands can only mean
one thing, that the deep state is still in charge," says a Christian
priest. Or perhaps that AK believes in religious freedom for Muslims,
but not Christians.
Economist, UK
Dec 19 2007
Why Christians feel under threat in today's Turkey
AFPTHIS has been a bad year for Orhan Ant. As a Protestant missionary
in Samsun, on the Black Sea, he has had death threats and his church
has been repeatedly stoned. Local newspapers called him a foreign
agent. A group of youths tried to kidnap him as he was driving home.
His pleas for police protection have gone unheeded.
Mr Ant is not alone. All over Turkey, Christians are under attack. In
January Hrant Dink, an ethnic Armenian newspaper editor, was shot dead
in Istanbul by a teenager who said he had "insulted Turkishness". In
April two Turks and a German, all evangelists, were murdered in
Malatya. Their killers bound and tortured them before slitting their
throats. In December an Italian Catholic priest was knifed by a
teenager in Izmir. Another Italian priest was shot dead in Trabzon
in 2006.
Many blame the attacks on a new ultra-nationalism, tinged with Islamic
militancy, that has swept across Turkey. Unemployed teenagers in the
Black Sea region seem especially prone to it. "The plight of Christians
is critical," says Husnu Ondul, president of the Ankara-based Turkish
Human Rights Association. Like many others, he believes that the "deep
state", comprising a few judges, army officers and security officials
who need enemies to justify their grip on power, is behind the attacks.
That may seem far-fetched. Yet evidence leaked to the media in the
Dink and Malatya cases points to collusion between the perpetrators
and rogue elements in the police and the army. It also suggests that
the Istanbul police were tipped off about Mr Dink's murder a year
before it was carried out. "So why did the Istanbul police do nothing
to prevent it?" wonders Ergin Cinmen, a lawyer for the Dink family.
Respecting the religious freedom of non-Muslims is essential to
Turkey's hopes of joining the European Union. Laws against Christians
repairing their churches have been relaxed. Overriding objections
from pious constituents, the ruling Justice and Development (AK)
party has just restored an ancient Armenian church in eastern Turkey. {!!}
School textbooks are being purged of an anti-Western bias.
Yet many Christian grievances remain. The prime minister, Recep
Tayyip Erdogan, resists calls to reopen the Greek Orthodox Halki
seminary on Heybeli island off Istanbul, shut down in 1971. Turkey
refuses to recognise the ecumenical title of the Greek Orthodox
patriarch, Bartholomew I, the spiritual leader of over 200m Orthodox
Christians. The patriarch, a loyal Turkish citizen, has lobbied hard
for Turkey's EU membership. But this has only reinforced suspicions
among ultra-nationalist detractors, who accuse him of trying to
"Christianise" Turkey and wanting a Vatican-style state in the heart
of Istanbul.
Never mind that the Greek Orthodox church in Istanbul has dwindled
to 4,000 souls, many of them too old to follow their children abroad.
Nor that the patriarch must under Turkish law be a Turkish citizen, a
rule which is making it difficult to find a successor to Bartholomew
I. "They [ie, the Turks] apparently won't regard the conquest of
Constantinople as complete until the patriarchate ceases to exist and
all Christians have been frightened away," suggests one restorer of
icons in Istanbul.
The government has yet to approve a draft bill to help non-Muslims
recover thousands of properties that have been confiscated by the state
and either sold or left to decay. The Aya Yorgi church in Istanbul's
Edirnekapi district, which was badly damaged in an earthquake, is one
sad example. Its walls are cracked, its roof is leaking; a marble angel
lies in pieces on the floor. "All we ask is to be permitted to rescue
our church, but we cannot hammer a single nail," complains Bishop
Dionysios, a Greek Orthodox prelate who still conducts services there.
Many Christians concede that AK has treated them better than its
secular predecessors did. They blame the deep state for their recent
troubles. But the excuse of the deep state's power is wearing thin
after AK's big victory in July's general election. "With such a strong
mandate, the government's failure to meet our demands can only mean
one thing, that the deep state is still in charge," says a Christian
priest. Or perhaps that AK believes in religious freedom for Muslims,
but not Christians.
DISCUSSION OF ARMENIAN-TURKISH RELATIONS BY EUROPEAN
STRUCTURES IMPORTANT FOR ARMENIA
ARKA News Agency, Armenia
Dec 19 2007
YEREVAN, December 19. /ARKA/. Armenia attaches importance to the
discussion of Armenian-Turkish relations by the European structures,
Speaker of the RA Parliament Tigran Torosyan stated at his meeting
with EU Special Representative in the South Caucasus Peter Semneby,
who is in Yerevan to take part in the parliamentary hearings on
Armenian-Turkish relations.
"Armenia attaches importance to the discussion of the problem at
European structures in the context of European values and European
integration, as, with specific principles being set, neither side can
accuse European structures of being biased," Torosyan said. According
to him, the principles must be clearly set and accepted by the sides
through statements.
Moreover, they must be applied in practice.
"The road travelled by the European Union is evidence that tolerance
and dialogue is the basis for resolving disagreements. Armenia's
position is in harmony with the principles. Armenia is aware of the
problems that have to be put aside for some time and of the necessity
for cooperation in other matters and, through the creation of an
atmosphere of mutual confidence and understanding, contributing to
the resolution of the problems," Torosyan said.
He pointed out that Turkey is setting preconditions, which specifically
concern the Nagorno-Karabakh settlement, recognition of the Armenian
Genocide, Armenian Diaspora thereby considering it possible to
establish cooperation only after the issues have been settled.
"It is natural that the preconditions should be unacceptable for
Armenia, as Turkey is raising issues related to a third state,
Azerbaijan, in the context of Armenian-Turkish relations. Besides,
Ankara is unable to resolve its psychological problems related to the
recognition of the Armenian Genocide and continues Armenia's blockade,"
Torosyan said. He stressed that these steps do not by any means fit
the European system of values.
The RA Parliament has held hearings on problems and prospects of
Armenian-Turkish relations.
The hearings were attended by representatives of a number of Armenian
and international organizations, political parties, as well as by Peter
Semneby. A Turkish representative declined the Armenian Parliament's
invitation.
ARKA News Agency, Armenia
Dec 19 2007
YEREVAN, December 19. /ARKA/. Armenia attaches importance to the
discussion of Armenian-Turkish relations by the European structures,
Speaker of the RA Parliament Tigran Torosyan stated at his meeting
with EU Special Representative in the South Caucasus Peter Semneby,
who is in Yerevan to take part in the parliamentary hearings on
Armenian-Turkish relations.
"Armenia attaches importance to the discussion of the problem at
European structures in the context of European values and European
integration, as, with specific principles being set, neither side can
accuse European structures of being biased," Torosyan said. According
to him, the principles must be clearly set and accepted by the sides
through statements.
Moreover, they must be applied in practice.
"The road travelled by the European Union is evidence that tolerance
and dialogue is the basis for resolving disagreements. Armenia's
position is in harmony with the principles. Armenia is aware of the
problems that have to be put aside for some time and of the necessity
for cooperation in other matters and, through the creation of an
atmosphere of mutual confidence and understanding, contributing to
the resolution of the problems," Torosyan said.
He pointed out that Turkey is setting preconditions, which specifically
concern the Nagorno-Karabakh settlement, recognition of the Armenian
Genocide, Armenian Diaspora thereby considering it possible to
establish cooperation only after the issues have been settled.
"It is natural that the preconditions should be unacceptable for
Armenia, as Turkey is raising issues related to a third state,
Azerbaijan, in the context of Armenian-Turkish relations. Besides,
Ankara is unable to resolve its psychological problems related to the
recognition of the Armenian Genocide and continues Armenia's blockade,"
Torosyan said. He stressed that these steps do not by any means fit
the European system of values.
The RA Parliament has held hearings on problems and prospects of
Armenian-Turkish relations.
The hearings were attended by representatives of a number of Armenian
and international organizations, political parties, as well as by Peter
Semneby. A Turkish representative declined the Armenian Parliament's
invitation.
TURKEY INCHES TOWARD EU, CLOUDED BY FRENCH OBJECTIONS
By James G. Neuger
Bloomberg
Update 2
Dec 19 2007
Dec. 19 (Bloomberg) -- Turkey inched ahead with its bid to enter the
European Union, in talks increasingly clouded by French President
Nicolas Sarkozy's determination to make sure the country never gets in.
Negotiations started today over aligning Turkey's regulations with
the EU in the areas of consumer protection and transport and energy
networks. Turkey has now started talks in six of the bloc's 35 policy
areas and completed one.
Under French pressure, the EU has shifted the negotiations into a
lower gear, a sign of rising opposition in the heart of Europe to
letting in a predominantly Muslim country with a standard of living
less than a third of the EU level.
"Certain member states are trying to erode our political and judicial
position," Turkish Foreign Minister Ali Babacan told a Brussels
press conference. "Such attitudes are not proper and do not reflect
a responsible approach."
Turkey has made scant progress toward joining since embarking on
the EU entry marathon in 2005. The bloc froze negotiations in eight
policy areas last year to punish Turkey for refusing to trade with
the Greek-speaking Republic of Cyprus, part of the EU since 2004.
Negotiations in two or three more areas might get under way in the
first half of next year, EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn said.
Alternative Union
Sarkozy, elected in May on a wave of French anti-Turkey sentiment,
says Turkey's place is in an alternative "Mediterranean Union" and has
vetoed talks in policy areas that would lead directly to EU membership.
"Must Europe enlarge indefinitely and, if yes, what will the
consequences be?" Sarkozy said last week after persuading the EU to
set up a blue-ribbon study group that he expects to challenge Turkey's
fitness to join.
Only 21 percent of Europeans want Turkey to become a member, according
to a September poll by the German Marshall Fund. European attitudes
have darkened the anti-EU mood in Turkey, where only 40 percent of
Turks think membership would be a "good thing," down from 54 percent
last year and 73 percent in 2004, the poll found.
Even Turkish schoolchildren are hearing of the broadsides by Sarkozy
and other anti-Turkey politicians in Europe, making it harder for the
government to amass support to modernize the economy along EU lines,
Babacan said.
`Negative Impact'
Such "provocations" stir feelings among Turks "that they are unwanted,
and that in turn has a negative impact on their position toward the
EU," Babacan said.
Babacan, Rehn and Portuguese Foreign Minister Luis Amado, the chairman
of today's meeting, all backed the "accession" process, using the
jargon that France forced the EU to strip from the preparatory
documents.
Diverging public opinion in Turkey and Europe threatens to breed a
"dangerous situation," Amado said.
Rehn, the EU commissioner shepherding the talks, voiced concern
that the "political atmospherics" between Turkey and EU capitals are
damaging the entry process and said the EU needs to be fair to Turkey.
"At the same time, we need to be firm and emphasize conditionality
and that's why we encourage Turkey to relaunch the reform process
in full," Rehn said. As a sign of support for Prime Minister Recep
Tayyip Erdogan's EU strategy, the European Commission's president,
Jose Barroso, will visit Turkey early next year, he said.
Hammering home a point he often makes in Brussels, Babacan said the
Turkish government's plans to upgrade the economy and enhance civil
rights won't be blown off course by the souring mood.
EU Subsidies
For example, Babacan said, today's start of talks on linking Turkey's
transport and energy networks to the European grid makes Turkey
eligible for EU subsidies to upgrade its infrastructure.
Babacan gave no timetable for meeting the EU's demand that Turkey
rewrite a section of the penal code that has been used to prosecute
authors who challenged the Turkish orthodoxy that that the World
War I massacre of Armenians by Ottoman Turks was not genocide. One
journalist convicted under the law, Hrant Dink, was later murdered
by a teenage nationalist.
Divided Cyprus
The status of Cyprus also remains an obstacle for Turkey. Turkey's
military has occupied the northern part of the Mediterranean island
since a 1974 invasion in response to a Greek-backed coup.
The dividing line hardened in 2004, when Greek-speaking Cypriots
rejected a unification proposal that had the backing of the Turkish
side. As a result, Cyprus joined the EU without the Turkish-speaking
north of the island, which remains fenced off in the only disputed
border in the EU.
Skirmishes between the Turkish army and Kurdish rebels operating out
of northern Iraq played no role in today's talks. The conflict with
the Kurds didn't come up and Babacan said Turkey isn't relying on
military force alone to pacify the border.
An EU statement yesterday called on the Turkish military to exercise
restraint, while acknowledging Turkey's right to combat terrorists.
By James G. Neuger
Bloomberg
Update 2
Dec 19 2007
Dec. 19 (Bloomberg) -- Turkey inched ahead with its bid to enter the
European Union, in talks increasingly clouded by French President
Nicolas Sarkozy's determination to make sure the country never gets in.
Negotiations started today over aligning Turkey's regulations with
the EU in the areas of consumer protection and transport and energy
networks. Turkey has now started talks in six of the bloc's 35 policy
areas and completed one.
Under French pressure, the EU has shifted the negotiations into a
lower gear, a sign of rising opposition in the heart of Europe to
letting in a predominantly Muslim country with a standard of living
less than a third of the EU level.
"Certain member states are trying to erode our political and judicial
position," Turkish Foreign Minister Ali Babacan told a Brussels
press conference. "Such attitudes are not proper and do not reflect
a responsible approach."
Turkey has made scant progress toward joining since embarking on
the EU entry marathon in 2005. The bloc froze negotiations in eight
policy areas last year to punish Turkey for refusing to trade with
the Greek-speaking Republic of Cyprus, part of the EU since 2004.
Negotiations in two or three more areas might get under way in the
first half of next year, EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn said.
Alternative Union
Sarkozy, elected in May on a wave of French anti-Turkey sentiment,
says Turkey's place is in an alternative "Mediterranean Union" and has
vetoed talks in policy areas that would lead directly to EU membership.
"Must Europe enlarge indefinitely and, if yes, what will the
consequences be?" Sarkozy said last week after persuading the EU to
set up a blue-ribbon study group that he expects to challenge Turkey's
fitness to join.
Only 21 percent of Europeans want Turkey to become a member, according
to a September poll by the German Marshall Fund. European attitudes
have darkened the anti-EU mood in Turkey, where only 40 percent of
Turks think membership would be a "good thing," down from 54 percent
last year and 73 percent in 2004, the poll found.
Even Turkish schoolchildren are hearing of the broadsides by Sarkozy
and other anti-Turkey politicians in Europe, making it harder for the
government to amass support to modernize the economy along EU lines,
Babacan said.
`Negative Impact'
Such "provocations" stir feelings among Turks "that they are unwanted,
and that in turn has a negative impact on their position toward the
EU," Babacan said.
Babacan, Rehn and Portuguese Foreign Minister Luis Amado, the chairman
of today's meeting, all backed the "accession" process, using the
jargon that France forced the EU to strip from the preparatory
documents.
Diverging public opinion in Turkey and Europe threatens to breed a
"dangerous situation," Amado said.
Rehn, the EU commissioner shepherding the talks, voiced concern
that the "political atmospherics" between Turkey and EU capitals are
damaging the entry process and said the EU needs to be fair to Turkey.
"At the same time, we need to be firm and emphasize conditionality
and that's why we encourage Turkey to relaunch the reform process
in full," Rehn said. As a sign of support for Prime Minister Recep
Tayyip Erdogan's EU strategy, the European Commission's president,
Jose Barroso, will visit Turkey early next year, he said.
Hammering home a point he often makes in Brussels, Babacan said the
Turkish government's plans to upgrade the economy and enhance civil
rights won't be blown off course by the souring mood.
EU Subsidies
For example, Babacan said, today's start of talks on linking Turkey's
transport and energy networks to the European grid makes Turkey
eligible for EU subsidies to upgrade its infrastructure.
Babacan gave no timetable for meeting the EU's demand that Turkey
rewrite a section of the penal code that has been used to prosecute
authors who challenged the Turkish orthodoxy that that the World
War I massacre of Armenians by Ottoman Turks was not genocide. One
journalist convicted under the law, Hrant Dink, was later murdered
by a teenage nationalist.
Divided Cyprus
The status of Cyprus also remains an obstacle for Turkey. Turkey's
military has occupied the northern part of the Mediterranean island
since a 1974 invasion in response to a Greek-backed coup.
The dividing line hardened in 2004, when Greek-speaking Cypriots
rejected a unification proposal that had the backing of the Turkish
side. As a result, Cyprus joined the EU without the Turkish-speaking
north of the island, which remains fenced off in the only disputed
border in the EU.
Skirmishes between the Turkish army and Kurdish rebels operating out
of northern Iraq played no role in today's talks. The conflict with
the Kurds didn't come up and Babacan said Turkey isn't relying on
military force alone to pacify the border.
An EU statement yesterday called on the Turkish military to exercise
restraint, while acknowledging Turkey's right to combat terrorists.
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