Turkey Under the AKP: Are Civil Liberties Safe?

Issue Date January 2012
Volume 23
Issue 1
Page Numbers 109-118
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In the West, Turkey is considered a model for a secular democracy in the Muslim world, yet the country finds itself mired in a crisis of civil rights and liberties under a third term of the pro-Islamic AKP government. Ironically, while the government maintains a discourse on political reform—including constitutional amendments—the country is bitterly divided over issues of minority and human rights, freedom of speech, and autonomy of media and academia.

About the Author

Berna Turam is professor in the International Affairs Program at Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts. Her books include Between Islam and the State: The Politics of Engagement (2007).

View all work by Berna Turam