By Svante E. Cornell (vol. 1, no. 16 of the Turkey Analyst) 

Turkey’s Constitutional Court has published its detailed reasoning in two landmark cases, in which it rejected the AKP government’s lifting of the headscarf ban in universities, and found the ruling party guilty of having undermined secularism, but stopped short of closing down the party. While the two cases have been dismissed as political, a closer reading suggests a much more complex reality. The court offers a sophisticated legal and philosophical reasoning, seeking to balance competing principles. This could suggest that the Turkish Constitutional Court is seriously beginning to step into a role as the constitutional provider of check and balances.

By Halil Magnus Karaveli (vol. 1, no. 15 of the Turkey Analyst)

Ethnic polarization between Turks and Kurds has intensified as the PKK continues its attacks on Turkish targets. Hatred against Kurds, not a regular feature in Turkey so far, is on the rise in Turkish society. Turkey’s Kurdish problem will become even more difficult to handle if an ethnic nationalism that excludes the Kurds develops further at a popular level. However, it is evident that old assumptions about the conflict will have to be revised.

By Halil Magnus Karaveli (vol. 1, no. 14 of the Turkey Analyst) 

As the hopes that the AKP would get back on the track of reform and democratization recede, there is a real chance that the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) could reinvent itself as a centrist alternative in Turkish politics. There are also encouraging signs that Turkish social democrats realize that they have to revert to their old ways and make peace with Europe.