1. The Impact of the EU process on the Consolidation of Democracy in Turkey: A focus on the "human rights" dimension.
- Author
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Hallward, Maia Carter and Bhasin, Tavishi
- Subjects
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DEMOCRACY , *DEMOCRATIZATION , *INTERNATIONAL relations , *HUMAN rights - Abstract
Turkey's accession to the European Union has been the subject of much debate and controversy across regions. However, diverse governmental and non-governmental actors, interviewed by us in May 2010, emphasized the distinction between the EU accession process from actual membership and the profound impact that this process has already had on the country. This paper draws on interviews and meetings conducted with political officials and civil society actors at the national and local level and members to explore how the EU process affects democratization efforts in Turkey, particularly in the Kurdish region. The paper applies the two-level game to explore how domestic debates regarding identity issues, women's empowerment, the role of religion in politics and local development are all framed as essential to democratization in an effort to appeal to wider domestic and international audiences. While many different political and civil society actors coopt the term "democracy" in presenting their own demands, they are quick and forceful to downplay the democratic credentials of political opponents. We work to parse out the different stakeholders, their unique and shared perspectives on democracy, their individual investment in the EU process and commitment to actual accession. We focus on the following question: what is the impact of the EU accession process on democratization in Turkey? We present our argument using evidence from interviews conducted at the national and local level in Turkey, newspaper accounts, EU reports, and additional secondary sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2011