The European Union and Turkish Accession : Human Rights and the Kurds

The EU accession process will shape Turkey's future and, in particular, its potential to become a pluralist, democratic state with respect for international human rights. In this timely survey Kerim Yildiz and Mark Muller explain and analyse the process of accession focusing primarily on these associated human rights obligations and the extent of their implementation in Turkey. The European Union and Turkish Accession addresses the variety of groups in Turkey who are affected by these negotiations and details the background of the Kurdish people - the largest minority group in Turkey - and their relationship to the Turkish republic. This book is essential for students studying EU enlargement, particularly the human rights issues around the Turkish Accession, and those interested in the ongoing struggle of the Kurds. Contents......Page 8 Map of the area inhabited by Kurds......Page 10 Acknowledgements......Page 11 Foreword by Noam Chomsky......Page 12 Abbreviations......Page 19 Introduction......Page 22 THE KURDS......Page 25 THE TURKISH REPUBLIC......Page 33 THE ROUTE TO ACCESSION......Page 41 THE OPENING OF FORMAL EU ACCESSION NEGOTIATIONS......Page 45 TURKEY’S EU BID IN A WIDER POLITICAL CONTEXT......Page 46 FULFILMENT OF THE COPENHAGEN CRITERIA FOR EU ACCESSION?......Page 50 3 Civil and Political Rights in Turkey......Page 60 THE PRO-EU REFORM PROCESS......Page 61 TORTURE AND ‘ZERO TOLERANCE’......Page 63 FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION, PUBLISHING AND THE MEDIA......Page 71 CIVIL SOCIETY IN TURKEY......Page 83 POLITICAL PARTICIPATION......Page 88 4 Cultural and Minority Rights in Turkey......Page 98 CULTURAL AND LINGUISTIC RIGHTS......Page 99 EU REFORMS......Page 111 MINORITY RIGHTS STANDARDS IN TURKEY......Page 114 DEFINITIONAL ISSUES......Page 119 SUBSTANTIVE RIGHTS......Page 123 ORIGINS AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE CONFLICT......Page 127 RESOLVING THE CONFLICT......Page 131 THE EU AND THE CONFLICT IN THE SOUTHEAST......Page 138 THE KURDISH QUESTION FROM A TURKISH PERSPECTIVE......Page 143 6 The International Dimension to the Conflict......Page 147 TURKEY AND KURDISTAN, IRAQ......Page 148 TURKISH MILITARY ACTIVITY IN KURDISTAN, IRAQ......Page 153 TURKEY, IRAN AND SYRIA......Page 158 7 The Military and the Islamist Movement......Page 165 SECULARISTS VS ISLAMISTS......Page 166 THE ISLAMIST MOVEMENT, HUMAN RIGHTS AND THE KURDISH ISSUE......Page 168 THE AKP, TURKEY AND THE MILITARY......Page 169 BACKGROUND TO DISPLACEMENT......Page 173 CONDITIONS AND DIFFICULTIES FACED BY INTERNALLY DISPLACED PERSONS......Page 177 THE GOVERNMENT RESPONSE TO DISPLACEMENT......Page 178 STATE IMPEDIMENTS TO RETURN......Page 184 THE INTERNATIONAL RESPONSE TO INTERNAL DISPLACEMENT IN TURKEY......Page 186 EUROPE’S ROLE IN SOLVING THE KURDISH QUESTION......Page 190 ASSESSMENT OF THE EU’S APPROACH......Page 199 THE KURDISH PERSPECTIVE ON EU ACCESSION......Page 205 10 The Future of EU Accession......Page 210 HUMAN RIGHTS AND EU ACCESSION......Page 212 IMPLICATIONS OF THE ACCESSION PROCESS......Page 214 Notes......Page 221 Index......Page 252 The EU accession process will shape Turkey's future and, in particular, its potential to become a pluralist, democratic state with respect for international human rights. In this timely survey, Kerim Yildiz and Mark Muller explain and analyze the process of accession, focusing primarily on these associated human rights obligations and the extent of their implementation in Turkey. The book addresses the variety of groups in Turkey who are affected by these negotiations and details the background of the Kurdish people---the largest minority group in Turkey---and their relationship to the Turkish republic. This book is essential for students studying EU enlargement, particularly the human rights issues around the Turkish Accession, and those interested in the ongoing struggle of the Kurds. Addresses the human rights questions, particularly relating to the country's Kurdish minority, that dominate the debate over Turkey's EU membership