Generals, Christians and Turkey’s Europeanization

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    • Presentation speakers
      • Ekrem Eddy Güzeldere, European Stability Initiative, Turkey


    Europeanization has a long history in Turkey and deep roots in the history of the 19th century, but it has meant very different things at different periods. The dramatic power struggles between various elites that are currently shaking Turkish politics are also shaped by different understandings of what a ‘European Turkey’ is supposed to look like and of the importance of democracy in this context. This paper discusses how the process of political change in Turkey, rather than just slowing down, has actually shifted from a phase of legislation and constitutional amendments to a phase of raw political struggle over the meaning of these earlier reforms. In this second phase, civil society, independent media, and NGOs empowered by the first wave of reforms has become ever more important and influential. In this phase, the EU’s direct influence is less apparent than before. Europeanization becomes a domestic affair, fought over by domestic interests. The impact of reforms is no longer technocratic, but deeply political. Understanding how this process unfolds is not only crucial to understanding Turkey, but also to better grasping the dynamics of Europeanization.