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Evolving Views of Islamic Law in Turkey

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 April 2015

Russell Powell
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The tradition of Kemalist secularism (laiklik) in Turkey is often cited to distinguish Turkey as an exceptional case among predominantly Muslim countries. While it is true that the Turkish Constitution, laws, and legal opinions approach the relationship between the state and religion very differently than those of Iran, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, or even Indonesia, it would be wrong to underestimate the role that religion plays in the formation of Turkish legal norms, including citizen understanding of those norms. There is a wealth of literature describing the nature of Turkish secularism and its evolution. A number of both quantitative and qualitative studies inquire about the preference for Shari'a among Turkish voters. The typical question asks whether respondents favor the establishment of a Shari'a state. Over the past fifteen years, these surveys have received response rates ranging between five and twenty-five percent in favor of such a state. However, these results are extremely problematic, because they do not provide any context or meaning for “the establishment of a Shari'a state,” either for those who favor it or for those who oppose it. This study begins to unpack the range of possible meanings attributed to Shari'a within Turkey, both among voters and among intellectuals, as a framework forfuture empirical studies and as a basis for deeper understandings of the role of Islam within Turkish law and politics.

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Articles
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Journal of Law and Religion , Volume 28 , Issue 2 , January 2013 , pp. 467 - 487
Copyright
Copyright © Center for the Study of Law and Religion at Emory University 2013

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References

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109. Id. at 88.

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124. Id. (“Gülen argues that democracy, in spite of its many shortcomings, is now the only viable political system and that people should strive to modernize and consolidate democratic institutions in order to build a society where individuals rights and freedoms are respected and protected, where equal opportunity for all is more than a dream.”).

125. Id. at 224-28.

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