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Human Rights Issues

	Overview	Death penalty
	Torture/ Ill-treatment	Arbitrary detention
	Fair trial	Prison conditions
	Demonstrations	Ethnic affiliation
	Religious affiliation Overview Alevis Christians Jehovah's witnesses Jews Sufis Yezidis	Political affiliation
	NGOs and Human rights defenders	Women
	Children/ Youth	Challenged and sick persons
	Sexual orientation	Freedom of opinion and media
	Military service/ Desertion	Refugees

19.09.2008 - Source: US Department of State

Annual report on religious freedom 2008 ("International Religious Freedom Report 2008") [ID 24802]

"The Constitution provides for freedom of religion, and other laws and policies contributed to the generally free practice of religion, but constitutional provisions regarding the integrity and existence of the secular state restrict these rights.

The Government generally respected religious freedom in practice; however, the Government imposes limitations on Islamic and other religious groups and significant restrictions on Islamic religious expression in government offices and state-run institutions, including universities, for the stated reason of preserving the "secular state." There was no change in the status of respect for religious freedom by the Government during the period covered by this report. In February 2008 the Parliament passed constitutional amendments designed to lift the ban against wearing headscarves on university campuses. However, on June 5, 2008, the Constitutional Court ruled that amendments intended to permit the wearing of headscarves in universities violated the secular nature of the state and were therefore unconstitutional. Authorities continued their broad ban on wearing Islamic religious headscarves in government offices as well as public schools. The Government continued to oppose "Islamic extremism." Religious minorities said they were effectively blocked from careers in state institutions because of their faith. Minority religious groups also faced difficulties in worshipping, registering with the Government, and training their followers. Although religious speech and persuasion is legal, some Muslims, Christians, and Baha'is faced a few restrictions and occasional harassment for alleged proselytizing or holding unauthorized meetings.

There were reports of societal abuses and discrimination based on religious affiliation, belief, or practice. Violent attacks and continued threats against non-Muslims during the reporting period created an atmosphere of pressure and diminished freedom for some non-Muslim communities. Many Christians, Baha'is, and Muslims faced societal suspicion and mistrust, and more-radical Islamist elements continued to express anti-Semitic sentiments. Additionally, persons wishing to convert from Islam sometimes experienced social harassment and violence from relatives and neighbors.

Section I. Religious Demography

The country has an area of 301,383 square miles and a population of 70.5 million. According to the Government, 99 percent of the population is Muslim, the majority of which is Hanafi Sunni. According to the human rights nongovernmental organization (NGO) Mazlum-Der and representatives of various religious minority communities, the actual percentage of Muslims is slightly lower. Following the 1923 Lausanne Treaty, the Government officially recognizes only three minority religious communities. These are Greek Orthodox Christians, Armenian Orthodox Christians, and Jews, although other non-Muslim communities exist. The level of religious observance varied throughout the country, in part due to the influence of secular traditions and official restrictions on religious expression in political and social life.

In addition to the Sunni Muslim majority, academics estimate that there are between 10 million and 20 million Alevis, followers of a belief system that incorporates aspects of both Shi'a and Sunni Islam and draws on the traditions of other religious groups indigenous to Anatolia as well. Some Alevis practice rituals that include men and women worshipping together through oratory, poetry, and dance. The Government considers Alevism a heterodox Muslim sect; some Alevis and Sunnis maintain that Alevis are not Muslims.

There are several other religious groups, mostly concentrated in Istanbul and other large cities. While exact membership figures are not available, these religious groups include approximately 65,000 Armenian Orthodox Christians, 23,000 Jews, and up to 4,000 Greek Orthodox Christians. The Government interpreted the 1923 Lausanne Treaty as granting special legal minority status exclusively to these three recognized groups, although the treaty text refers broadly to "non-Muslim minorities" without listing specific groups. This recognition does not extend to the religious leadership organs. For example, the Ecumenical (Greek Orthodox) and Armenian Patriarchates continued to seek legal recognition of their status as patriarchates rather than foundations, the absence of which prevents them from having the right to own and transfer property and train religious clergy. Additionally, because the Government requires all places of learning to be under the control of the Ministry of Education, the Greek Orthodox, Armenian Orthodox, and Jews choose not to train their ministry in the country. The Bulgarian Orthodox Church, through a 1945 bilateral agreement, is considered under the ecclesiastical authority of the Greek Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarchate in Istanbul (and Greece), but the Bulgarian Orthodox Church has its own foundation.

There also are approximately 500,000 Shiite Caferis; 10,000 Baha'is; 15,000 Syrian Orthodox (Syriac) Christians; 5,000 Yezidis; 3,300 Jehovah's Witnesses; 3,000 Protestants; and small, undetermined numbers of Bulgarian, Chaldean, Nestorian, Georgian, Roman Catholic, and Maronite Christians. Among these minority religious communities are a significant number of Iraqi refugees, including 3,000 Chaldean Christians. The number of Syriac Christians in the southeast was once higher; however, under pressure from government authorities and later under the impact of the war against the terrorist Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), many Syriacs migrated to Istanbul, Western Europe, or North and South America. Over the last several years, small numbers of Syriacs returned from overseas to the southeast, mostly from Western Europe. In most cases, older family members returned while younger ones remained abroad."

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