Turkey is a westernized country, and enforces its laws as such. (The Turks, rather than destroy, absorbed much of the Byzantium culture, much like Rome did after conquering the Greeks.) Turkey is also the regional ally of Israel. It was under the Ottoman rule that the zionist movement started.
In Jordan, there are several court systems. The Muslims, Christians, and Jews all get their own system for intra-religious issues, and then they have a secular court system for inter-religious issues. (Ironically, the King of Jordan claims divine right to the throne as a descendent of Mohammed.)
Also note that Iraq is a secular country. Saddam only cries Jihad! when he thinks it will serve his intrests. Also, the Deputy PM of Iraq is a Christian.
Yes and Turkey must diligently keep and protect it's secular government against the Islamic onslaughts:
"The court said the main opposition party violated a law that prohibited religious activities that could undermine the secular government."
The Scarf Skirmishes
Both Turkey and Iran are Muslim "outsiders," belonging to the non-Arab part of Islam. It is interesting that as such, they also represent the two extremes in today's Muslem culture, fundamentalism and secularism.
It is not Ms. Kavakci's chic white suit with gold buttons that caused the problem. It is the white scarf that covers her head, coupled with ideas of freedom she developed while living in Texas.
FOREIGN DESK | June 23, 2001
Turkish Court Bans Religious Party, Main Opposition Force
By DOUGLAS FRANTZ (NYT) 774 words
Turkey's messy political system suffered another jolt today when the country's highest court banned the religious-oriented Virtue Party. The court sai...
(NY Times)
Turkish Court Bans Religious Party, Main Opposition Force
New York Times; New York, N.Y.; Jun 23, 2001; Douglas Frantz;
New York Times Company Jun 23, 2001
Turkey's messy political system suffered another jolt today when the country's highest court banned the religious-oriented Virtue Party. The court said the main opposition party violated a law that prohibited religious activities that could undermine the secular government.
The court stopped short of expelling large numbers of the party from Parliament, a move that would have automatically led to new elections because it would have left more than 5 percent of the Parliament seats vacant. The party controls 102 of the 550 seats. Most of the rest are split among the three governing parties.
The decision was announced after financial markets had closed here, but it seems highly likely to contribute to the turmoil that has seen the currency plunge, thousands of businesses close and 500,000 Turks lose their jobs since February.
Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit ruled out early elections, saying the country had to deal with its economic difficulties. ''An atmosphere of an early election does not exist in any way,'' Mr. Ecevit told reporters before the court announced its decision. ''We are trying to solve the problems accumulated over the years. Even mentioning early elections is out of the question.''
Closing the Virtue Party will alter the political equation at a time when Mr. Ecevit's three-party coalition already faces strains in its effort to restore economic stability and to carry out changes demanded by international agencies in exchange for $16 billion in loans.
In its ruling, the Constitutional Court found that the party was a focus of ''Islamic and antisecular activities.'' Two members were expelled from Parliament, and five others were banned from politics for five years, which means they cannot join or form a party in that period.
Among the banned members of Parliament was Merve Kavakci, who caused a stir two years ago when she was denied permission to take the oath of office because she refused to remove her head scarf. Many conservative Turks view a head scarf as a symbol of Islamic piety. But the law bars civil servants and students from wearing them because of their religious connotations.
''It was decided by majority vote that the Virtue Party will be permanently closed for activities contrary to the principle of the secular republic,'' Chief Justice Mustafa Bumin told reporters in Ankara, where the decision was announced.
A large contingent of Virtue Party members threatened this week to resign if the party was closed. Most experts said the members would move to existing parties or form a new party. The Virtue Party's popularity has fallen in recent months, along with the popularity of the governing parties.
Oner Ayan, manager of emerging markets at Raymond James, the investment bank in New York, said the financial markets were quite unlikely to have a strong reaction unless a large number of party members resigned after the court decision, raising the prospect of elections.
The European Union, which is weighing Turkey's candidacy for membership, is widely expected to criticize the decision, even though it is legal to ban parties in Europe, and Germany is in the process of shutting down a neo-fascist organization.
In most cases, however, European parties are banned for advocating or participating in violence. The Virtue Party was closed for nonviolent activities more often defined as thought crimes.
''The Europeans tend to expect real violence or potential action among the reasons to ban a party,'' said Cagri Erhan, deputy director of European research at Ankara University.
The Virtue Party sprang full grown from the ashes of the Welfare Party, which became the country's most powerful Islamic-oriented party in 1996, when its leader, Necmettin Erbakan, became prime minister in a coalition government.
The coalition collapsed after a year in office under heavy pressure from the powerful military, which considers itself the guardian of the secular system. The military and opposition politicians argued that Mr. Erbakan had given crucial government jobs to people who supported Islamic law. After the Welfare Party was ousted from government, a court closed it, Mr. Erbakan was banned from politics for life, and most supporters made a smooth transition to the new Virtue Party.
This time, however, political Islam seems more fragmented. Former Mayor Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Istanbul, a former party member, has indicated that he will form a moderate Islamic party, though he is still banned from politics.
* Tatilimizin bir kısmını Türkiye'de gecirmekteyim. Bu süre icerisinde dış basından yazıları size aktaracagım. Saygılarımla.
Headscarf ignites Iran-Turkey row
[Turkey, which is officially secular, regards the wearing of the Muslim headscarf as a political, pro-Islamic statement and has banned them in public institutions.
Virtue Party ban
Ms Kavakci, a newly-elected woman Virtue Party deputy, re-ignited the debate over the place Islam holds in Turkey when she wore a Muslim headscarf in parliament.
She has refused to back down, with the full support of her party leader, Recai Kutan.
But Turkish Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit will not allow her to take her oath of office wearing a headscarf.
Turkey's chief prosecutor has already begun legal moves to ban the Virtue Party on the grounds that it is trying to overthrow the country's constitution by persisting with its support for Ms Kavakci.
This is the latest round in a long-running series of disputes between the two neighbouring countries, whose governments are ideologically at opposite ends of the spectrum.
Secularism was one of the main pillars of the modern Turkish state set up by Mustafa Kemal Ataturk in the 1920s.]