Islam and Turkey’s EU membership

The other day the EU commissioner, Fritz Bolkestein, set off a row when in a speech delivered at the Leiden University he argued against Turkey’s admission into the EU on the ground that the latter would “implode” by the induction of 70 million Turks. He predicted that the Turkish membership would overwhelm the fragile EU system and kill any lingering dream of a fully integrated European super-state. The European Commission, which is expected to release a positive report early next month on the question of starting accession negotiations with Turkey, tried to play down Mr Bolkestein’s remarks by calling them his personal view. Subsequently, the EU enlargement commissioner, Gunter Verheugen, categorically stated that Ankara was now on schedule in meeting EU’s political demands and that “there are no further obstacles on the table”. The question arises whether the views expressed by Mr Bolkestein are of an isolated or a representative character.

Until quite recently, Turkey was denied EU membership on the ground that it failed to fulfil the Copenhagen criteria, which basically related to human rights and democracy. Subsequently, the Cyprus dispute between Turkey and Greece, was added to the list of reservations against Turkish membership. Lately, the adultery clause, which was part of the package aimed at bringing the Turkish criminal law in conformity with the European standards, cropped up as another obstacle. The religion was never mentioned except privately and in whispers. However, as the moment of truth approaches with fulfilment by Turkey of the Copenhagen criteria, doing the needful on Cyprus and bending over backwards to accommodate the EU on adultery clause, one hears a crescendo of voices against Turkish membership on account of Islam.

One of the first people of high visibility to break the taboo in the matter was the former French president Valery Giscard D’Estaing. As head of the convention on the future of Europe he openly opposed Ankara’s candidacy in 2002 on the ground that it had, “a different culture, a different approach, a different way of life” and that, “its capital is not in Europe, 95 percent of its population lives outside Europe, it is not a European country”. He warned that Turkey’s membership would sound EU’s death-knell. Subsequently, Helmut Kohl, the former German chancellor joined him in opposing Turkish membership on religious grounds despite the fact of his son being married to a Turkish woman.

As the time for fixing a date for the start of accession negotiations drew closer dissident voices started being heard from governmental quarters as well. Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, the doctrinal head of Vatican, in an interview with the French newspaper Le Figaro earlier this year advised Turkey to seek membership of the Arab Muslim bloc in the south rather than trying to join the EU since it had no “Christian roots”. The latest to enter the fray is French Prime Minister Jean Pierre Raffarin. Talking to the Wall Street Journal-Europe last week, he opposed the Turkish membership on the ground that the “rivers of Islam” would run through Europe.

The general public in EU is equally unfavourably disposed towards Turkey’s accession. According to an opinion poll (Eurobarometer, November 2002) only 30 percent of the people supported Turkey’s membership while a solid 49 percent opposed it. Some countries have proposed, in view of the opposition, to propose something more than a partnership but less than accession to Turkey. France, for example, has proposed granting Turkey a “ special status” and Germany’s Christian Democrats have suggested a “privileged partnership” allowing Turkey free trade and closer integration in security and military affairs. This, however, has no attraction for Turkey as it already enjoys these benefits.

Among the arguments advanced to deny EU membership to Turkey on account of its Islamic character, the principal one relates to its being to European values. It is based on the presumption that the EU is a “Christian club” and those not sharing Christian values should be kept out. We were taught by the West that religion was a private matter and had nothing to do with the business of the state, which ought to be completely secular in character. The grundnorm, which inspired European states and societies since the Reformation, was the basis of the EU ever since it was formed in the 1950s (at that time as the European Community). In its ardent desire to be part of Europe, modern Turkey jettisoned its Islamic character in favour of secularism about eight decades back; was in denial of its rich Islamic past and broke ranks with the Muslim world in its quest for a European identity. After all these sacrifices, isn’t it ironic that it is being told that its credentials for EU membership aren’t sufficiently sound?

Those who oppose Turkey’s EU membership are indeed slaves of the past. They conjure up images from history to frighten people. For example, Mr Bolkestein compared the EU to the Austro-Hungarian Empire, which repulsed the Ottoman advance in Vienna, to argue that with Turkey’s admission “the liberation of Vienna in 1683 would have been in vain”. Calling demography the “mother of politics”, he asserted that while America had the youth and dynamism to remain the world’s only superpower, and China was the rising economic power, being “Islamised” could become Europe’s destiny.

This should not come as a surprise because, From the Middle Ages to the World War I, Turks were perceived as Europe’s common enemy. According to some writers the origins of European identity can actually be found in the 16th century resistance to the Turks, a consciousness that portrayed the Orient as the common enemy. Besides, there is a general Western hostility towards Islam, which Muhammad Assad (former Leopold Weiss) using the Freudian technique has traced to the crusades that marked the infancy of Muslim-Christian relations. The present hullabaloo shows that the Christian West has not been able to exorcise the ghost with which it has been obsessed since that time.

Could the EU enlargement chief’s statement that Ankara was now on schedule for meeting EU’s political demands and that he did not see any more obstacles in the way signify that Turkey is assured of a date for the start of accession negotiations? Or notwithstanding this statement, could the strong anti-Islam sentiment prevalent in EU upset the apple cart for Turkey? The final decision in the matter rests with the EU leaders who are scheduled to meet at the Brussels summit towards the end of this year. All indications are that they will give a date to start accession talks and that the discordant voices represent no more than last-gasp opposition.

One must not lose sight, however, of the strong current of hostility that marks some of the individual EU countries on the question. For example, in France and Germany only 16 and 26 percent of the people, respectively, support Turkey’s membership (survey by the German Marshall Fund of the United States, 2004). Given the importance of public opinion in the formulation of governmental policy on controversial matters a reference to the people through a referendum cannot be ruled out.

The writer, a former dean of social sciences at Quaid-e-Azam University, is an associate lawyer at Cornelius, Lane and Mufti law firm