The Constitutional Development and Regulation of Turkish Secularism

This chapter undertakes to frame the constitutional framework of Turkish secularism and underline its characteristics. The chapter consists of three sections. Section 3.1 will elucidate the historical experience of secularism in Turkish constitutional tradition. Section 3.2 will examine the multi-level protection mechanisms provided for the principle of secularism under the 1982 Constitution. Finally, Sect. 3.3 will analyze the elaboration of the principle by the Turkish Constitutional Court focusing on the Court’s justification for the “distinctiveness of Turkish secularism.” It will explain how the Court gave the principle a fundamental importance with respect to democratic republican order under a teleological interpretation. Moreover, the essential elements of Turkish secularism spelled out by the Court will be introduced.