The ECtHR and Turkish Secularism

Several important questions pertaining to the freedom of religion arising in the context of the principle of secularism have not found a solution within the framework of the Turkish national law and were brought before the European Court of Human Rights under the applicable European Convention provisions. This chapter will study the decisions of the ECtHR concerning the most problematic areas of freedom of religion and belief in Turkey such as the headscarf ban, compulsory religious education, and the non-recognition of the Alevi faith and will analyze their implications for the domestic law. It will assess the ECtHR’s approach towards interaction of the Convention rights and state regulation of the religious sphere in Turkey. The European Court’s varying attitude in employing the doctrine of margin of appreciation in secularism cases will be highlighted throughout the chapter. The chapter will also illuminate the factors inducing the ECtHR to shift its approach in the different freedom of religion cases and preventing it from creating a consistent jurisprudence in this field.