The Problems of Contemporary Turkey

Paper Summary:

This paper examines the main problems that modern Turkey faces and their possible origins such as: the military's weakening hold on the civilians, provisions of the 1961 Constitution, the forming of violent movements and economic instability. The paper provides future projections for Turkey and gives solutions in possible policy reform.

From the Paper:

"Many of Turkey's current political and even cultural problems actually stem from the proportional representation provisions of its 1961 constitution, which made it difficult for any party to gain the majority needed to enact effective legislation. Action, as a result, has all too often been taken by the rising up of violent movements in the streets (Ibrahim, 2001, p. 38).The military's hold over the country has lessened. In 1989, ?zal was chosen as Turkey's first civilian head of state since 1960. However, despite the growing political stability of the central government over the last decade and an increasing commitment on the part of the nation to democracy, Turkey's economy suffered badly during the 1980s and 1990s due to government deficits, a weak currency, and continued economic losses incurred by the UN trade embargo of Iraq. All of these factors continue to have repercussions in the country's current economic condition, and the weakness in the economy has left the nation subject to Islamic nationalist movements that many Turks believe to be disruptive and (because they are backed by Arab interests) alien and insensitive to Turkey's unique position at the crossroads of the East and the West (Abramowitz, 2001, p. 81)."

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