The Limits of European Islam: Turkish Islamic Umbrella Organizations and their Relations with Host Countries—France and Germany

Arkilic, Ayca

doi:10.1080/13602004.2015.1019193

Cited by 13 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 12 publications

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“…For a critique of 'national models', see Bader (2007) and Bowen (2007). According to Arkilic (2015), there is a considerable gap between legal rights and their implementation in reality, as in the cases of France and Germany. While the German church-state model might provide better legal rights compared to those offered by the French model, in practice, there is more flexibility in France than in Germany.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

National conceptions, transnational solidarities: Turkey, Islam and Europe

Çitak

2017

Global Networks

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In this article, I examine the interplay between the institutionalization of Islam in Europe and the transnationalism of Turkey's Directorate for Religious Affairs (Diyanet). Based on extensive fieldwork in Turkey, Austria, Belgium, France and Germany, I demonstrate not only the salience of the nation‐state prerogative on the part of both European states and the Turkish state but also the tension between national conceptions of Muslim identity on both sides amid transnational solidarities. I also argue that, to a certain extent, European policies of detransnationalizing the Muslim field in Europe also intersect with the Diyanet's transnational politics vis‐à‐vis Turkish/Muslim immigrants in their common resistance to the deculturalization of Muslims in Europe. While European countries try to nationalize their respective Muslim communities into their cultural and juridical framework through reterritorialization, the Diyanet has increasingly deterritorialized its activities to preserve a Muslim identity engrained in Turkishness – hence, the coexistence of both a tension and mutual accommodation between Europe and Turkey.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

National conceptions, transnational solidarities: Turkey, Islam and Europe

Çitak

2017

Global Networks

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“…In this period there was also a clear distinction between 'official' Islam, represented by the Directorate of Religious Affairs (Diyanet) and its branches in Europe, and 'parallel' Islamic groups, such as the Millî Görüş. Accordingly, the Turkish government regarded Islamic organizations other than Diyanet-linked ones as foes (Akgönül 2005;Arkilic 2015).…”

Section: A New Actor Takes the Stage: The Akp's Transformation Of Dommentioning

confidence: 99%

Explaining the evolution of Turkey’s diaspora engagement policy: a holistic approach

Arkilic¹

2021

BDIA

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This article provides a comprehensive framework to explain why Turkey has adopted a pro-active diaspora agenda since the early 2000s. It shows that Turkey's diaspora policy is the result of an amalgamation of domestic, transnational, and international factors: Domestically, the AKP's rise to power resulted in drastic economic and political reforms and the promotion of a new identity based on neo-Ottomanism and Sunni-Muslim nationalism. These developments have transformed Turkey's state-diaspora relations. The 2013 Gezi Park protests and the 2016 failed coup attempt also played a role. Transnationally, Turkish expatriates' growing socioeconomic and political clout in their host countries, as evidenced by the mushrooming of political parties founded by Turks in Europe, has urged Turkey to reconsider the efficacy of its diaspora as a source of influence abroad as well as a noteworthy electorate in national elections. Various international events have also shaped Turkey's new diaspora agenda, including Turkey's increasing bargaining power vis-à-vis the EU since the early 2000s, particularly after the European refugee crisis, and the rise of Islamophobia in the post-9/11 era. I suggest that domestic factors have played the most significant role in shaping Turkey's diaspora agenda. I examine the domestic dimension both as an independent factor and also in relation to transnational and international factors. The configuration of a new political elite has changed the ways in which Turkey interacts with its transnational diaspora and perceives its international position vis-à-vis European countries. The findings of the article draw on official statements and documents, semistructured in-depth interviews conducted with Turkish officials, the Euro-Turks Barometer Survey, and news sources.

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“…These meetings, however, were ad hoc and lacked a clear roadmap. In 1999, an early initiative sought a more structured dialogue between the German state and Turks living in Germany, when the Christian Democrats invited chairmen of several Sunni Islamic umbrella organizations, including the Turkish-Islamic Union for Religious Affairs (Diyanet İşleri Türk İslam Birliği, DİTİB), the Islam Council for the Federal Republic of Germany (Islamrat für die Bundesrepublik Deutschland, IRD), and the Central Council of Muslims in Germany (Zentralrat der Muslime in Deutschland, ZMD) to a hearing at the German Parliament (Arkilic 2015). During this meeting, pressing issues pertaining to Muslim life in Germany-such as the introduction of religious education in public schools-were discussed with Turkish Sunni Muslim leaders (Rosenow-Williams 2012, 146).…”

Section: Shattered Hopes: the Turkish Alevi Openingmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Political Participation of Alevis: A Comparative Analysis of the Turkish Alevi Opening and the German Islam Conference

Arkilic

Gurcan

2020

Nationalities Papers

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This article focuses on the relationship between Alevis and the Turkish and German states. It does so by examining the Turkish Alevi Opening (2009–2010) and the German Islam Conference (2006–present), two unprecedented official platforms aimed at improving Alevis’ political participation. The study asks why such state-sponsored initiatives came into existence in Turkey and Germany, and why the German Islam Conference has proven more successful from the perspective of Alevis. It argues that even though the diffusion of EU norms and pressure from transnational advocacy networks have increased awareness regarding the Alevi issue, domestic factors have been more salient in the emergence and outcome of these initiatives in both countries.

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The Limits of European Islam: Turkish Islamic Umbrella Organizations and their Relations with Host Countries—France and Germany

Abstract: This article discusses how Turkish

Cited by 13 publications

References 12 publications

National conceptions, transnational solidarities: Turkey, Islam and Europe

National conceptions, transnational solidarities: Turkey, Islam and Europe

Explaining the evolution of Turkey’s diaspora engagement policy: a holistic approach

The Political Participation of Alevis: A Comparative Analysis of the Turkish Alevi Opening and the German Islam Conference

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