Should Turkey be kept out of the EU because of it's assault on freedom of speech?

Question

Can the EU integrate with a country with medieval-style witchhunts?

http://edition.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/europe/11/28/dawkins.turkey.ap/index.html

Answer 1

hi, any organisation hs its rules and regulations. i am sure the EU does not condon any country which does not abide by its rules and regulations. Freedom of speech is a must for any democratic nation. if Turkey does not practice or encourage freedom of speech, it should be KEPT out of the EU

Answer 2

Turkey must stop committing human rights violations if it wanted to be a member of the EU.

Answer 3

"Freedom of Speech" is an American concept, and I'm not even sure it is included in any EU documents or charters.  There are a lot of countries around the world that ban all speech against the government or government authority.

I think that there are countries already in the EU that have restrictions on free speech in their own laws.  Turkey can do what it wants without approval of the EU.  And the EU can integrate with Turkey if IT wants, without any approval from the U.S. or the ACLU.

Answer 4

While I dont believe that this particular issue alone warrants leaving Turkey out of the EU, it is certainly systemic of the cultural and social differences between Turkey and other members of the EU.  No, Turkey shouldn't be kept out for this reason alone (if they met all other standards), but I doubt they will be let in.

Turkey has had many recent problems that are either going to delay or halt their entry into the EU.  First, the recent limitation of the freedom of speech (as you cited) deters the EU from allowing them to be a member.  Personal freedoms are one of the highest issues for EU members and I doubt seriously that any state would be allowed in if this continued.  Second, Turkey has been speaking a lot of rhetoric lately about invading Northern Iraq to stop the Kurdish terrorist organization.  That certainly does not make you look good to an organization of mostly peaceful nations.  Third, the economic and certainly cultural differences between Turkey and other EU members may make the members feel as though there is a disconnect between them and that they should not be allowed in.  And lastly, Turkey does not have a good track record at all with the nation of Greece (an EU member).  They have been fighting for decades over the island of Cyprus.  These culminate to the EU not allowing Turkey to become a member.  You are absolutely right, the EU cannot (at this time) integrate with Turkey because of its issues with personal freedoms and human rights, but this is systemic of a much broader range of issues from Turkey.

Answer 5

In an ideal state of affairs, yes, of course it should. You only supplied one illustrative example, but there are so many more important and significant ones, directly influencing lives of the people living there. But I'm afraid the EU is more than willing to turn the blind eye whenever it suits their needs and vice versa. They will insist on all the rules of the book being obeyed if their target is not on their list of interests.