Volume 06 Issue 09 September 2023
1Angel Damayanti, 2Sri Yunanto
1International Relations Study Program, Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, Universitas Kristen Indonesia,Jakarta, Indonesia
2Graduate Studies of Political Sciences, Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, Universitas Muhammadiyah Jakarta, Jl. KH Ahmad Dahlan, Cirendeu, Tangerang, Indonesia
DOI : https://doi.org/10.47191/ijsshr/v6-i9-28Google Scholar Download Pdf
ABSTRACT
Türkiye was the centre of Christianity until the Ottoman Empire invaded Constantinople in the 15th century. The Ottoman Empire granted rights and protection to the Orthodox Christians, but major conversions to Moslems with political purposes occurred during this period. In 1924, Türkiye became a modern state based on the secularism of Kemal Ataturk and then controlled religious affairs. Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has held power since 2003, amended the constitution and strengthened Islamic politics in Türkiye in the last decade, benefiting conservative Muslims. Therefore, this study aimed to elaborate on the impact of religious political dynamics in Türkiye from the Roman Empire to the Erdogan regime on Christianity in the country. The theory of religious politics and a qualitative methodology with a historical comparative approach was adopted. The result showed that the political transformation in Türkiye, from the Ottoman Era and Kemal’s secularism to Erdogan’s Islamism, did not change the political attitude of the Turkish government towards Christianity. Regrettably, Christians continue to experience unpleasant and discriminatory treatment from the government, particularly after the failed 2016 coup, due to the perception that Christians are often associated with the interests of the US and Western countries.
KEYWORDS:Türkiye, Kemal’s secularism, Islamic Politics, Erdoganism, Christianity in Türkiye
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