Turkish court rules against closing ruling party / Turkey’s AKP survives court fight

Turkey’s ruling AKP party survived an attempt to oust it from power in a landmark court judgment on the 30 July 2008, pulling the country back from a bitterly divisive battle over Islam and Turkey’s secular constitution.

The EU expressed relief at the decision.

ESO: Background information http://www.europeansources.info/record/an-existential-struggle-that-can-have-no-winners/

Deutsche Welle, 30.7.08: Turkey's Governing Party Escapes Court Ban http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,3526512,00.html

Radio Netherlands Worldwide, 30.7.08: No ban on Turkey's AK party http://www.rnw.nl/english

BBC News, 31.7.08: EU hails ruling on Turkish party http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/7534620.stm

BBC News, 30.7.08: Turkey's ruling party escapes ban http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/7533414.stm

SETA: Policy Brief, No.19, 2008: AK Party Survives Closure Case: What Is Next? http://www.setav.org/document/Policy_Brief_No_19_Ihsan_Dagi.pdf

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