ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the situation of academic freedom in Turkey. Based on the standardized research guidelines for case studies on academic freedom, it details the characteristics of the higher education system and examines the current state of academic freedom across areas ranging from legal and institutional protection to the freedom, to research, and campus security. It finds that after recurrent military interventions in the past, Turkish higher education briefly enjoyed limited academic freedom and autonomy in the early 2000s. Historically sensitive and socially controversial topics started to find a place in research and publications, but still lacked presence in official university curricula. Turkey's accession negotiations with the European Union contributed to improvements in academic freedom, university autonomy, and campus life. However, grave damage to this progress was inflicted during the two-year state of emergency imposed after the 2016 coup attempt, and the after-effects of the statuary decrees continue today. After the transition from the parliamentary regime to a presidential system in July 2018, Turkey's courts lost their independence in an unprecedented way. Investigations and trials on terrorism charges have since been used to silence academics, intellectuals, journalists, and any other critical voices.
