100 posts
“Istanbul Tops PwC and ULI List Again”; the 1st Kebab Krawl! on Feb 25
Istanbul Tops PwC and ULI List Again from Mavi Boncuk by M.A.M Istanbul…gimme two of each… Mavi Boncuk | Istanbul becomes favorite setting for films and TV shows from Hurriyet Daily News Istanbul looks to become a hub for TV s...
Erdogan should resign over Armenia row
video By Michael Kambeck Erdogan should have followed a ra...
EFD Rights Watch: Turkey, the country with most convictions at the European Court of Human Rights in 2011
Country with the most Convictions: Turkey from Bianet :: English The majority of judgements delivered by the European Court of Human Rights in 2011 concerned Turkey. Most of these decisions were related to violations of the right to a fair trial and...
From Holocaust Remembrance Day to Orhan Pamuk’s love story. A social news roundup
Turkey’s Chief Rabbi Izak Haleva (C) and Istanbul Governor Huseyin Avni Mutlu (L) light candles, in memory of holocaust victims, during a commemoration to mark International Holocaust Remembrance Day at Neve Shalom Synagogue in Istanbul January...
EFD Rights Watch: Not surprisingly “Turkey Loses Ground again in World Press Freedom Index
Turkey Loses Ground again in World Press Freedom Index Turkey fell back ten places to number 148 in the 2011-2012 World Press Freedom Index. According to the report of Reporters Without Borders, press freedom is in an even worse state in only 31 coun...
Erdogan Pledges ‘No Revenge’ as Turkish Press in Spotlight
Turkey's economy may have made giant leaps forward in 2011, but press freedoms appeared to take a significant step back.
A New Star in the European Sky: Croatia
WASHINGTON– Strange as it may seem to some, there are those who wish to join the European Union, in spite of all its current flaws. Croatian voters gave a resounding yes to becoming the 28th member state of the European Union in a referendum h...
Turkey vs. France. They don’t look like allies anymore after the genocide bill as Turkey takes this as a feud…
Turkish rage at ‘Yes’ from French Senate from Hurriyet Daily News French senators debate a bill yesterday to outlaw denial of the Armenian genocide, despite a furious Turkey vowing to punish Paris with “permanent” sanctions if it is passed in...
Slouching towards Brussels
Croatia votes unethusiastically to join the European Union...
EU referendum: Don’t know – don’t care
The results of the referendum are clear – Croatia has chosen Europe! Two thirds of Croatian voters voted ‘YES’ in today’s referendum on country’s EU accession. Exactly 22 years after that historical day when Croatian del...
politics roundup: Erdoğan says he is not stricken with cancer…. Turkish Hizbullah back on the scene…
Erdogan Seeks to Dispel Cancer Rumors – Emerging Europe Real Time – WSJ By Ayla Albayrak ISTANBUL — Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has broken his silence to stop swelling rumors that he is stricken with cancer and is se...
Hrant Dink trial once again puts judiciary process in Turkey under fire.. A roundup…
Turkey seeks to streamline judicial process from FT.com – World, Europe Ankara has unveiled a package of almost 100 reforms to the lumbering judicial system, which is under the international spotlight Judiciary in Turkey under European fire fr...
Gotovina’s ‘YES’ in the referendum
Retired Croatian army general and a war hero Ante Gotovina will vote ‘YES’ in the EU accession referendum. This information was passed down to Croatian media by his solicitor Luka Misetic earlier today. Although many find this shocking be...
Croatia EU membership referendum campaigns: Blackmail and sweet-talk (Yes to EU) Vs sovereignty and self-determination (No to EU)
Media grabs – days before Croatian referendum Bloomberg: “Croatia’s drive to join the European Union may stall as citizens are split over whether accession will drag the former Yugoslav republic into a debt crisis and erode its sovereignty.
Worshiped like Gods
Few days before the referendum on Croatia’s EU accession I found myself thinking about the interesting scenario. Despite my decision to vote ‘yes’ on the referendum, it would be rather exciting to witness Croatia’s ‘no&#...
In France, genocide has become a political brickbat | Timothy Garton Ash
Next week's bill on denial of Ottoman atrocities against Armenians is an attack on free speech, one of many around the worldNext Monday the French Senate is to vote on a bill that will criminalise denial of the Armenian genocide of 1915, along with a...
istanbul ve çevresinde topyekün elektrik kesintisi….twitter’dan bildirimler…
Sanki bir tatbikat yapıldı gibi…skandal demek yerine… View the story “İstanbul’da elektrik kaosu… Twitter’dan bildirenler… ” on Storify Storified by Erkan Saka Sat, Jan 14 2012 08:25:17 · 109 vi...
(little bit of) snow photos from istanbul today and an istanbul news roundup…
View the story “” on Storify 503 Service Unavailable No server is available to handle this request. İstanbul crowds welcome New Year Today’s Zaman Despite the rainy weather, İstanbul’s Taksim Square saw a magni...
Turkey’s Balancing Act
By Mohammed Ayoob Turkey has over the past few weeks become the spearhead of a joint Western-Arab-Turkish policy ai...
Democratisation and Political Change in Turkey
When the Centre for Turkey Studies and Development (CTSD) invited two leading journalists/writers from Turkey over to London to speak at a meeting in the House of Commons this evening on the state of the democratisation process in their country, the...
on Jan.10 French Senate to vote on Armenian genocide bill… while Algerians oppose Turkey’s use of Algerian massacres against France…
French Senate to vote on genocide from BBC News | Europe | World Edition The French Senate is to vote this month on a bill making it illegal to deny that the mass killing of Armenians was genocide, reports say. France sets date to vo...
EFD end of the year posts: with the Uludere massacre, Turkey’s Kurdish question comes back at full scale
pro-government circles recently argue that there is no going back to 1990′s in terms of Kurdish question. Now as in the old days Kurdish civilians are killed en masse as collateral damage… Deputy gov attacked as BDP warns against officia...
Turkey 2011: Out of Europe's Shadow
As 2011 draws to a close, we can be certain that it will be remembered as the year of the Eurocrisis, with all the global economic uncertainties that implies. However, one of the biggest stories of the year with implications for Europe has been...
New Year 2012: More of the same?
New Year’s Eve. Special time of the year. Time marches on relentlessly through the only day of the year that has a countdown. Countdown to a snake shedding like process for many people in which they try to discard their old habits,bury them dee...
Sarkozy should leave the Armenian genocide to the historians | Agnès Poirier
Making it a crime to deny the genocide antagonises a useful ally in Turkey – a country founded on the French Republican modelThe French parliament recognised the Armenian killings as genocide in 2001. But this week, French MPs went further, approvi...
in the mean time, deputy PM, under whose government thousands of Kurdish activists are imprisoned, vows more rights for Kurds… A politics roundup…
Deputy PM vows more rights for Turkey’s Kurds from Hurriyet Daily News Deputy Prime Minister Bülent Arınç promises more rights to the country’s citizens of Kurdish origin in a speech… Journalists detained in KCK raids Police detai...
French "genocide" bill is attack on Turkey's dignity, foreign minister says
video Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu made a final appeal on Wednesday to French parliamentarians not to ba...
Thank you, Poland!
By signing the Treaty in Brussels today Croatia made its final step towards the EU membership. Croatian politicians consider this act one of the most important in country’s recent history. Although I consider those statements exaggerated, I mus...
A Red Carrot Harvest in Croatia
Once upon a time – but still fresh in memory of many – there were jobs for most. The communist rule in former Yugoslavia, with socialist orientation made it their business that everyone of working age and capacity should have an ongoing job witho...
Croatia and Slovenia Want Change
High jobless rates, weak economic prospects and an apparent fatigue to buy into simplistic national slogans prompted voters in Croatia and Slovenia this weekend to topple their respective governments and back little tested politicians to improve the...
Murat Eliboz, latest victim of Turkish State’s assault against Kurds… EFD Rights Watch
Murat Eliboz, 21, a university student and survivor of Van earthquake has been shot dead behind by police forces at the pro Kurdish BDP rally in Diyarbakır…. No news in English or an image of Murat Eliboz, I could find… May his soul rest...
Nigel Farage barrage
At the moment Croatia is a star in the European Union circles – praise for Croatia’s achievements in its unreasonably hard route to reach the stage of signing the EU Treaty & become a member of EU echoes almost everywhere one looks. The Croat...
Foreign policy roundup: Abdullah Gül stopped by Britain
LONDON, ENGLAND – NOVEMBER 22: The President of Turkey Abdullah Gul, accompanied by his wife Hayrunnnisa Gul, stand at the tomb of the unknown soldier in Westminster Abbey on November 22, 2011 in London, England. The President of Turkey is on a...
Ukraine-Moldova race to EU visa-free regime
This will probably make boring reading, but for those with some stamina to go through typically unreadable, but important, EU-speak here is a comparison of how Ukraine and Moldova perform on their way towards a visa-free regime with the EU. The asses...
A Quarrel in a Faraway Country?: Scotland, Independence and the EU
Aidan O’Neill QC Arabella Thorp and Gavin Thompson, researchers in the International Affairs and Defence Section and the Economic Policy and Statistics Section of the House of Commons Library Research have jointly authored – for the benef...
Foreign policy roundup: Turkey summons Syrian charge d’affaires; Israel and Turkey showing moderate signs
This file photo shows members of Syrian opposition living in Turkey waving their national and Turkish flags as they stage a protest against the Syrian regime in Ankara. AFP photos. Israel and Turkey showing moderate signs of renewed ties by Acturca...
EFD Rights Watch: body of Sebahattin Yılmaz found in debris. Journalists not only imprisoned but also die because of State misconducts in Turkey…
Turkish Quake Death Toll Rises to 26 ABC News - Bertan Ayduk - Mehmet Guzel - 4 hours ago Colleagues and friends wept as rescue workers pulled out the body of Sebahattin Yilmaz from beneath the debris of the Bayram Hotel — one of two ho...
Such a Friday night for Turkey: we lose journalist Cem Emir in the Van Quake; Turkey crushed by Croatia in football; a ferry hijacked…
Cem Emir’s death is a murder. State officials had declared that the hotel he would stay was not damaged but the hotel collapsed in an aftermath quake… Turkey quake survivors sought; Death toll rises from Yahoo news Rescue teams claw throu...
Turkish Ministry Hacked as Kurdish Conflict Goes Online
The decades-old conflict between Turkey's government and Kurdish militants has intensified, but this week saw the emergence of a new front: the Internet.
Cengiz Aktar: 20 yıl önce bugünler Yugoslavya
20 yıl önce bugünler Yugoslavya “Yugoslavya’nın kalbine oku saplayan milliyetçilikti. Miloşeviç Sırp milliyetçiliğini öne çıkararak önce Kosova’nın, akabinde Voyvodina’nın özerkliğini ilga etti, ardından Sırbistan
Regional hoping
It seems perverse to be wondering about possible new EU member states just now. But others were doing just that in the European Parliament on Wednesday. Regionalists, devolutionists and soft nationalists – of academic and politic bent – gathe...
On Atatürk’s death anniversary, Facebook profile photos…
Many Facebook friends of mine posted profile photos related to 10 November, anniversary of Atatürk‘s death… Facebook 10 Kasım profil fotoları Related posts:Turks celebrate Republic Day in Facebook profile photos the 7...
Sosyal Medya alanında çalışan ajanslar (30): “Gri Creative”
Erkan’s Field Diary sosyal medya alanında çalışan ajansları tanıtan bir seriye başladı. sakaerka@gmail.com adresine logo, iletişim bilgileri, kısa ama samimi tanıtım, varsa birkaç ekip fotosu gönderirseniz sizin ajansı da bu seriye d...
More Europe Manifesto for free travel
As I mentioned yesterday, a group of Spanish eurobloggers has launched an appeal for More Europe, in order to overcome the impending catastrophe in the eurozone and the wider European Union. You can join the appeal on the More Europe blog and you ca...
Welcome to our new blog
Welcome to the new assessing accession blog powered by Ideas on Europe. We are currently in the processes of developing this blog and the first of our posts from a range of network members will appear here shortly. We will be looking for new bloggers...
J.A. McCarroll: GRAND, BIZARRE #2 An Inside the Box kind of weekend: Halloween and Occupy Istanbul
GRAND, BIZARRE #2 An Inside the Box kind of weekend: Halloween and Occupy Istanbul by J.A. McCarroll October 27: 11 46 P.M. “It’s not pizza, John.” My girlfriend stands in the doorway of our house holding nine Domino’s Pizza boxes. She is...
Sinan Kızılkaya: KÜRT MESELESİNİN YAKIN TARİHİ ÜZERİNE [5. Bölüm]
KÜRT MESELESİNİN YAKIN TARİHİ ÜZERİNE 1. bölüm burada 2. bölüm burada 3. bölüm burada 4. bölüm burada 9. Benzer örgütlerin tamamında görülen bir gelişim çizgisinin sonucu olarak; örgütün, halkın ekserisini kapsayabil...
it looks like Turkish authorities aim to contain opposition in social media…
We happened to see a few signs in the last few days that Turkish authorities are strategizing to contain opposition in Turkish cybersphere. While Turkey’s minister in charge of internet regulation, Binali Yıldırım, complained about the c...
for the record, Turkey ranks 92nd of 187 countries 2011 International Human Development Index, 19th in Transparency International’s Bribe Payers Index…
Human Development Report 2011 The 2011 Human Development Report argues that the urgent global challenges of sustainability and equity must be addressed together – and identifies policies on the national and global level that could spur mutually rei...
EFD Rights Watch: rape scandal at the highest judicial level; growing frustration with KCK operations…
Fury rages over rape case from Hurriyet Dailynews by ANKARA – Hürriyet Daily News Government ministers and deputies from opposition parties all joined an outcry regarding a court decision that lowers the sentence for 26 suspects who wer...
Agenda of Turkish foreign policy: Erdoğan at G20, Davutoğlu with Barzani and at Istanbul Conference for Afghanistan, talks on Cyprus
Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, right, shakes hands with French President Nicolas Sarkozy during arrivals for a G20 summit in Cannes, France on Thursday, Nov. 3, 2011. French President Nicolas Sarkozy will welcome Barack Obama of...
EFD Rights Watch: Ersanlı & Zarakolu arrests; Turkey now practically an authoritarian country…
Intellectuals Arrested For Speaking At Public Meeting by Jenny White Ragip Zarakolu, Photo from Hurriyet/DHA 44 People Arrested – among them Ersanlı and Zarakolu 44 out of 50 people who were taken into police custody were arrested on 1 Novemb...
Schengen Wars: Bulgaria and Romania are victims of populism
Image Source: Bogartier Bulgaria and Romania, two of the latest members of the European family, have been denied accession to the Schengen Area despite the fact that they satisfy all the necessary criteria. The denial comes from the side of two...
Enlargement and new agriculture policy
This summer we announced that we will welcome Croatia as the 28th EU Member State in 2013 if the remaining reforms are implemented according to the timetable. The news on EU enlargement from today’s meeting with the College of Commissioners is...
Document: EU progress report for Turkey 2011
all files here Conclusions on Turkey (extract from the Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council “Enlargement Strategy and Main Challenges 2011-2012″, COM(2011)666 final) Turkey continues to sufficiently...
Kissinger Sees Greater Role for Turkey
One of the eldest statesmen of international diplomacy, former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, offered some pearls of wisdom to one of the newest entrants to great power politics, Turkey.
The pull of Brussels
The western Balkans still love the European Union, even if no one else does...
How to lose support for EU free movement and alienate people
The European Commission just made it a lot more difficult to defend free movement in Europe. Free movement and open borders (two separate but related EU issues) are very difficult things to sell to the public, witness the Bombardier row (which had co...
Turkish EU membership: the End of a Dream?
The 1964 Association Agreement between the “European Economic Community” (EEC) and Turkey provided for the establishment of far-reaching economic cooperation, from a customs union to free movement of labour; in the preamble it also contained a re...
Turkey vs. Israel today: broken ties may be permanent says PM Erdoğan…
‘Broken’ ties with Israel may become norm for Turkey: PM Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan declared Sunday that his country’s “broken” relations with Israel can only be mended if the Jewish state stops b...
it looks like Yılmaz Güney still causes tension…
however, contrary to the news below, TRT 6 officials stated that his movies will be broadcasted… Yılmaz Güney at wikipedia… Yılmaz Güney Movies still Banned on TV Fatoş Güney, widowed wife of film director Yılmaz Güney, criti...
Daily digest: Bulgaria strikes back
After Finland and the Netherlands blocked Bulgaria’s entry to the Schengen-area foreign minister in Bulgaria Nikolay Mladenov on Saturday threatened to stop cooperating with EU. ”Bulgaria is … a member state of the European Union.
Why Turkey's women and children directive is good for football | Ally Fogg
The days when matches were an all-male domain are thankfully a thing of the pastThere are three things I vividly recall about the first football match I attended without an adult chaperone. It was sometime around 1980 at Muirton Park, watching St Joh...
Erdogan plays Palestinian saviour, but what about the Kurds? | Simon Tisdall
Turkey's prime minister is championing Abbas's UN appeal – yet still has to resolve the Kurdish issue back homeTurkey's noisy championing of Palestinian rights, a source of growing friction with the US and Israel, jars uncomfortably with Ankara's t...
