Turkey split by plan to criminalise adultery

[kskiska]

Turkey's devout Muslim leader, Tayyip Erdogan, has defended his government's plans to criminalise adultery, despite protests that have shown the issue is dividing the country.

Mr Erdogan, whose AK party has its roots in political Islam, said at the weekend that outlawing marital infidelity is a vital step towards preserving the family and "human honour". Although Turkey aspires to join the European Union it did not have to adopt its "imperfect" western morals, he insisted.

"The family is a sacred institution for us. The stronger the family, the stronger the country. If the family is weakened, that country is doomed to destruction," the prime minister said in an interview with Turkey's Sabah newspaper.

(snip)

But critics, who include much of Turkey's western-oriented elite, contend the move will not only distance the country from European norms but align it to Islamic law-based states such as Saudi Arabia, where adulterers are stoned to death.

more…
http://www.guardian.co.uk/turkey/story/0,12700,1297909,00.html

[EnfantTerrible]

1. Ken Starr is working in Turkey now?

Who knew.

[Bo]

4. I didn't-

[struggle4progress]

2. Turkey has had difficulty accepting that women have rights:

Turkey: Virginity Tests Reinstated
Washington, DC July 25, 2001) Human Rights Watch today released a letter to Turkish Prime Minister Bülent Ecevit, condemning the re-institution of virginity exams for girls studying in medical high schools in Turkey. <snip>
http://www.hrw.org/press/2001/07/turkey0724.htm

[Swamp Rat]

3. Back to the Dark Ages for all of us.

Don't be surprised if Americans start with this crap someday... scarlet letters, roastings.