The Principle of Fairness in Turkey-EU Relations, Fall 2004

The authors argue that the EU’s decision about Turkey’s readiness for the full accession negotiations at the end of 2004 will shape the future course of Turkish democracy and modernity as well as the formation of European identity. This paper’s general argument is that the principle of fairness and objectivity should be the basis of the EU’s decision about Turkey, rather than the culturalist and essentialist discourses of Europe which privilege religion and geography over the universal norms of democracy and liberal economy. The principle of fairness implies that the decision about Turkey should be universal and impartial. The norms of universality and impartiality indicate that the decision about Turkey would be fair as long as it is not framed by a reference to Turkey’s Muslim population or its geography.

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