Right to Education: Challenges and Issues Under the Justice and Development Party Era
The right to education has been recognized as a human right by several international conventions. The Constitution of the Republic of Turkey also protects the right to education. However, the government ruled by the AKP since 2002, has failed to protect a
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Right to Education: Challenges and Issues Under the Justice and Development Party Era Uzeyir Ogurlu and Koksal Avincan
Abstract The right to education has been recognized as a human right by several international conventions. The Constitution of the Republic of Turkey also protects the right to education. However, the government ruled by the AKP since 2002, has failed to protect and fulfill this right for all. Education in one’s mother tongue, compulsory religious education, and a teaching recruitment system have been among the most debated education rights. However, the date of July 15, 2016, was a turning point in the history of violation of human rights in the Republic of Turkey, after a failed coup attempt. The controversies and violations of human rights became exacerbated after the failed coup attempt with a massive purge of dissidents. Thousands of teachers were dismissed, and thousands of public and private schools, dormitories, and unions were closed as part of the crackdown. This chapter examines the violations of education rights in Turkey under the AKP era, especially after the July 15 failed coup attempt, in the light of international agreements on rights to education. Keywords Human rights · Right to education · K-12 education · The Justice and Development Party
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The Right to Education
It is broadly accepted that education has an impact on the development of humanity as a whole and on the human personality of individuals. Thus, education is crucial for ensuring the quality of life. Education has been recognized as a human right in U. Ogurlu (*) University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, Stevens Point, WI, USA e-mail: [email protected] K. Avincan A Doctoral Student and Human Rights Activist at Florida International University, Miami, FL, USA © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021 H. Aydin, W. Langley (eds.), Human Rights in Turkey, Philosophy and Politics - Critical Explorations 15, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-57476-5_14
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Table 14.1 International agreements on the right to education Conventions European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (Council of Europe 1952a) UNESCO Convention against Discrimination in Education (UNESCO 1960) European Social Charter (Council of Europe 1961) International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (The United Nations General Assembly 1966a) International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (The United Nations General Assembly 1966b) Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (The United Nations 1988) African Charter On Human And People’s Rights (African Union 1981) ILO Convention 169: Indigenous & Tribal Peoples Convention (International Labour Organization 1989) Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNICEF 1989) African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child (Organization of African Unity 1990) Declaration of Minimum Humanitarian Standards (UN Commission on Human
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