Are Muslim men free to observe their religion in Turkey? That was the question debated June 18 on pro-government TV channel Kanal A by four male panelists. The answer was intriguing, as two guests said, “No, Muslims are not free. For example, they cannot get married according their religion. The laws of secular Turkey dictate just one wife, so Muslims cannot take a second or third. Similarly, they cannot get rid of a restaurant that serves alcohol in their neighborhood.”

The guests were bothered that the Western world tries to impose its own views as if they are universal values, and they said that whenever Muslims in Turkey speak up against this, pro-Western media in Turkey blow it out of proportion, presenting Muslims as bigots and their demands as bigotry.

The four men spoke with intensity about how Muslim men in Turkey suffer under secular laws, and how the rights of "marginal" groups (the participants argued that the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transsexual communities make up only a tiny percentage of the population) are protected, but Muslims’ sensitivities are ignored. They said all those groups have more freedom in Turkey than do Muslims.

As participants discussed social media posts during Ramadan by those who do not observe the fast and how provocative the commentary is about Muslims, their discussion generated furious and amused reactions on social media. Several tweets and news from left-wing media outlets labeled the commentators bigots and perverts. On Eksisozluk, a popular public information-sharing network, the headline “Mujahedeen who suffer because they cannot marry multiple wives” started to trend, ridiculing the idea.