For Turkey’s tiny Protestant community, 2015 was a year marked by threats and attacks against their churches and leaders. A report by the Protestant Churches Association on human rights violations documents a series of attacks and obstacles that Protestants faced over the course of last year, including physical attacks and verbal harassment. Judicial authorities showed no compunction to respond to their complaints about such offenses. In addition, the government excluded the community from its meetings with religious minorities. In the words of community leader Ihsan Ozbek, Turkey’s Protestants are today an “anxious and distressed” community.
As a testament to the community's standing, on the door of the local Protestant church in the city of Balikesir, someone posted a piece of paper bearing the words “Turkish Islam Alliance” and painted “Allah is one” on a wall of the building. In Samsun, a stick-wielding man showed up at the door of the Agape Church, shouting obscenities and threats, and in Ankara, a man insulted and struck the leader of the Batikent Church. In Izmir province, an assailant opened fire on the pastor of the Torbali Baptist Church as he and his family worked in the field at his farm. The complaint the pastor filed with the police yielded no action being taken. The same went for complaints lodged following the other incidents.
Last August, 15 churches and 20 church leaders received threatening text messages and emails. Due to the language used in the messages, suspicion fell on the Islamic State (IS), but again, the community’s complaints ran into a dead end. Shortly afterward, two would-be IS suicide bombers were apprehended in Ankara, and footage from security cameras revealed that they had conducted surveillance at churches in the capital, potential targets for their foiled plans. Despite such serious threats, church leaders remain without protection.
Protestants also face obstacles in opening places of worship. According to the report, Protestants in Kayseri had requested the use of the historic Meryem Ana Church, which had been used as a sports hall in the past, but their request was denied. In Ankara, a local municipality had initially allocated Protestants a plot on which to build a church, but the move was struck down by higher government authorities, who instead designated the plot for the construction of a mosque.
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