One sign of a democratic society is its tolerance of free speech. By this standard, Turkey isn't fully democratic despite its booming economy, gleaming skyscrapers, educated citizens and increasingly liberal sensibilities.

The biggest obstacle to the Muslim country's inclusion in the European Union is its hostility to free expression by its own academics and artists. For decades, Turkish writers and intellectuals who expressed opinions out of sync with the prevailing nationalistic orthodoxy have been prosecuted under a vague statute called Article 301.

Orhan Pamuk, the Turkish writer who won the Nobel Prize for literature last year, was prosecuted under Article 301 but not convicted. His "crime" consisted of acknowledging as true the heartbreaking events that led to the birth of the nation he loves.

Any mention of Turkey's complicity in the Armenian massacre is usually enough to generate a charge of "insulting Turkishness." Dozens of Turkey's most esteemed artists and intellectuals have been prosecuted under the law for such offenses since 1951.

Questioning the actions of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, Turkey's founder, is still a crime under 301, but there are growing indications that the government is willing to weaken the law if it leads to European acceptance.

Because Turkey's citizens are as defensive about their past as their government is, the process of intellectual liberalization will be a slow one. Still, the journey to a more vibrant democracy where freedom of speech is respected has begun in the pivotal country that straddles the fault line between East and West.