Hurriyet, Turkey
Dec 9 2004

ERDOGAN OPENS GARDEN OF RELIGIONS IN ANTALYA

Religious tolerance is a valuable legacy the Turkish Republic has
inherited from the Ottoman Empire, said Prime Minister Recep Tayyip
Erdogan yesterday in Antalya at the opening ceremony of a new complex
of Muslim, Christian and Jewish worship sites. Erdogan pledged that
his government would remove any remaining obstacles to religious
freedom in Turkey. `By virtue of this great historical experience,
today Turkey is the guarantor of peace and brotherhood in its
region,’ he added. `Of course, we still have shortcomings which we’re
working to overcome as soon as possible.’ Also attending the ceremony
were Dutch European Affairs Minister Atzo Nikolai, whose country
currently holds the EU presidency, plus diplomats and the religious
leaders of Turkey’s Greek, Armenian and Jewish communities. `People
will be able to freely practice their religions in this center, and
this sends a very important message,’ said Nikolai. Father Joseph
Alphonse Sammut, for his part, said that while Catholics are able to
practice their religion in Turkey they lack property rights over
churches, but expressed hope that this would someday change. Armenian
Orthodox Patriarch Mesrob II also said that non-Muslim places of
worship should be opened in all major Turkish cities. `This should be
done either by renovating historical sites or by building new ones,
as the one here,’ he said. Chief Rabbi Ishak (Yitzhak) Haleva hailed
Turkey as a rare country where synagogues, mosques, and churches
exist side-by-side. `We’re lucky to be citizens here,’ he added.
/Hurriyet/