ISTANBUL // Leaders of Turkey's small Christian community have hailed as historic a meeting with Turkish lawmakers to discuss the country's new constitution, but the visit also highlighted the challenge of securing rights of minorities in this mostly Muslim nation.
"A new Turkey is being born," said Bartholomew I, the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople and spiritual leader of the world's estimated 300 million Orthodox Christians, after addressing a parliamentary panel in Ankara on Monday. "For the first time in the era of the republic, a formal invitation like this has been extended to the minorities," the patriarch said, according his spokesman, Father Dositheos.
The parliamentary panel, known as the Committee for Constitutional Agreement, is gathering views from all sectors of Turkish society in preparation for writing a new constitution, which is due for completion by the end of the year. The current constitution was written under military rule in 1982.
The appearances of Bartholomew I and representatives of Turkey's Syriac Orthodox Christians at a parliamentary hearing this week marked the first time that Christian groups were officially consulted in such a major political project in Turkey. A Jewish group met the lawmakers in December. One political scientist said the significance of their testimonies was difficult to exaggerate.
"It is a matter of political symbolism," said Ioannis N Grigoriadis, who teaches at Bilkent University in Ankara. "It is very, very important," he said in a telephone interview with The National.
But the remarks of Bartholomew I was also a reminder of one of thorniest problems facing the committee: how to safeguard the rights of religious minorities.
In his 45-minute appearance before the committee, the patriarch renewed his call for the reopening of a Greek Orthodox seminary on Heybeliada, an island near Istanbul. The church has been unable to train new priests and bishops since the seminary was closed in 1971.
Bartholomew I, who was born on the northern Aegean island of Gokceada, a centre of the small Greek community in Turkey, is a graduate of the Heybeliada seminary. After meeting the lawmakers in Ankara, the patriarch said he was "leaving with hope". He submitted an 18-page list of demands of the Orthodox Christian community to committee members.
Turkey, a country with a 99 per cent Muslim population, is a secular republic that officially grants equal rights to all its citizens, regardless of their religion. Still, Christians and Jews say they face problems in educating their clergy, protecting property rights and getting government jobs.
In his meeting with the committee, Bartholomew I noted that he was required to arrange his contacts with Turkish officials through the country's foreign ministry, even though he was a Turkish citizen. "We do not want to be second-class citizens," he said.
The Turkish state does not recognise Bartholomew I's role as Ecumenical Patriarch because of fears that the Orthodox Church could try to establish its own version of the Vatican on Turkish soil. Turkish authorities recognise him only as the leader of the small community of about 3,000 to 5,000 Greek Orthodox Christians in Turkey.
About 100,000 Christians and 30,000 Jews live in Turkey, a country of 75 million people. Only Jews, Armenians and Greek Orthodox Christians are officially recognised as religious minorities under a 1923 treaty, while groups, such as the roughly 10,000 Syriac Orthodox Christians, whose traditional home is the region around Mardin near the Syrian border, do not have an official status as a church.
At the meeting in Ankara on Monday, Syriac Christians asked for formal recognition as a minority, said Rudi Sumer, a Syriac lawyer who represented the group at the hearing. Mr Sumer told The National by telephone that Syriacs were calling for more cultural rights and for Syriac Orthodox clerics to be paid by the state, just as Turkey's imams are.
"We hope that our views are heard, but we have to wait for the outcome to be sure," Mr Sumer said.
Since coming to power in late 2002, the government of Recep Tayyip Erdogan has widened minority rights, and it recently started a process of returning confiscated real estate to non-Muslim groups. Granting more rights to religious minorities has been one of the main demands of the European Union, which Turkey wants to join.
Mr Grigoriadis said the Turkish government had undertaken "many positive steps" to improve the situation of non-Muslims.
"Until a relatively short time ago, the patriarchate was ignored by Ankara, and now the patriarch is invited by parliament."
tseibert@thenational.ae
The Buckingham Murders
Starring: Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ash Tandon, Prabhleen Sandhu
Director: Hansal Mehta
Rating: 4 / 5
The%20specs
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SPIDER-MAN%3A%20ACROSS%20THE%20SPIDER-VERSE
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Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
Director: Goran Hugo Olsson
Rating: 5/5
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
57%20Seconds
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Greatest of All Time
Starring: Vijay, Sneha, Prashanth, Prabhu Deva, Mohan
T20 World Cup Qualifier, Muscat
UAE FIXTURES
Friday February 18: v Ireland
Saturday February 19: v Germany
Monday February 21: v Philippines
Tuesday February 22: semi-finals
Thursday February 24: final
UAE central contracts
Full time contracts
Rohan Mustafa, Ahmed Raza, Mohammed Usman, Chirag Suri, Mohammed Boota, Sultan Ahmed, Zahoor Khan, Junaid Siddique, Waheed Ahmed, Zawar Farid
Part time contracts
Aryan Lakra, Ansh Tandon, Karthik Meiyappan, Rahul Bhatia, Alishan Sharafu, CP Rizwaan, Basil Hameed, Matiullah, Fahad Nawaz, Sanchit Sharma
Friday’s fixture
6.15pm: Al Wahda v Hatta
6.15pm: Al Dhafra v Ajman
9pm: Al Wasl v Baniyas
9pm: Fujairah v Sharjah
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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How to help
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
2289 – Dh10
2252 – Dh 50
6025 – Dh20
6027 – Dh 100
6026 – Dh 200
Get Out
Director: Jordan Peele
Stars: Daniel Kaluuya, Allison Williams, Catherine Keener, Bradley Whitford
Four stars
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The Penguin
Starring: Colin Farrell, Cristin Milioti, Rhenzy Feliz
Creator: Lauren LeFranc
Rating: 4/5
Buy farm-fresh food
The UAE is stepping up its game when it comes to platforms for local farms to show off and sell their produce.
In Dubai, visit Emirati Farmers Souq at The Pointe every Saturday from 8am to 2pm, which has produce from Al Ammar Farm, Omar Al Katri Farm, Hikarivege Vegetables, Rashed Farms and Al Khaleej Honey Trading, among others.
In Sharjah, the Aljada residential community will launch a new outdoor farmers’ market every Friday starting this weekend. Manbat will be held from 3pm to 8pm, and will host 30 farmers, local home-grown entrepreneurs and food stalls from the teams behind Badia Farms; Emirates Hydroponics Farms; Modern Organic Farm; Revolution Real; Astraea Farms; and Al Khaleej Food.
In Abu Dhabi, order farm produce from Food Crowd, an online grocery platform that supplies fresh and organic ingredients directly from farms such as Emirates Bio Farm, TFC, Armela Farms and mother company Al Dahra.
Origin
Dan Brown
Doubleday
The%20specs
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KINGDOM%20OF%20THE%20PLANET%20OF%20THE%20APES
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The specs
Engine: 2-litre or 3-litre 4Motion all-wheel-drive Power: 250Nm (2-litre); 340 (3-litre) Torque: 450Nm Transmission: 8-speed automatic Starting price: From Dh212,000 On sale: Now
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EFixtures%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3ESaturday%2C%20May%2028%2C%20United%20States%20v%20Scotland%3Cbr%3ESunday%2C%20May%2029%2C%20United%20States%20v%20Scotland%3Cbr%3ETuesday%2C%20May%2031%2C%20UAE%20v%20Scotland%3Cbr%3EWednesday%2C%20June%201%2C%20UAE%20v%20United%20States%3Cbr%3EFriday%2C%20June%203%2C%20UAE%20v%20Scotland%3Cbr%3ESaturday%2C%20June%204%2C%20UAE%20v%20United%20States%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EUAE%20squad%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EAhmed%20Raza%20(captain)%2C%20Chirag%20Suri%2C%20Muhammad%20Waseem%2C%20Vriitya%20Aravind%2C%20CP%20Rizwan%2C%20Basil%20Hameed%2C%20Rohan%20Mustafa%2C%20Kashif%20Daud%2C%20Karthik%20Meiyappan%2C%20Zahoor%20Khan%2C%20Junaid%20Siddique%2C%20Alishan%20Sharafu%2C%20Akif%20Raja%2C%20Rahul%20Bhatia%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETable%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3Cbr%3E1.%20Oman%2032%2019%2011%2040%20%2B0.156%3Cbr%3E2.%20Scotland%2016%2011%203%2024%20%2B0.574%3Cbr%3E3.%20UAE%2018%2010%206%2022%20%2B0.22%3Cbr%3E4.%20Namibia%2014%207%207%2014%20%2B0.096%3Cbr%3E5.%20United%20States%2016%207%209%2014%20-0.229%3Cbr%3E6.%20Nepal%2012%206%206%2012%20%2B0.113%3Cbr%3E7.%20Papua%20New%20Guinea%2020%201%2019%202%20-0.856%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Tips%20for%20holiday%20homeowners
%3Cp%3EThere%20are%20several%20factors%20for%20landlords%20to%20consider%20when%20preparing%20to%20establish%20a%20holiday%20home%3A%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cul%3E%0A%3Cli%3E%3Cstrong%3ERevenue%20potential%20of%20the%20unit%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20location%2C%20view%20and%20size%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3E%3Cstrong%3EDesign%3A%20furnished%20or%20unfurnished.%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Is%20the%20design%20up%20to%20standard%2C%20while%20being%20catchy%20at%20the%20same%20time%3F%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3E%3Cstrong%3EBusiness%20model%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20will%20it%20be%20managed%20by%20a%20professional%20operator%20or%20directly%20by%20the%20owner%2C%20how%20often%20does%20the%20owner%20wants%20to%20use%20it%20for%20personal%20reasons%3F%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3Cli%3E%3Cstrong%3EQuality%20of%20the%20operator%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20guest%20reviews%2C%20customer%20experience%20management%2C%20application%20of%20technology%2C%20average%20utilisation%2C%20scope%20of%20services%20rendered%3C%2Fli%3E%0A%3C%2Ful%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cem%3ESource%3A%20Adam%20Nowak%2C%20managing%20director%20of%20Ultimate%20Stay%20Vacation%20Homes%20Rental%3C%2Fem%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Company profile
Name: Tratok Portal
Founded: 2017
Based: UAE
Sector: Travel & tourism
Size: 36 employees
Funding: Privately funded
SPECS
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3A%202-litre%20direct%20injection%20turbo%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3A%207-speed%20automatic%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3A%20261hp%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3A%20400Nm%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3C%2Fstrong%3E%3A%20From%20Dh134%2C999%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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SPECS
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Company%20Profile
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Company%20profile
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The BIO:
He became the first Emirati to climb Mount Everest in 2011, from the south section in Nepal
He ascended Mount Everest the next year from the more treacherous north Tibetan side
By 2015, he had completed the Explorers Grand Slam
Last year, he conquered K2, the world’s second-highest mountain located on the Pakistan-Chinese border
He carries dried camel meat, dried dates and a wheat mixture for the final summit push
His new goal is to climb 14 peaks that are more than 8,000 metres above sea level