TURKEY: DON'T BLAME ISLAM FOR VIOLENCE

TURKEY: BLAMING RELIGIONS FOR VIOLENCE IS AN ERROR, SAYS BARDAKOGLU

Ankara, 24 Nov. (AKI/ANKA) - "Violence and terrorism have no moral or religious justification, but to accuse religions for these acts is completely wrong" said Turkey's state religious affairs director Ali Bardakoglu, in an exclusive interview ahead of next week's visit by Pope Benedict XVI. Bardakoglu, the country's top state religious official, who next Tuesday will meet the pontiff, was a harsh critic of Benedict after his controversial speech at Regensburg in September. "It was an unfortunate and wrong speech" he explained "but we do not want to dwell on the past: I maintain that a similar approach must be abandoned by religious leaders."

Emphasising the willingness of the Turkish state to allow the coexistence of various religions, he said "the various faiths live together like pieces of a mosaic''. "In Turkey which is a secular and modern state where all the minorities have complete religious freedom. If only it were like that in other countries" he added.

Referring to the anti-Islamic movements that are emerging in Europe, the Turkish official said that "the West is having to deal for the first time with a multireligious society and it is struggling, whereas in the East, we are used to that."

"I consider the visit of the pope a step forward in a process" of dialogue between the religions, and while it will not solve everything, "it can go some way to resolving international problems and can show the importance of cooperation between religions."

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Pertinent Links:

1) TURKEY: BLAMING RELIGIONS FOR VIOLENCE IS AN ERROR, SAYS BARDAKOGLU