Hagia Sophia: Turkish embassy explains...
I am deeply troubled by the article titled “Hagia Sophia: Don’t violate its virtue of interfaith harmony” published in Daily Mirror on July 17.The writer seems to suggest that the only act of allowing the Muslims to perform their prayers in Hagia Sophia is to alter its character of being the symbol of inter-faith harmony. I would like to hereby enlighten the writer and the readers on some historical truth.
As mentioned in the article, Hagia Sophia was used as a mosque after the conquest of Istanbul by Sultan Mehmet II in 1453. It is worth mentioning that the Muslim, Christian and Jew communities lived in peace and harmony during centuries under the Ottoman rule. Although some circles try to persuade a different international opinion, the reality is that every ethnic and religious community practiced its religion and belief in total liberty under the Ottoman Empire.the Ottoman Empire was a state of tolerance.
On the other hand, the Sultan’s Lodge was first opened for prayers on August 8, 1980 and later, on February 10, 1991 after restoration works were terminated. Since the date, prayers are performed uninterruptedly in the Sultan’s Lodge, and imams, as well as muezzins, are being served in Hagia Sophia.
Turkey has become a party to the UNESCO World Cultural and Natural Heritage Convention of 1972, in 1983. Currently, eighteen monuments in Turkey are registered to the UNESCO World Heritage List. Historic Areas of Istanbul, among which Hagia Sophia, were added to the list in 1985. Therefore ,turkey is well aware of her responsibilities under the Convention.
Perhaps, article 5 (para 1) of the aforementioned Convention stipulates that “To ensure that effective and active measures are taken for the protection, conservation and presentation of the cultural and natural heritage situated on its territory, each State Party to this Convention shall endeavour, in so far as possible, and as appropriate for each country: (a) to adopt a general policy which aims to give the cultural and natural heritage a function in the life of the community (…)”
Thus, the transformation of Hagia Sophia from a place of a museum to a mosque could not be considered as a detriment within the frame of the Convention.
Furthermore, as emphasised by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Hagia Sophia visited by 3.7 million people in 2019, will continue to host our guests from all over the world of every religious belief, free of charge, from now on. While mosques of the Ottoman period are being used contrary to their holiness, their minarets are being destroyed or set into the fire in some countries of the Balkans and elsewhere, turkey is restoring and opening to worship its holy sites like the Akdamar Church in Van and the Great Synagogue in Edirne.
Turkey certainly has no lesson to receive from countries which have failed to take proper measures to counter the mounting Islamophobia, antisemitism and racism, in this backdrop and condemns the use of Hagia Sophia as a pretext to attack their local mosques .those politically motivated statements will not prevent Turkey to continue to promote “Peace at home and Peace in the world” as the founder of the Republic the Great Leader, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk said.
R.DEMET ŞEKERCIOĞLU AMBASSADOR