AMBASSADOR MEETS WITH MINORITY RELIGIOUS LEADERS

C O N F I D E N T I A L ISTANBUL 001517

SIPDIS


E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/09/2013
TAGS: PHUM PGOV TU
SUBJECT: AMBASSADOR MEETS WITH MINORITY RELIGIOUS LEADERS

Classified By: Consul General David Arnett for Reasons 1.5 (b&d)



1. (sbu) Summary: During courtesy calls on the Armenian
Patriarch, Chief Rabbi, and Syrian Orthodox Metropolitan,
Ambassador Edelman promised to maintain close relations with
each community and to press the GOT to implement broader
protection for religious freedom in Turkey. Each of the
community leaders detailed his principal concerns and
problems, including a general shared frustration with the
state bureaucracy's failure to implement recent legislative
changes. End Summary.


Armenian Patriarch Mesrob Mutafyan II
--------------

2. (c) Mesrob reminded the Ambassador that the 65,000-strong
Armenian community is the largest non-Muslim community in
Turkey. In addition to supporting one of only four Armenian
Orthodox Patriarchs, its 45 churches, 17 schools, and active
press give it an important voice in the global Armenian
community. Additionally, Mesrob said that he estimates there
are about 1 million Turks of "concealed" Armenian descent
living as Muslims in Turkey and about 120 of them "convert
back" to Orthodoxy each year. Mesrob's principal complaint
about the GOT is its failure to recognize the legal
personality of the patriarchate (unlike the Greeks, Mesrob is
content to send Armenian priests abroad -- to Jerusalem or
Armenia -- for training). Mesrob said that, despite press
reports, he does not believe his being denied a seat on a
plane to Van was the result of any deliberate harassment.
Mesrob said that he actively supports Turkey's EU membership
and has done what he can to bring Turkey and Armenia together
(a task that he said has been complicated by aggressive
statements from the Armenian government). Mesrob added that
he hopes to visit the Armenian communities in Baghdad and
Jerusalem when the security situations there improve.


Chief Rabbi Isak Haleva
--------------

3. (sbu) Haleva and the members of the Jewish Lay Council
told the Ambassador that the 22,000-strong Jewish community
has had "no particular problems or difficulties" with the
Turkish government. When occasional issues arise, they
prefer to use their "excellent" personal relations with the
PM, FM, and even Turkish military to resolve them. Lay
Council President Bensiyon Pinto noted that while the Greeks
are seeking to reclaim and register over 2000 properties, the
Jewish community has only 4 such claims. The community has
17 active synagogues, a school, a museum, and other social
facilities. Agreements with two U.S. universities enable
them to send students and future rabbis abroad for training.
Members of the Council claimed that while they have
experienced no direct restrictions on their freedom to
worship, occasional problems with the bureaucracy make life
difficult. Others added that some of the pro-Islamic press
often print anti-Semitic remarks.


Syrian Orthodox Metropolitan Yusuf Cetin
--------------

4. (sbu) Cetin told the Ambassador that the Syrian Orthodox
community in Turkey had shrunk from 60,000 to 15,000 in the
last 30 years, largely due to immigration to Europe,
AUSTRALIA, and the U.S. (where he said there are two
Metropolitans ministering to 25,000 Syrian Orthodox). The
remaining community is centered in Istanbul and the
Southeast, particularly near Mardin. With only one church in
Istanbul and restrictive laws preventing them from building
others, the local community has been forced to seek
agreements with churches of other denominations. With no
religious schools, its priests are educated at two
monasteries in Istanbul and five in the Southeast (although
students also study simultaneously at public schools). Cetin
said that he too supports Turkey's EU membership and is
pleased with recent legislative reforms, but following up on
implementation will be very important. He pointed to recent
attacks on the first non-Muslim university rector (a
Christian) as an example of how Turkish society needs to
change.



5. (sbu) In all three of these meetings the Ambassador
stressed his determination to maintain close relations with
the religious communities, to press the Turkish government to
follow up in implementing recent positive reforms and to
further broaden its protection of religious freedom. The
Ambassador told his interlocutors that he has already raised
these issues with the PM and the relevant ministers and is
hopeful that progress can be made before or during the May
2004 NATO Summit in Istanbul and the likely visit of
President Bush.
ARNETT