ECUMENICAL PATRIARCH'S CALL ON PRESIDENT GUL

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 ISTANBUL 000942

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/21/2017
TAGS: PHUM PGOV PREL TU GR
SUBJECT: ECUMENICAL PATRIARCH'S CALL ON PRESIDENT GUL
AND OTHER GOT OFFICIALS

REF: A. ISTANBUL 873

B. 06 ISTANBUL 1711

C. 06 ANKARA 6529

ISTANBUL 00000942 001.2 OF 003


Classified By: Consul General Sharon A. Wiener for
reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)


1. (C) Summary. Ecumenical Patriarch senior advisor
Metropolitan Meliton recounted to us His All Holiness
Bartholomew's recent calls in Ankara on President Gul
and other GOT officials. Gul listened attentively but
made no real response to the Patriarch's list of
grievances. Government officials acknowledge
constitutional restrictions on religious education
present obstacles to re-opening Halki Seminary and the
Speaker of Parliament suggested a potential work-
around. The decrepit state of church properties
expropriated by the General Directorate of Foundations
seemed to elicit sympathy among all officials
including the leader of the Republican People's
Party, a steadfast opponent of advancing religious
minority rights. Bartholomew places the utmost
importance on a tte-Q-tte with PM Erdogan, something
he has requested (but yet to confirm) in addition to
meetings with other officials at the end of October.
End summary.


2. (C) During an October 16 meeting, Ecumenical
Patriarch senior advisor Metropolitan Meliton
described to us the substance and tone of Ecumenical
Patriarch Bartholomew's October 8 and 9 calls on
President Gul, Speaker of Parliament Toptan, Minister
of Culture and Tourism Gunay and Republican People's
Party (CHP) leader Baykal. Bartholomew visited Ankara
to congratulate the new Government and express his
concerns regarding GOT restrictions on the
administration of the patriarchate. He has requested
another round of Ankara meetings on October 30 and 31,
to include calls on PM Erdogan, Chief of Defense Staff
GEN Buyukanit, Foreign Minister Babacan and other
cabinet members. To date, only Minister of Education
Huseyin Celik has responded affirmatively.

President Gul
--------------


3. (C) Meliton characterized Gul as being "very
friendly, calm, serious and polite" during his 40
minute October 9 meeting with Bartholomew. He
lamented however, the lack of engagement on the
President's part, stating Gul listened carefully but
gave few specific responses to the Patriarch's list of
concerns, including re-opening Halki Seminary,
election of his successor, visa status of foreign
clergy and staff at the patriarchate, property rights,
and problems related to Greek minority foundations.
Regarding Halki Seminary, Gul noted he had discussed
the issue with PM Erdogan in the past and though the
Prime Minister wants to solve the problem, the
Constitution doesn't permit its re-opening as a
religious school. He further underscored that the
government had previously proposed transferring
the seminary to a university. Meliton noted Gul
remained silent when Bartholomew subsequently pointed
out the Lausanne Treaty gives minorities the right to
operate schools for the needs of their communities and
that it was a pity Halki was closed in 1971 when it
had been allowed to function during the Ottoman Empire
and throughout the first few decades of the modern
republic.


4. (C) According to Meliton, upon hearing about the
decrepit state of some church properties expropriated
by the General Directorate of Foundations (GDF),Gul
told Bartholomew it was a shame and that he wasn't
aware of this problem. He qualified however, that he
is no longer a "political man" and would convey this
issue to PM Erdogan. Noting he had yet to receive a
response to the forty-some letters he had written the
government, the Patriarch replied he often feels like
a second class citizen because he has no dialogue with
officials. Gul, at this point, politely asked
Bartholomew not to use the term "dialogue,"
remarking "we only have that with the United States,
EU and other foreign countries."


5. (C) President Gul, on a number of occasions,
referenced a conversation he had had with muftis from

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Western Thrace (ref B) the day before his meeting
with Bartholomew, recalled Meliton. Gul stressed he
told the muftis they must be a bridge between two
countries but at the same time be loyal to Greece.
The President advised Bartholomew in a similar manner,
suggesting the patriarchate must "create friendship,
peace and cooperation between our two peoples."

Speaker of Parliament Koksal Toptan
--------------


6. (C) Toptan, Meliton opined, appeared to be well
versed in the problems of the patriarchate during his
30 minute October 8 meeting with Bartholomew. The
Speaker said he had discussed the issue of Halki
Seminary with PM Erdogan, who repeated the same
sentiments he had expressed to Gul: he wants to solve
the problem but constitutional restrictions on
religious education present an obstacle. When
Bartholomew pointed out the religious minority
education rights granted in the Lausanne Treaty,
Toptan suggested the patriarchate write to the
president of the constitutional reform committee to
propose that a reference to the Lausanne Treaty be
included in the new constitution. This, he believed,
would allow Halki Seminary to be re-opened. Meliton
conveyed to us his intention to follow this advice.


7. (C) The Speaker expressed surprise and sympathy
for the patriarchate regarding other issues, noting he
could not understand why patriarchate foreign staff
members were not granted permission to work in Turkey
when he knew foreign clergy for other faiths receive
such authority. He also did not comprehend why
Turkish officials could not accept Bartholomew's
proposal that potential foreign successors to
the Patriarch be granted Turkish citizenship
post-election. Regarding the draft Law on Foundations
(ref C),Toptan argued it would be difficult to go
beyond the changes incorporated in the existing draft
because there were now four parties represented in
parliament instead of two. However, "the General
Directorate of Foundations must repair church
properties," he asserted.

Minister of Culture and Tourism Ertugrul Gunay
-------------- -


8. (C) Meliton described Gunay as the most polite of
Bartholomew's Ankara interlocutors. The Ecumenical
Patriarch asked the Minister of Culture and Tourism,
during an October 9 meeting, for permission to
celebrate the day of St. Nicholas in a church in Demre
as his community had done for 25 years until
authorities intervened in 2004 subsequent to the
complaint of a nationalist activist. Bartholomew also
repeated a request he had made six years ago to be
granted permission to celebrate the liturgy in a
Cappadocia church. Recognizing the minority
communities as part of the Turkish mosaic, Gunay asked
the Patriarch to write to him on both matters, and
promised, "We will do our best."

CHP Leader Deniz Baykal
--------------


9. (C) According to Meliton, Bartholomew enumerated
all of the patriarchate's concerns to Baykal during
their one-hour October 9 meeting and lamented the
CHP's role in opposing the draft Law on Foundations.
Baykal explained he understood the Patriarch's
concerns and that the CHP's opposition was not
directed at the patriarchate but rather at the Prime
Minister who wants to turn Turkey into an Islamic
country. He contended the GDF was not acting
correctly however, and that it shouldn't be able to
interfere in the administration of minority
foundations. Baykal voiced his continued opposition
to the re-opening of Halki Seminary and to the
potential election of a foreign successor to the
Patriarch, arguing that if Halki re-opens, Muslims
would apply to open similar schools. He recognized
the patriarchate had problems but countered minorities
in Western Thrace had similar problems despite the
fact that Greece is a member of the European Union.
"If Turkey and Greece could have entered the EU
together, all of these problems would be solved,"
Baykal asserted.

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Comment
--------------


10. (C) It is clear that President Gul treaded a
careful path vis-Q-vis Bartholomew, lending an
attentive ear while avoiding commitments to push for
reforms that could consume political capital necessary
to promote higher priorities such as constitutional
reform. While it is true he is no longer officially a
"political man," his willingness to meet with
Bartholomew is an important step in establishing
a discourse - if not, "dialogue" - between the GOT and
the patriarchate. A meeting with PM Erdogan is of
prime importance to Bartholomew, who Meliton says
remains hopeful for the eventual resolution of the
patriarchate's problems. End comment.

WIENER