Bagis criticizes Cologne Hish Court ruling

Following the regional Cologne High Court's ruling that circumcision in children causes permanent harm to their physical integrity, Turkey's EU Minister and Chief Negotiator Egemen Bagis criticized the court's verdict during a panel discussion of the Turkey-EU Joint Consultation Committee at the Economy and Technology Ministry office in Berlin yesterday. The case has been brought against a physician in Cologne who circumcised a Muslim family's 4-year-old boy upon the request of his parents. According to reports, the boy bled heavily after the operation, and thus his parents took him to the hospital. Afterwards, the local prosecutor initiated an investigation on the grounds of "causing bodily harm," but the regional court found the physician not guilty, saying he acted within the law, because the boy's parents had given him permission to perform the circumcision. Speaking at the panel discussion, Bagis said the court's decision was not acceptable and that circumcision is a religious issue that should not even be discussed in courts. "This is an issue of religious freedom. If German judges require any information on this topic, we are ready to provide them with help on this topic," Bagis added. The verdict was also criticized by Muslim and Jewish communities in Germany. Touching upon the issue, Dieter Grauman, head of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, said "The decision does not outlaw circumcision [but] it is still outrageous and insensitive. Ritual circumcision by a medical doctor is an integral part of the Jewish faith that has been practiced around the world for millennium. This right is respected in every country of the world."