Religious leaders convene in Istanbul to promote peace and tolerance

About 80 religious leaders and clerics from 42 countries yesterday gathered in Istanbul for the seventh Eurasian Islamic Council meeting, hosted by Turkey's Religious Affairs Directorate, in a bid to promote the message that Islam is a religion of peace and tolerance. Among those at the gathering were Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, State Minister for Religious Affairs Faruk Celik, Religious Affairs Directorate head Ali Bardakoglu, Kosovo Islamic Union President Naim Ternava, and the oldest member of the council, Russian Muslims' Center of Religious Administration head Safa Tacuttin. Speaking to the gathering, Erdogan said, "We cannot explain how a person who prostrates in worship of God can kill another person for any reason. This cannot be explained in any way." He added that Islam doesn't approve of violence or terrorism for any reason and that it is wrong to associate Islam with terrorism or terrorists. Stating that sectarian differences should not divide Muslims, Erdogan said, "Islam treats sects merely as manifestations of different opinions. If we take this any further, then we will find ourselves back in the religious conflicts of the past." Calling Islamophobia a crime against humanity, like anti-Semitism, Erdogan also said, "Any policy built upon Islamophobia is wrong and destructive. I am personally trying to make sure that international circles understand this." Erdogan also criticized Denmark over the 2005-2006 cartoon crises, saying, "We saw that the position that was taken in a so-called defense of freedom of speech in connection with the cartoon crisis, which amounted to an international crisis, served to hurt another culture. This did nothing but to create a fire out of a spark. If there were well-defined limits to freedom of speech, such tragic events would not happen. We must minimize historical prejudices or we will fail."