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Obama Continues To Drag Carrots In Front Of Turkish Politicians
7 June 2009
US President Barack Obama's strong message during his speech in Cairo on Thursday stressing the significance of letting women wear headscarves if they choose to do so found a receptive audience in Turkey, where young girls attending colleges and universities are barred from setting foot on campus simply for covering their heads out of respect for religious values. That said, although not everyone's “dream of opportunity” has come true so far, America's promise exists for all, including the nearly 7 million Muslims living in the country, Obama said. “Freedom in America is indivisible from the freedom to practice one's religion. That is why there is a mosque in every state of our union, and over 1,200 mosques within our borders. That is why the US government has gone to court to protect the right of women and girls to wear the hijab, and to punish those who would deny it,” he said during his historical speech on Thursday in Cairo. The US president further argued that freedom of religion is central to the ability of peoples to live together and that governments must always examine the ways in which they protect it. Obama mainly rebuked some Western countries that impose restrictions on Muslims' daily lives in that regard. “People in every country should be free to choose and live their faith based upon the persuasion of the mind, heart and soul. This tolerance is essential for religion to thrive, but it is being challenged in many different ways. It is important for Western countries to avoid impeding Muslim citizens from practicing religion as they see fit -- for instance, by dictating what clothes a Muslim woman should wear. We cannot disguise hostility towards any religion behind the pretence of liberalism,” he said, adding that he rejects the “view of some in the West that a woman who chooses to cover her hair is somehow less equal.” He also underlined that a woman who is denied an education because she chooses to observe her religious duties is in fact denied equality. President Abdullah Gül was one of the first to be asked to comment. Gül said he found Obama's address “sincere, honest and realistic.” “I believe the messages he gave are clear. It is very promising that he genuinely shared the ideas and feelings of most of the Muslim world,” the president said. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan also commented on the US president's address to the Muslim world and expressed hope for a common wisdom to be formed among the politicians in Turkey after discussing points Obama stressed in his speech. Assessing Obama's speech in Cairo in general, Foreign Affairs Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said Obama's messages were “truthful and timely” and that “it is not possible to not agree with him in principle over the issues he touched upon.” Istanbul Mufti Mustafa Çagrici joined the politicians in praising Obama's speech. “That he recited verses from the Quran while addressing Muslims was highly important,” Çagrici said, noting that Obama began his speech with a greeting common among Muslims and cited three verses from the holy book during his speech. Obama's emphasis on women's rights and religious freedoms were hailed by representatives of civil society as well. Ahmet Faruk Ünsal, president of the Association of Human Rights and Solidarity for Oppressed Peoples (MAZLUM-DER), told Today's Zaman that it was pleasing to hear the head of a superpower underlining those fundamental rights and freedoms. “The standards Obama pointed to should not solely be applied to some Western countries and to Turkey but be spread to the entire world and embrace everyone,” he noted. Öztürk Türkdogan, president of the Human Rights Association (IHD), drew attention to the wave of optimism Obama's speech created worldwide. “We are for all human rights, including that of a woman being able to wear a headscarf. What Obama said has created a wave of optimism around the world, and now concrete steps are far more than necessary,” he stated. Putting emphasis on increasing expectations for concrete contributions, Halime Güner from the Flying Broom, a women's rights association, said Obama's discourse draws attention in particular for its integrity and consistency. “That he dealt with women's rights really cheered us up. It was very timely and truthful,” Güner said. A new beginning between the US and Muslims? Obama spoke about a couple of other topics, including misperceptions about America in the Muslim world and about Islam and Muslims in the US -- both of which, he said, should be corrected. He asserted that commonalities among the peoples of the world outnumber their differences. “So long as our relationship is defined by our differences, we will empower those who sow hatred rather than peace, and who promote conflict rather than the cooperation that can help all of our people achieve justice and prosperity. This cycle of suspicion and discord must end,” Obama said. He said he sought a new beginning between the US and Muslims around the world, “one based upon mutual interest and mutual respect; and one based upon the truth that America and Islam are not exclusive, and need not be in competition. Instead, they overlap, and share common principles -- principles of justice and progress; tolerance and the dignity of all human beings.” Moreover, he asked everyone to understand that Islam is a part of America which, he said, is not and never will be at war with Islam, a point he made while addressing the deputies of Turkey's Parliament in Ankara in early April. The US president gave examples from his life, indicating that he is, as a person, not disconnected from the daily lives of Muslims and their concerns. “Part of this conviction [that the interests people share are far more powerful than the forces driving them apart] is rooted in my own experience. I am a Christian, but my father came from a Kenyan family that includes generations of Muslims. As a boy, I spent several years in Indonesia and heard the call of the ezan [call to prayer] at the break of dawn and the fall of dusk. As a young man, I worked in Chicago communities where many found dignity and peace in their Muslim faith. So I have known Islam on three continents before coming to the region where it was first revealed. That experience guides my conviction that partnership between America and Islam must be based on what Islam is, not what it is not,” he highlighted. His speech, during which he spoke about the situations in Iraq and Afghanistan as well the problems in the Middle East and those between the US and Iran, was interrupted several times by applause.
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