* There will be a hearing regarding HR 4347 on June 26th at Foreign Affairs Committee. We are working with Members of Turkish Caucus in the Congress who are helping us to explain the below facts to their colleagues....







* HR 4347 insults Turkey, the Turkish-American Community and the American taxpayers with an absurd and unconstitutional interference in foreign religious affairs based on the Biblical tales.







What is H.R.4347 - Turkey Christian Churches Accountability Act







Full Text: https://beta.congress.gov/bill/113th-congress/house-bill/4347/text











CONGRESS SHOULD TAKE A BALANCED APPROACH ON HR 4347







1) HR 4347 ignores all progress made in the area of religious freedoms in Turkey.







2) HR 4347 singles out Turkey and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, while other countries are ignored: When Dr.Robert P.George, Chairman on the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, testified in front of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs on May 22, Turkey was mentioned only once by name, as a Second Tier country, in his 19 page testimony, which detailed violations by numerous countries, including Russia, Indonesia, Egypt, and China.







3) The State Department’s last International Religious Freedom Report states that in general, members of religious groups reported had freedom to practice their faiths in Turkey. It is also true that since this last report in 2012, several improvements have been observed, such as the return of church and minority foundations’ properties.







4) H.R.4347 is also detrimental to the vital interests of the United States. The United States’ fight against global terrorism demands that the US is perceived as an even-handed, fair defender of human and religious rights and freedoms, regardless of religion, race or ethnicity.







Below are some examples of violations of religious freedom and cultural destruction in countries neighboring Turkey:







Greece







· Athens is the only European capital with no mosque. There are also no mosques in Thessaloniki. The historical Fethiye Mosque in Athens is in despair and has remained closed despite Turkey’s offers to help with the restoration.



· Turkish mosques and cemeteries, as well as Jewish places of worship in Greece are frequently vandalized and desecrated, the perpetrators escape justice.



· Turks in Greece are prevented from running their pious foundations, resulting in the confiscation or despair of their properties. Turks in Greece are frequently prevented from repairing their mosques and other religious sites. There are recent cases of prison sentences and fines for simply repairing a mosque.



· Greece does not recognize its Macedonian minority in Greece and does not allow the Macedonian Church to function in Greece.



· The latest State Department Report on International Religious Freedom states: “There were reports of harassment and increasingly violent physical attacks against individuals perceived to be immigrants and refugees, many of whom were Muslim. Expressions of anti-Semitism increased after voters elected members of Golden Dawn to parliament.”













Armenia







·There is only one functioning mosque, the Blue Mosque (Goy Mescit) in Yerevan that remains in entire Armenia today, and one semi-destroyed non-functioning one, also in Yerevan. All other mosques have been destroyed. In the second half of the 19th Century alone, there used to be over 200 mosques in what are today the borders of Armenia.



· According to a report by Forum 18, a Christian religious freedoms watchdog, ‘Armenia's religious minorities face barriers to their exercising freedom of religion or belief from senior officials, politicians, media outlets and priests of the dominant Armenian Apostolic Church.’ Persecuted religous minorities included Pentecostals and Yehovah’s Witnesses.



· The latest State Department Report on International Religious Freedom states: “There were reports of societal discrimination based on religious affiliation, belief, or practice. Members of minority religious groups experienced societal discrimination and intolerance, including in the workplace. Many media outlets demonstrated bias against minority religious groups.”











TURKEY – THE REALITY:







· There are 101 places of worship for less than 5,000 Greek Orthodox citizens of Turkey.



· There are 55 (Gregorian, Catholic and Protestant) Armenian Churches in Turkey open to religious services of the nearly 60,000 Armenian citizens of Turkey.



·There are 36 synagogues for about 25,000 Jewish citizens of Turkey.



·Turkey has become the first country to implement a property verdict by the European Court of Human Rights, returning a historical orphanage to the Greek Orthodox minority.







Turkey has restored nearly two dozen Christian and Jewish heritage sites. Among the most notable Christian heritage sites restored by Turkey are the Akdamar Armenian church in Van and the Osk Vank Georgian church near Erzurum. A major restoration project is being undertaken by the Turkish Ministry of Culture and the World Monuments Fund to restore the historical Armenian heritage site of Ani in Kars, including the Ani Cathedral and the Church of the Holy Savior.







Greek Cyprus









-16 out of 106 mosques in Greek Cyprus were totally ruined, 61 of them are deserted and falling apart. There are only 2 active mosques in Greek Cyprus, but both are without clergy due to Greek Cypriot restrictions.







NORTHERN CYPRUS – THE REALITY:







·Since 1974 not a single religious site has been intentionally destroyed in Northern Cyprus.



· Since 2006, 15 Greek Orthodox Churches have been restored by the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus



·The United Nations has formed a Joint Technical Committee on Cultural Heritage composed of Turkish and Greek Cypriots. This Committee has finished restoring 7 religious sites on Cyprus and is currently actively engaged in restoring 10 more religious sites on Cyprus. The most noted restoration project is of the Benedictine Abbey of Our Lady of Tyre (Armenian) which in May 2014 held religious services in celebration of its restoration.



·There are 20 Christian churches and monasteries that are open for daily or holy day worship in Northern Cyprus, and more are being restored and repaired.







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FOREIGN AFFAIRS COMMITTEE







http://foreignaffairs.house.gov/about/membership







OPPOSE HOUSE RESOLUTION 4347







Expose the absurd and racist claims against Turkey's historical heritage











Click to send your letter in less than a minute







http://capwiz.com/paxturcica/go/OpposeHR4347











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References: TCA /Pax Turcica / Members of Turkish Caucus







More Information: Ali Cinar - 203-722-4339