Cleric slams abuse of women in Turkey
Thursday, July 21, 2011
ANKARA – Hürriyet Daily News
The Directorate of Religious Affairs sees the problems of all religious groups in Turkey as its own, its head Görmez (R) tells Greek Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew.
The mistreatment of women is the result of “excessive ignorance” about Islam, Turkey’s chief cleric said Thursday, following the recent release of consecutive reports on violence against women.
“People sometimes try to rationalize their bad behaviors by using religion. This has been the case in almost every culture and religion,” Mehmet Görmez, head of Turkey’s Directorate of Religious Affairs, said following meetings with Gunther Meinel, the head of the Union of Diplomats in Europe, and Istanbul’s Greek Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew.
During the meetings, Görmez addressed the growing concerns over the rights of women in Turkey, saying his directorate had been working for the last 10 years on a road map aimed at eliminating incorrect views and attitudes toward women’s place in society.
“As a man of the cloth and of science, I see it [women’s rights] as the whole world’s problem. I see this not as a gender [problem] but as a problem of power and ethics,” he said.
via Cleric slams abuse of women in Turkey – Hurriyet Daily News.
