Cemevis to be recognized as places of worship: IMM Assembly approves

Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IMM) Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu stated in a speech one month before the local elections, "Cemevis are places of worship. It is time for any mindset that does not accept this, prevents it from being accepted, or tries not to accept it, to be buried in history." With its latest decision, the IMM Assembly has now recognized cemevis as places of worship.

With the approval of the IMM Assembly, the proposal for the duties and working regulations of the Directorate of Relations with Religious Institutions and Communities, which was established in May, was accepted by a majority vote in yesterday's session of the IMM Assembly.

With the new regulation approved by the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IMM) Assembly, the organizational structure, legal status, duties, powers, and working procedures and principles of the IMM Directorate of Relations with Religious Institutions and Communities have been clarified. Cemevis and places of worship of other religions were included among the places of worship within the scope of the directorate's duties.

ALL RELIGIOUS INSTITUTIONS WILL BE SUPPORTED

Providing necessary material support for places of worship belonging to religious institutions and communities, supporting and developing the educational and cultural activities of religious institutions and communities, conducting joint work with faith groups, non-governmental organizations, and public institutions, organizing events, and providing support when necessary were also included in the job description of this directorate.

'EQUAL ACCESS TO PUBLIC SERVICES'

Avoiding decisions and actions that would lead to discrimination among places of worship and taking the necessary measures to ensure that religious institutions and communities can benefit equally from public services and facilities were specifically emphasized in the duties and working regulations of the IMM Directorate of Relations with Religious Institutions and Communities.

'EQUAL SERVICE WILL BE PROVIDED TO ALL PLACES OF WORSHIP'

Evaluating the decision, IMM Assembly CHP Group Deputy Chairperson Ülkü Sakalar stated, "We have been saying the same thing from the beginning. In the previous term, we submitted a motion to this assembly regarding the status of Cemevis as places of worship. However, we did not have the majority; the AK Party had the majority, and it was rejected at that time. In May, we established the Directorate of Relations with Religious Institutions and Communities to consolidate the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality's services for all places of worship under a single directorate. To clarify exactly which places of worship and which communities this directorate will serve, and how, we presented our perspective within the framework of existing laws and introduced a definition of a place of worship. For us, it is a place of worship. We stated that the places of worship that the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality will serve under this law are 'Mosques, Masjids, Cemevis, Churches, and Synagogues.' By explicitly naming them, we regulated through the bylaw that the directorate will provide equal service to all these places of worship."