The Press Statement by Sehitlik Mosque in Berlin

Source: “Basın Açıklaması” (“Press Statement”), Sehitlik Mosque, November 2014, http://www.sehitlik-camii.de/

Similar to our other Turkish-Islamic Union for Religious Affairs (DITIB) mosques, we at the DITIB-Sehitlik Mosque have been providing Mosque Guidance services since 2004 without interruption and will continue to do so. As per our religious beliefs, we open our doors and create an environment of introduction and enlightenment to everyone who comes to visit our Mosque to learn about our Islam Religion and Culture, regardless of their religion, language, race, and color. We provide appointments to groups with 7 or more participants. In this way, we host on average about 30 thousand visitors per year.

Leadership Berlin foundation, which organizes courses on politics, economics, and so on, requested from us a visitation reservation for 24 November 2014. We had previously partnered and collaborated with the above-mentioned institution to fight against anti-Islamism. We responded positively to their appointment request because we knew them and there was no additional invitation that was send out by the DITIB Sehitlik Mosque.

However, it was not our goal to legitimize any concept that is sinful according to our religion, nor to provide a platform to any of their sub-organizations or their partners when we confirmed the visitation request by Leadership Berlin. It has disturbed the DITIB Sehitlik Mosque and its community greatly that the media projected the issue as if it were a result sourced in us or an invitation sent out by us.

We have decided to rescind our confirmation for the 24 November 2014 appointment in order to avoid playing into the hands of such abuse. Furthermore, we believe that it will indubitably contribute to our collective living that we do not provide this [guidance] service at this date in order to prevent any possible provocations against this innocent enlightenment and guidance service as a result of conflated and intricate news reporting abuse.

We hereby inform the public that the doors of our Mosque continue to be open to any and all visitors who wish to get acquainted with our religion and culture.

Ender ÇETİN
On behalf of the Board of Directors,
President

[click for the Sehitlik Mosque Press Statement in PDF format]

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