[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 161 (Monday, November 2, 2009)]
[Senate]
[Page S10987]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 CALLING UPON TURKEY TO FACILITATE THE REOPENING OF THE HALKI SEMINARY

  Mr. CARDIN. Mr. President, this week's visit to Washington by the 
Ecumenical Patriarch, Bartholomew I, is an appropriate occasion to 
renew calls for the reopening of the Halki Seminary, without further 
delay. Founded in 1844, the Theological School of Halki, located 
outside modern-day Istanbul, served as the principal seminary for 
Ecumenical Patriarchate until its forcible closure by the Turkish 
authorities in 1971. Counted among alumni of this preeminent 
educational institution are numerous prominent Orthodox scholars, 
theologians, priests, and bishops as well as patriarchs, including 
Bartholomew I. Many of these scholars and theologians have served as 
faculty at other institutions serving Orthodox communities around the 
world. Despite occasional indications by the authorities of pending 
action to reopen the seminary, to date all have failed to materialize.
  Earlier this year, several of my colleagues from the Commission on 
Security and Cooperation in Europe, which I chair, joined me in a 
letter to President Obama to underscoring our longstanding concern over 
the continued closure of this unique institution. The continued denial 
of requests for the reopening of the seminary stands in clear violation 
of Turkey's obligations pursuant to the 1989 OSCE Vienna Concluding 
Document which affirmed the right of religious communities to provide 
``training of religious personnel in appropriate institutions.'' While 
there is no question that the Halki Seminary is the appropriate 
institution for training Orthodox clergy in Turkey, the Government of 
Turkey continues to refuse to reopen the school.
  In his address to the Turkish Gran National Assembly in April, 
President Obama said, ``Freedom of religion and expression lead to a 
strong and vibrant civil society that only strengthens the state, which 
is why steps like reopening Halki Seminary will send such an important 
signal inside Turkey and beyond.'' In a welcomed development, Turkey's 
Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan met with the Ecumenical Patriarch 
in August. In an address to a wider gathering of minority religious 
leaders that day, Erdogan concluded by stating, ``We should not be of 
those who gather, talk and disperse. A result should come out of 
this.''
  Mr. President, I urge Prime Minister Erdogan to follow through on the 
sentiment of those remarks by actions that will facilitate the 
reopening of the Halki Seminary without further delay. I am told that 
the Theological School of Halki is situated atop the summit of the Hill 
of Hope. For those of us who have pursued this issue over the years, 
our hope has been that we would indeed witness the reopening of this 
historic institution. I remain hopeful and encourage Prime Minister 
Erdogan to act decisively and without condition on this matter before 
his upcoming visit to Washington.

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