Erdoğan congratulates Jewish citizens on Rosh Hashanah

ANKARA

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan issued a message on Sept. 6 to congratulate Jewish citizens living in Turkey on Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year.

“I wholeheartedly congratulate our Jewish citizens on Rosh Hashanah, which marks the beginning of the new year according to the Hebrew calendar,” a written statement read.

Turkey’s cultural, political and social diversities are the assets that elevate the country and reinforce its unity and solidarity, he said, adding, “Having been provided constitutional protection for its citizens’ freedom of faith and worship earlier than many other countries did, our state demonstrated the importance it attached to the preservation of these assets.”

Despite the rising cultural racism, hate speech and otherization across the region, Turkey is a free country where all faiths are observed freely and all kinds of opinions, except for the ones that promote violence and terrorism, are expressed freely, Erdoğan stated.

This feature of Turkey has further been consolidated by the reforms that the Turkish government has introduced over the past 19 years which have “eliminated the anti-democratic practices of the eras of tutelage that used to restrict freedoms,” he noted.

Erdoğan emphasized that it is one of Turkey’s main priorities that all the citizens of the Republic of Turkey, regardless of their religions, languages, races, or origins, can lead their lives with peace, security and tranquility.

“We believe that we, as the people who have a shared past dating back centuries, will build a shared future as well. We appreciate the contributions made by our Jewish citizens in order for our country to develop, strengthen and attain its goals,” he stated.