Gov’t to announce new regulations on cemevis’
ANKARA
Following President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s statement that the government is extending efforts to meet Alevi-Bektashi citizens’ demands, local media has alleged that five regulations will be made for cemevis, Alevi houses of worship.
Among the planned rare regulations, electricity and water expenses of the cemevis are to be covered by the state and a special code will be given to cemevis in the zoning maps of the land registry.
It is expected that the Alevi dedes, the religious leaders of cemevis, and officials taking care of cemevis will be paid a salary with the new regulation, local media claimed, while it is also planned to give cemevis a legal status by establishing a unit within the Culture and Tourism Ministry to include Alevis and represent cemevis.
After the work reaches a certain level, it will be discussed at the cabinet meeting, and then the decisions taken will come into effect after being announced to the public by the president in November or December, local media reported.
Meanwhile, the government will soon hold a collective ceremony for the eight cemevis whose construction is complete or nearing completion in various cities, Erdoğan said earlier.
Along with a cemevi in Istanbul, which will begin to serve after a ceremony performed in the presence of the president at the end of September, new cemevis in Elazığ, Erzurum and the capital Ankara will be opened for worship by the end of this year.
The ministries will also break the ground in Kütahya, Burdur, Denizli and Kayseri for new cemevis, according to local media.
The government is extending efforts to meet Alevi-Bektashi citizens’ demands determined during visits by officials to 1,585 cemevis and 5,600 of 8,740 requests made have already been fulfilled, Erdoğan said on Aug. 13 during the commemoration events organized for the 751st death anniversary of Alevi mystic Hacı Bektaş Veli in Nevşehir.
“As far as the remaining requests are concerned, the interior, culture and justice ministries are carrying out works, which will inshallah be completed soon,” he added.
Erdoğan also paid a visit to Hüseyin Gazi Cemevi in Ankara on Aug. 8 with the participation of Vice President Fuat Oktay, Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu, Culture and Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy and presidential spokesperson İbrahim Kalın.
Hüseyin Öz, the religious leader of Hüseyin Gazi Cemevi, pointed out that he conveyed the Alevi community’s demands regarding the state to cover the expenses such as electricity and water and the recognition of the rights granted to other places of worship.