The struggle that the world and our country put forward as a single fist against the Covid-19 epidemic has shown that we are going through a process where we need unity and solidarity the most. Disputes among Muslims around the world show that dividing, making discourses that will polarize societies, is not beneficial for us, but for the imperialist system.

It is not acceptable for Non-Governmental Organizations, which are responsible for rescuing the public from differences and establishing social unity, to engage in discourses that discriminate and confront the society.

Non-governmental organizations cannot be hostile to the values of the society.

In the person of Esteemed Prof. Dr. Ali Erbaş, we cannot remain silent about the attack on our religion, unity and solidarity.

In the declarations they published, they insulted the values, religion and belief of this nation, in a way that has nothing to do with the message that the President of Religious Affairs wanted to convey in the content of the criminal complaint they made, and they committed crimes against the Constitution by ignoring the beliefs of the people.

Moreover, they have openly revealed their hostility towards Islam by using a discourse that goes so far as to call our religious values ‘dogma’.

In his sermon, our Honorable President of Religious Affairs stated that Ramadan is a training of patience and willpower at a time when Islamic sensitivity increased due to Ramadan, and he suggested that this month be an opportunity to get rid of bad habits.

He talked about the harms of smoking, drinking, adultery, homosexuality. In this regard, there is a call to society to get rid of these bad habits. Moreover, alcoholism, adultery and homosexuality are not a lifestyle to be preferred.

All these are forbidden by our religion. Those who do these acts are cursed. There are more than 70 verses in 12 surahs about the cursed people of Lut in Islam in the Qur'an. This is a perverted disease. If our President of Religious Affairs will not tell this to the public, who will?

The call to get rid of these bad habits is not at all insulting or hostile to those who have the habit. On the contrary, since people who have this habit are considered valuable, it is recommended that those who have those habits get rid of these bad habits and not spread these habits.

Ankara, Istanbul, Izmir Bar Association representatives and IHD (Human Rights Association) representatives are trying to legitimize these bad habits. To ignore religious beliefs is to humiliate them. It is an effort to divide and polarize the society.

No person who respects this nation, its religion and values can oppose this sermon by the Presidency of Religious Affairs.

We express our strong condemnation of the Ankara Bar Association's insulting the millennial values and beliefs of this nation with the ‘dogma’ characterization, and we also invite our public prosecutors to do what is necessary.

Once again, we respectfully declare to the public that we stand by our President of Religious Affairs.

Adnan Tanrıverdi

ASSAM President of Board of Directors

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