Bahçeşehir University Contributes to Intercultural Dialogue from Paris!

Enver Yücel, Chair of the Board of Trustees of Bahçeşehir University: "We are a university at the heart of dialogue among civilizations, and we strive for these dialogues to flourish and develop."

PARIS - MEDAM, Türkiye's first Center for Civilization Studies operating within Bahçeşehir University, displayed its exhibition "The Ottoman View of the World from Piri Reis to Katip Çelebi", prepared as part of the celebrations of the 400th anniversary of Katip Çelebi's birth, at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris following the USA.

Speaking at the opening of the exhibition, Enver Yücel, Chair of the Board of Trustees of Bahçeşehir University, congratulated Prof. Dr. Bekir Karlığa, Chair of MEDAM, which has been active for three years, on the exhibition. Noting that his university, located in Istanbul's Beşiktaş district, which holds an important place in intercultural dialogue, is surrounded by the sounds of the mosque, the church and the Torah, he pointed out that they listen to these sounds with pleasure. Stating that Europe is only now becoming acquainted with the multiculturalism that has existed in Istanbul and Türkiye for centuries, Yücel emphasized that the envoy we have brought to America and Europe to represent these supreme values in a globalizing world is Katip Çelebi, a symbol of science, culture and tolerance.

"No democracy can put fundamental human rights to a vote"

Referring to recent events in Switzerland, Yücel underlined that democracy cannot be used to abolish democratic rights. Yücel stated that the decision taken in Switzerland contradicts all the values that Türkiye, Bahçeşehir University and he himself are honored to represent and strive to make a common virtue of humanity, and added:

"This referendum banning the construction of minarets in Switzerland contradicts the logic of democracy: democracy, which essentially means freedom, abolishes itself when it is used to restrict freedom. On the other hand, the statement 'The call to prayer will no longer be heard in Switzerland', which is part of the official discourse of those defending this ban, is an extremely saddening and, as much as it is saddening, hostile discourse. Just as in Istanbul the call to prayer, the sound of church bells and the recitation of the Torah can coexist and nourish one another alongside my university, a home of reason and science, and just as we can embrace this as a great value, I believe that the Swiss people will surely reverse this decision, which they made as a result of misinformation and misdirection. Because this is a clear fact: no democracy can put fundamental human rights to a vote. This is nothing but a betrayal of democracy. In this age when we fight for human rights, democracy and freedom, the fact that democracy and freedom have been so badly wounded has put the defenders of democracy in a very difficult position. That this is happening in a country like Switzerland, regarded as a cradle of democracy, is extremely thought-provoking. I do not even want to imagine a world in which democracy turns into a regime that restricts freedoms. For what do we have other than democracy to protect and develop freedoms?"

Giving a special statement after the opening of the exhibition, Yücel said:

"We founded MEDAM believing that, with regard to civilizations and developments in the world, civilizations must form an alliance and understand one another, and that a university in Istanbul is best placed to bring this about. In the last two years, we have carried out very important activities. Both Mr. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and Spanish Prime Minister Mr. Zapatero, Co-Chairs of the Alliance of Civilizations, attended openings at our university. Among these activities, we also found it fitting to exhibit the contributions of Katip Çelebi and Piri Reis to the history of world science. We are extremely pleased with the reactions. People's interest is greater than we expected."

Stating that universities should not be institutions that merely teach students and prepare them for life, Yücel said that, in terms of its vision and mission, Bahçeşehir University is a university open to the public and that its courses are also open to the public. Expressing that they have made a great contribution to intercultural dialogue in various places, especially in Türkiye, Yücel noted that they would continue to do so and advance on the path to becoming a world university.

MEDAM Chair Prof. Dr. Bekir Karlığa spoke about the exhibition as follows:

"Katip Çelebi is the greatest thinker, scientist, geographer and historian produced by Turkish history in the 17th century. It was therefore important that this person be known and introduced. We applied to UNESCO for the 400th anniversary of Çelebi's birth to be celebrated in various parts of the world, and our request was accepted. After this decision, we at MEDAM carried out extensive work on this subject and prepared a book. We prepared the book containing the maps and translated it into various languages. Our Ministry of Culture also supported us. This work was first exhibited in various provinces of Türkiye and will travel to more than 80 provinces. Last month we held its first exhibition abroad in the USA, and this is its fourth exhibition abroad. The exhibition will continue at UNESCO for one week and will then tour all of France. This exhibition will even be shown in China and Japan, because in his works Çelebi provides information about the culture and history of the places he put on his map. Whichever countries and regions are on these maps, the exhibition will go there."

Gürcan Türkoğlu, Permanent Delegate of Türkiye to UNESCO, spoke about the importance of the exhibition:

"The opening of this exhibition at UNESCO today has a special meaning, because at its 34th General Conference UNESCO identified Katip Çelebi as one of the figures who should be commemorated around the world. Next year, the anniversaries of Osman Hamdi Bey, founder of the Istanbul Archaeology Museum, and later of Evliya Çelebi will likewise be celebrated around the world by decision of UNESCO. Katip Çelebi has an exceptional place in Ottoman history in particular. Çelebi was an open-minded person with scientific curiosity, and his work of transferring knowledge from the West to the East has significance beyond cartography."

After the opening of the exhibition, a panel titled "Katip Çelebi in the 400th Year of His Birth" was held at the Paris Promotion Office of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism on the Champs Elysées. At the panel moderated by Prof. Kenan Gürsoy, Turkish Ambassador to the Vatican, speeches were given by Prof. Dr. Bekir Karlığa, Türkiye Coordinator of the Alliance of Civilizations Project; renowned historian and Turkologist Prof. Dr. Jean-Louis Bacqué-Grammont; Prof. Saleem al-Hassani, Chair of the Muslim Heritage Foundation's 1001 Inventions Project; and Prof. Dr. Mustafa Kaçar, faculty member in History of Science at Istanbul University Faculty of Letters. The panel focused on Katip Çelebi, his era, personality, worldview and philosophy. The exhibition will remain open to visitors in the UNESCO halls from 7 to 11 December.