DAY ONE: THE BRIDGE

tuesday, november 16, 2010
the european parliament
room 5b.01

9:00–9:10 AM Welcome
Anthony j. limberakis, m.d.
National Commander, Order of Saint Andrew the Apostle
Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in America
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
rodi kratsa tsagaropoulou
Vice President of the European Parliament
Greece

9:10–9:15 AM Patriarchal Exhortation
his eminence METROPOLITAN EMMANUEL OF FRANCE
Director, The Liaison Office of the Orthodox Church
to the European Union
Paris, France

9:15–9:25 AM Opening Remarks
his eminence archbishop demetrios OF AMERICA
Primate, Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America
Exarch of the Ecumenical Patriarchate
New York, New York

9:25–9:45 AM Religious Freedom: The Fundamental Human Right
RABBI ARTHUR SCHNEIER
President, Appeal of Conscience Foundation
New York, New York

9:45–10:30 AM An Overview of the Issues and Concerns
of Religious Minorities in Turkey
otmar oehring, PhD
Director, Human Rights Office, Pontifical Mission Society
Germany
pieter omtzigt, PhD
Member, Parliamentary Assembly, Council of Europe
Enschede, Netherlands
grÉgor puppinck, PhD
Director, European Centre of Law and Justice
Strasbourg, France

10:30–11:00 AM his excellency EGEMEN BAGIS
Minister for EU Affairs and Chief Negotiator
Republic of Turkey

Special presentation to His Excellency Egemen Bagis
by the Archons of the Ecumenical Patriarchate

11:00–11:15 AM Break

11:15–12:30 PM panel discussion: The Specific Religious Freedom Issues and Concerns of the following Religious Minorities: Alevi Muslim; Armenian; Catholic; Greek Orthodox; Jewish;
Protestant; and Syriac
Moderator
DR. EMRE ÖKTEM
Assistant Professor, Galatasaray University
Istanbul, Turkey
Panelists
DOGAN BERMEK
Representative of the Alevi Muslim Community
President, AVF Federation of Alevi Foundations
Istanbul, Turkey
METIN TARHAN
Representative of the Alevi Muslim Community
Chairman of the Alevi Associations
Istanbul, Turkey
his eminence ARCHBISHOP ARAM ATESHIAN
Representative of the Armenian Community
Istanbul, Turkey
FATHER CLAUDIO MONGE
Representative of the Catholic Community
President, Union of Religions in Turkey
Istanbul, Turkey

LAKIS VINGAS
Representative of the Greek Orthodox Community
Council Member, General Directorate of Foundations
Representative of the Non Muslim Foundations
Istanbul, Turkey

MINE YILDIRIM
Representative of the Protestant Community
Member, Committee of Religious and Legal Affairs
Association of Protestant Churches
Istanbul, Turkey

JOHNY MESSO
Representative of the Syriac Community
President of the Syriac Universal Alliance
Hengelo, Netherlands
12:30–1:00 PM The Rights of Religious Minorities under the
Turkish Legal System
Orhan Kemal Cengiz
Lawyer, Human Rights Defender and Newspaper Columnist
Izmir, Turkey

1:00–2:30 PM Lunch

2:30–3:00 PM Turkey’s Obligations under Treaties and Conventions
james j. silk
Clinical Professor of Law, Allard K. Lowenstein International
Human Rights Clinic and Executive Director, Orville H. Schell, Jr. Center for International Human Rights, Yale Law School
New Haven, Connecticut

3:00–3:15 PM U.S. Foreign Policy and Religious Freedom in Turkey:
Commentary from the United States Commission
on International Religious Freedom
dr. elizabeth h. prodromou
Vice Chair, United States Commission
on International Religious Freedom
Washington, D.C.

3:15–3:30 PM The Halki Theological School–
A Case Study on the Obstacles Faced by Religious Minorities
kezban hatemi
Attorney
Istanbul, Turkey

3:30–3:45 PM Break

3:45–4:30 PM Religious Freedom: Legal and Humanitarian Perspectives
Moderator
ANGELA WU HOWARD
International Law Director, Becket Fund for Religious Liberty
Washington, D.C.
Panelists
COLE DURHAM
Susan Young Gates University Professor of Law
Director, International Center for Law and Religious Studies
J. Reuben Clark Law School, Brigham Young University
Provo, Utah

DILEK KURBAN, BA, MA, JD
Program Officer Democratization Program
Turkish Economic and Social Studies Foundation
Istanbul, Turkey
MUNA B. NDULO
Professor of Law, Cornell Law School
Director of Cornell’s Institute for African Development
Human Rights Advocate and Humanitarian
Ithaca, New York

6:30–8:00 PM Reception

Hosted by the Honorable and Mrs. Howard W. Gutman
United States Ambassador to the Kingdom of Belgium
United States Embassy

DAY 2: CROSSING OVER

wednesday, november 17, 2010
the conrad brussels hotel
ballroom a

9:00–9:30 am The View from the Turkish Side of the Bridge:
Obstacles and Prospects
Mustafa akyol
Journalist and Political Commentator
Istanbul, Turkey

9:30–10:00 am Interfaith Understanding and Dialogue–
A Way to Cross the Bridge
dr. EMRE ÖKTEM
Assistant Professor, Galatasaray University
Istanbul, Turkey

10:00–10:30 am Are Religious Minorities compatible with
a secular Turkish State?
dr. bican sahin
Assistant Professor, Hacettepe University
Vice President, Association of Liberal Thinking
Ankara, Turkey

10:30–10:45 am Break

10:45–11:45 Am The View from the European Parliamentarians’ side
of the Bridge
jamie mayor oreja
European Parliament
Spain
dr. renate sommer
European Parliament
Germany
konrad szymanski
European Parliament
Poland

11:45–1:15 pm Lunch

1:15–1:45 pm Case Law from the European Court of Human Rights
dealing with Religious Freedom Issues
riza türmen
Former Judge, European Court of Human Rights
Turkey

1:45–2:15 pm Finding Answers in International Forums,
including the European Court of Human Rights
ANDREW EKONOMOU, PhD
Senior Counsel of the American Center for Law and Justice, Washington, D.C., and the European Centre for Law and Justice, Strasbourg, France
Atlanta, Georgia

2:15–2:30 pm The Framework for Productive Dialogue Going Forward
PROF. DR. Hüseyin Hatemi
Professor, Istanbul University School of Law
and Maltepe University
Istanbul, Turkey

2:30–2:45 pm Break

2:45–4:45 pm Symposium: Interactive dialogue regarding
Religious Freedom in Turkey
The symposium will be an interactive exchange among panelists concerning various aspects of the issues faced by religious minorities in Turkey and proposed answers to those issues.
Moderator
DR. STEVEN EALY
Senior Fellow, Liberty Fund
Indianapolis, Indiana
Panelists
MUSTAFA AKYOL
ORHAN CENGIZ
ANDREW EKONOMOU
DILEK KURBAN
MUNA NDULO
OTMAR OEHRING
DR. ELIZABETH PRODROMOU
BICAN SAHIN
KONRAD SZYMANSKI
ANGELA WU HOWARD
4:45 pm Closing Remarks
anthony j. limberakis, m.d.

7:30–8:00 pm

8:00–10:00 pm Farewell Reception

Grand Banquet
The Brussels Hilton Hotel
En Plein Ciel Ballroom, 27th Floor