Turkey: Syriacs to build new church in Istanbul

Some criticize the government and say they delivered the land to Syriac people in order to silence them on the matter of controvesial Mor Gabriel Monastery (above). 

Latin Catholics are claiming ownership of land recently given to Turkey’s Syriac community for the establishment of their first official church in Istanbul.

The Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality fulfilled the Syriac community’s request last week to approve the construction of a new church, for the first time both in its history and in the Republican period. 

However, Father Bruno Gregorio Simonelli said the Latin Catholic community would take legal action against the decision, claiming property rights to the land. “How could they take away our property and hand it to another community?” Simonelli asked.

Latin Catholic Foundation member and lawyer Nail Karakaş said the land was registered in the 1936 Declaration. “Before 1950, Latin Catholics used to bury their dead in this cemetery but the authorities of that time banned burials. After that, the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality took over the possession of the land. Last summer, we appealed to the Municipality for the reopening of the cemetery and were expecting a result,” Karakaş said. 

Following the Lausanne Treaty, a law was passed in 1936 that recommended the recording of all minority foundations. Apart from the property recorded in the declaration, the foundations were prevented from obtaining new properties.

‘The government tries to silence us’ 

Leaders of the Syriac community were surprised by the developments, with some arguing that the land was only given in return for the historic Mor Gabriel Monastery in the southeastern province of Mardin, over which there is an ongoing conflict regarding ownership of the land. 

Syriac intellectual Sabo Boyacı harshly criticized the government for the latest developments. “I don’t believe the government’s sincerity. They delivered this land to us in order to silence us on the matter of Mor Gabriel Monastery. It is clear that they want to cause conflict between the minority communities. The government simply aims to make a good impression on the European and Turkish public,” Boyacı said. 

Syriacs have struggled to obtain land in Istanbul’s Yeşilköy district for three years. The Istanbul Syriac community – amounting to 25,000, according to church records - used to worship in the churches they rented from Latin Catholics. 

Bakırköy deputy mayor Yervant Özuzun told that a part of the land was delivered to the Syriac community. Özuzun said the land was a protected area with a chapel and graveyards, adding that they received required authorization from the Monuments Board and Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality. 

“Only a part of the cemetery was allocated [to the Syriac community]. And the conditions of protecting the chapel and gathering the graveyards in one specific point were achieved. The Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality has possessed the land since 1951,” Özuzun said.

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