The Yeast of Global Tolerance
The main topic of the Abant Platform Meeting held on July 13-14 was "Global Politics and the Future of the Middle East." This topic was chosen a few months ago.
The meeting, however, coincided with actual Israeli attacks in this region. We felt to the marrow of our bones the difficulty of discussing dialogue in an atmosphere like this but, trying to remain calm, we attempted to analyze the future of the Middle East.
The reciprocal rebukes of the Arabian and Israeli representatives and the constant tension between them vividly brought home the difficulties we were facing. However, despite all this, the Abant spirit prevailed. Even though there were some objections along political lines, the content of the non-binding text called up hope for the Middle East.
Arabian representatives wanted these dialogue meetings to be organized in Amman and Cairo also.
First of all, the Abant Platform lit the torch of dialogue in Turkey. Overcoming great obstacles, we succeeded in beginning to seek solutions to our country's problems together in spite of all our differences. Then we conducted enlightening discussions and held intellectual exchanges regarding global peace in several world centers. The successive dialogue meetings, "Islam, Democracy and Secularism: Turkey's Experience" on 19-20 April 2004 in Washington D.C.; Turkey's EU Process: Culture, Identity and Religion" on 3-4 December 2004 in Brussels; and "Republic, Cultural Pluralism and Europe" on 31 March-1 April 2006 in Paris, reached new heights with the latest Abant meeting held on 13-14 July 2006. The Abant Meetings in Turkey have been enriched by international participants. In fact, we can all see that not even a country's internal issues belong solely to that country anymore. From economy to culture and from politics to sports, we are living on the surface of the same global world.
Yes, globalization is, in itself, a topic for discussion; but, we can't deny its existence. Consequently, the important task here is to find what's right among global policies and global trends and prevent or minimize the negative effects of this new global foundation.
As I mentioned initially, it's not easy to advocate dialogue, tolerance and conciliation as a sole solution in an atmosphere of on-going hostility and a clash of civilizations fueled by global terror. For this reason, the number of Abant meetings and other dialogue initiatives should be increased and cultural bridges, havens of peace and break-waters should be built. You can call this a global dialogue siege.
Those who have been struggling for dialogue a long time may not be aware of the progress they've made. But we really need to give it importance. First-time Abant participant Egyptian Professor S. Ahmad al-Khatoury underscored this in his article published in the Turkish edition of Zaman:
"I followed with great pleasure the discussions among people of varying persuasions - from Islamists to liberals and from nationalists to socialists - and the dialogue exchanges between them even though there were some minor quarrels on several issues. In fact, an exceptional event occurred at Abant. Maybe for the first time, Egyptian academicians like me voiced their ideas in a civilized manner in the same surroundings with Israeli guests." Yes, we, too, had experienced the same feelings during our first Abant meeting. We shared the same surroundings with people who would never have thought of coming together previously and, without fighting, we defended a declaration of conciliation.
I also want to show the loyalty that Cengiz Candar showed during the 11th Abant meeting.
"It was the honorable Fethullah Gülen who activated the yeast of this dialogue initiative. We need to remember him with great gratitude. In a moment of joy, he once said, "If this yeast ferments, the whole world will drink yoghurt."
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