A/55/280/Add.1 I. Introduction 1. From 30 November to 9 December 9 1999, the Special Rapporteur on the elimination of all forms of intolerance and of discrimination based on religion or belief made a visit to Turkey, in pursuit of his mandate, at his request and with the invitation of the Turkish Government. 2. During his visit, the Special Rapporteur went to Ankara (1 to 4 and 9 December), Istanbul (4 to 7 December) and Mardin (8 December) in southeastern Turkey. The Special Rapporteur had also intended to go to Midyat, but this was rendered impossible by imposition of a 4 p.m. curfew for reasons of security. 3. The Special Rapporteur held meetings with the following official representatives: the Deputy UnderSecretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and his colleagues; the Minister of State responsible for Human Rights; the Minister of Justice; the Minister of the Interior; the Under-Secretary, Ministry of Education; the President of the Religious Affairs Administration and members of the Higher Council for Religious Affairs; the President of the Constitutional Court; the First President of the Higher Court of Appeals; the President of the Supreme Council; the Vice President of the Human Rights Commission of the Turkish Grand National Assembly; and the Deputy Mayor of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality. A meeting was also held with a member of parliament from the Fazilet party. 4. The Special Rapporteur also met with religious representatives, including Patriarch Bartolemeos, Greek Orthodox Church; Patriarch M. Mutafyan, Armenian Apostolic Patriarchate; Rabbi David Aseo; Mgr L. Pelatre and Mgr. Marovitch, Roman Catholic communities; Bishop K. Agabaloglu, Armenian Protestant Church; Bishop Y. Cetin, Syrian Orthodox Church and lay representatives of these communities, as well as non-Armenian Protestants. Consultations were held with non-governmental organizations involved with human rights, including the Turkish Foundation for Human Rights, the Turkish Association for Human Rights and the Helsinki Citizens Assembly. Finally, discussions were held with the President of the Association for Kemalist Thought and several independent Turkish experts, as well as with other organizations and individuals. 5. The Special Rapporteur wishes to thank the Turkish authorities for their invitation and their cooperation. He is also very grateful to the many highquality representatives with whom he was able to meet in the non-governmental sphere. Finally, the Special Rapporteur expresses his gratitude to the UNDP representatives in Ankara for the splendid cooperation they provided throughout his visit. 6. The Special Rapporteur focussed his attention on examining legislation and policies in the area of freedom of religion and beliefs, and on the situation of non-Muslim communities. As a first step, it is useful to present the information obtained on the numerical size of Turkey’s religious communities. With respect to non-Muslims, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has provided the following two estimates (without specifying dates): (a) First estimate, provided during the mission Armenians About 50,000; 51 churches, of which 35 are open for worship; 6 of 9 churches outside Istanbul are open for worship; 19 schools, 4,000 students and 300 teachers; 17 cultural and charitable associations; 2 newspapers and 6 magazines; Jews 25,000 (22,000 in Istanbul, 2000 in Izmir and the remainder in Ankara and Adana); 18 synagogues in Istanbul and 25 places of worship in other provinces; 3 Jewish schools with some 700 pupils; 8 associations and hospitals; 1 newspaper; Orthodox Greeks 3,500 to 4,000; 73 churches; 19 schools, 297 pupils; about 65 foundations; (b) Second estimate provided after the mission 3