dr. Mustafa Cerić, former reisu-l-ulema of the Islamic Community in Bosnia and Herzegovina, published a message on social networks regarding the upcoming parliamentary and presidential elections in Turkey, Anadolia reports.
“The most important elections in the world this year are in Turkey. My Bosniaks, these days we talk a lot about those who are against Bosnia and Bosniaks, and little or almost nothing about those who have always been and remained with Bosnia and Bosniaks in good times and in bad. Story about our enemies prevents us from talking about our friends, who were with Bosnia and the Bosniaks when it was the hardest for them. to Bosnia and Bosniaks,” stated Cerić and added:
“Of course, among the first on the list of our sincere friends, who deserve to be remembered when they need our attention is the Republic of Turkey, where parliamentary and presidential elections will be held on May 14, 2023. The elections in Turkey this year are likely the most important elections in the world, given the global geopolitical shifts and preparations. All this can have significant consequences for us Bosniaks in Bosnia, the Balkans and Europe. Furthermore, according to estimates, there are about two to three million Bosniaks living in Turkey today, whose votes in this year’s elections can be crucial for Turkey’s political and economic stability. Therefore, I feel called to send a message to Bosniaks in Turkey, Bosniaks who care about their brothers in Bosnia, Sandžak and in general in the Balkans,” said Cerić.
Then he sent a message to Bosniaks living in Turkiye.
“We are aware that the Turkish Supreme Electoral Council (YSK) announced that the right to vote in elections in Turkey has 60,904,499 voters, who can vote at 190,736 polling stations in the country, and 3,286,786 voters, who can vote at 4,969 polling stations outside of Turkey. The President of the Republic of Turkey is elected directly in two rounds, according to which a candidate must win a relative majority (more than 50 percent) of the vote in order to be elected. If no candidate wins a majority of the votes in the first round, then a second round will be held of the election on May 28, 2023 between the two candidates with the highest number of votes from the first round of the election. I remind you that, guided by the idea that ‘every Bosniak is responsible for another Bosniak wherever he is’, I announced on November 1, 2015, on the occasion general elections in Turkey and invited you to vote for the Justice and Development Party (AKP),” said Cerić, and emphasized:
“I did this because the AKP, headed by Tayyip Recep Erdogan, showed the greatest concern for our Bosnia. I use this opportunity to thank the Bosniaks who voted for the AKP and Tayyip Recep Erdogan. Allah has rewarded you. I remind you that I told you at the time ‘Vote for a stable and strong Turkey, which today is in a difficult and unstable environment’. Perhaps more difficult than ever since its independence. The bloody events in the Middle East are not accidental. A smart one is enough of a mark. Dear Bosniaks, do everything you can in your power to let the wave of violence that surrounds Turkey pass by. Vote for those who are capable of saving Turkey from violence. Vote for the AKP, which knows, can and wants to lead Turkey on the path of peace and stability. Because peace and stability in Turkey means peace and stability in the Balkans and in Europe,” said Cerić.
He noted that today “Turkey is a regional power, today Turkey is stable and safe from the violence imposed on it by its enemies from the immediate and wider environment”.
“My dear Bosniaks in Turkey, it is no less important, if not much more important, that you know that since then Turkey has done a lot for peace and stability for our nation and the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina. I want you to know that on the initiative of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in March 2023, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) unanimously adopted the historic Resolution on the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina,” said Cerić and explained:
“This Resolution confirms the permanent support of the OIC member states for preserving the unity, territorial integrity, sovereignty and international identity of the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina, within its internationally recognized borders, as a fully functional and self-sustaining state, capable of exercising its powers and fulfilling its international obligations, with its multi-ethnic, multicultural and multi-religious structure. All OIC members, 57 of them, condemned and rejected all conclusions, statements and activities of representatives of lower levels of government, which undermine the competences of the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and calls for secessionism and the creation of new territorial units, which violates the General Framework Agreement for Peace and the Constitution of Bosnia and Herzegovina, but also threatens peace and security, not only in Bosnia and Herzegovina, but also in the entire region of the Western Balkans’.
Furthermore, the Resolution condemns any spreading of religious and national hatred, especially in places where serious war crimes and genocide were committed, as well as the glorification, decoration and celebration of convicted war criminals in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the countries of the region. The spread of Islamophobia towards Bosnian Muslims – Bosniaks, as an autochthonous European people, is particularly condemned. This condemnation is also mentioned in the OIC’s annual reports on Islamophobia’. This Resolution calls on the Muslim world to ‘continue to support the surviving victims of the genocide in Srebrenica through economic, educational and humanitarian projects,'” stated Cerić.
He also pointed out that the Republic of Turkey represents the Muslim world in the very important Steering Committee of the Peace Implementation Council (PIC) in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
“The Republic of Turkey in the PIC has always been on the side of truth and justice for the nation and the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina and has always been in the PIC against the decisions that the current High Representative Christian Schimdt makes to the detriment of the Bosnian state and Bosniaks in such a way that the majority Bosniak/Bosnian people make a minority in order to ensure the alliance of minority peoples to govern the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina to the detriment of the majority people – the Bosniaks/Bosnians,” said Cerić and added:
“Imagine that someone decreed the position of the Turkish people as a minority and formally handed over power to the minority peoples in Turkey. This is what Herr Schmidt is currently trying to do to the majority Bosniak/Bosnian people in the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Therefore, dear Bosniaks in Turkey, on behalf of the Bosnian martyrs, survivors of genocide and joint criminal enterprise against Bosniaks/Bosnians, I invite you to give your vote to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the AKP on May 14, 2023. I am doing this because I know that your votes, that is, the votes of Bosniaks in Turkey in the upcoming elections, can be crucial for the peace and stability not only of Turkey, but also of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Balkans and Europe. Therefore, I count on your conscience and responsibility to ensure a stable government in Turkey with your vote for Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the AKP, which will be capable of new challenges “, Ceric said.
He emphasized that a vote for Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the AKP is also a vote for peace and security in Bosnia, the Balkans and Europe.
“We in Bosnia expect that government headed by Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the AKP to commit to the new Turkish Constitution that they will oppose any attack on the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Bosnian state and that they will protect the multi-ethnic, multinational, multi-religious and multicultural character of the state of Bosnia and Herzegovina always and everywhere. My Bosniaks in Turkey, remember, your vote for Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the AKP is also a vote for peace and security in Bosnia, the Balkans and Europe. With your vote, you guarantee that the United Nations, the European Union, NATO and PIC to continue the international concern for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. I hope that this message of ours will reach your ears and hearts! I hope that you will not let down the expectations of your brothers in Bosnia, Sandžak, the Balkans and Europe. So may Allah the Merciful be of help to everyone!”, concluded Cerić.
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