Hagia Sophia Controversy

Why in news?

Turkey’s highest court convened to decide on turning Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia museum into a mosque

What is the Hagia Sophia?

• Hagia Sophia is listed as a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) World Heritage Site.
• It is a 1,500-year-old iconic structure built in 532 AD.
• It was originally a Greek Orthodox Christian patriarchal cathedral.
• In 1453, it was turned into an Ottoman imperial mosque.
• In 1934, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of the Republic of Turkey, turned it into a museum, to make the country more secular.
• There have been calls for long from Islamist groups and nationalists in the country to convert the Hagia Sophia back into a mosque.
• In 2019, Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had said it he would turn the structure back into a mosque again.

What is the controversy about?

• When Erdogan entered politics three decades ago in Turkey, he objected to the calls to convert Hagia Sophia into a mosque.
• But his rhetoric changed in 2019 during municipal elections in Istanbul that he ended up losing.
• Erdogan’s plans for the conversion of the Hagia Sophia are closely connected with his attempts to score political points.

Why is Greece objecting to this conversion?

• The controversy about the Hagia Sophia comes at a time when there are diplomatic tensions between Turkey and Greece over other issues.
• In May 2020, Greece objected to the reading of passages from the Quran inside the Hagia Sophia.
• Greece’s Foreign Ministry had issued a statement saying this move was a violation of UNESCO’s ‘Convention Concerning the Protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage’.
• Greece had said the Hagia Sophia had been designated a museum of world cultural heritage.

What is Turkey’s response?

• Turkey responded by saying that Greece’s objections to the reading of passages from the Quran were indicative of its intolerant psychology.
• Some within Turkey’s political circles view the issue of Hagia Sophia as a domestic matter.
• So, they do not seem to welcome the interference of international players.

What is next?

• Erdogan does not need the courts to decide on the fate of the Hagia.
• The courts believe that legal rulings will add legitimacy to his proposals.
• There has been opposition to these plans within Turkey, as the religious minorities do not wish to be involved in such a polarising subject.
• Greece had appealed to UNESCO, objecting to Turkey’s moves on grounds that the conversion would violate international conventions.
• The UNESCO too has denounced Turkey’s plans.

Source: The Indian Express