First Lady Emine Erdoğan hosted refugees from Turkey's southern neighbor Syria on Saturday evening for iftar, the fast-breaking dinner. Refugees from all walks of life convened at Huber Kiosk, a presidential residence in the district of Tarabya in Istanbul.
The dinner was preceded with a concert performed by Syrian pianist Tambi Cimuk, who took refuge in Turkey along with his family after the war broke out. Cimuk was granted Turkish citizenship after the 18-year-old was discovered by music teachers in Turkey, as he sought to join international music competitions.
Rami Ali, 12, one of four children of a deaf-mute Syrian couple, was among the guests who attended the dinner. Ali made headlines for the tragic story of his family. He and his younger sisters and brothers had to drop out of school and work in a textile factory to earn a living and were the only guides in sign language for their parents. A charity has since helped Ali and his siblings who are attending school again. Giving a speech at the dinner, Ali retold his harrowing story of leaving his country "where bombs explode." He says that he likes Turkey very much but still longs for his homeland, Syria.
Alaa al-Rifai, a psychiatrist and a refugee from Syria, said that the war has particularly affected Syrian children but that being denied shelter or humanitarian aid by other countries is even worse than the effects of war for children. According to al-Rifai, only a small fraction of children traumatized by war have received psychiatric treatment, and more needs to be done to ensure "healthier generations."
Addressing the guests, Erdoğan said that the Turkish public consider themselves "believers in the Ansar spirit" in reference to locals in the Saudi city of Medina who welcomed Prophet Muhammad as he escaped persecution in Mecca, adding that the iftar event for refugees marked "sisterhood and brotherhood."
"Our house is your house. This is your second home. We are here today as members of the Islamic ummah, and I urge you to feel at home. May Allah keep our brotherhood and sisterhood forever," she told the guests. The first lady said Syria became a bleeding wound for humanity, and human rights campaigners have fallen silent to the plight of Syrians, while the West ignores them. "We are trying to be a good host country for nearly 3 million Syrian and Iraqi brothers and sisters who fled the war. We have 272,000 guests in camps, and the rest of them live in cities where people embraced them," she said. Erdoğan also touched upon the education of Syrian children, saying that public schools currently have 75,000 Syrian students and another 250,000 students are enrolled in Temporary Education Centers, makeshift schools for Syrians. "We want to make sure every child is enrolled in school and continues their enrollment between the ages of five and 18. We do not want a lost generation of children who already lost their childhood," she said. Erdoğan assured the refugees that every authority in Turkey and charities, such as the Turkish Red Crescent, have dedicated their efforts to Syrians. "It is merely a matter of refugees for the West. For us, it is a matter of humanity," she said, adding that global conscience has "failed the test" in helping the refugees. "We are haunted by the bitter memory of three-year-old Alan Kurdi," she said, in reference to the young boy whose lifeless body washed ashore on Turkey's Aegean coast as his family tried to reach Greece in a dinghy for a better life. "Turkey did not await international assistance to help refugees and utilized its own resources for their health, education and social needs. The international community praised Turkey's efforts, and its modern camps [for refugees] are lauded. Alas, when it comes to opening doors for these people or offering them services, the international community ignores the need," Erdoğan said.
