The Presidency of Religious Affairs (Diyanet) determined this year's Ramadan theme as "Ramadan and Solidarity" to create social awareness about the consequences of the Feb. 6 earthquake disasters that shook the country and took over 50,000 lives.
Diyanet President Ali Erbaş expressed during a news conference that this year the month of Ramadan has a special meaning and importance. "We aim to continue the sensitivity to heal the wounds of our earthquake survivors by strengthening the awareness of social solidarity with the programs we will do during the month of Ramadan. Our nation has shown a great example of solidarity in the wake of the disaster in the century," Erbaş said.
He stated that the solidarity mobilization, which turned into a race to spread positivity and devotion in the first days of disasters, may weaken after a while. "We must not slow down and should continue our aid activities," Erbaş emphasized.
Emphasizing the specifications of Ramadan, he explained that Ramadan is a gift of God to his believers and that we should all offer charity, or Fitra, and arrange iftar tables for those in need.
Spiritual atmosphere
"All our teachers, especially our imams, are preparing for this beautiful month with great excitement and sincerity. "Spiritual support services and special guidance programs will be carried out throughout our country and especially in the earthquake region. Recitations will be read, Quranic lessons with discussed comprehensively and approved by the mufti to show special sensitivity in the broadcasts, to bring people together with the right information, by enlightening and unifying them," said Erbaş.
"We aim to deliver aid to more than 2.5 million people," he also said and explained that they are leading a campaign called "Our Kindship Blossoms with Zakats" with Diyanet, which spreads goodness around the world.
"We will set up the kindness tables that we set up every year for millions of our brothers and sisters, in the earthquake zone. As Diyanet we aim to deliver 100,000 food parcels, 100,000 hygiene packages and 150,000 shopping cards at the beginning of Ramadan. We will continue to increase our aid together with the donations of our benefactors," he added.
Those who want to contribute to the aid can make their donations during Ramadan via "www.tdv.org" and "bagis.tdv.org" or from their bank accounts.
Donors can donate by sending an SMS to 2177 by typing "FITRE" or "FIDYE" from postpaid or prepaid lines connected to all GSM operators. The amount donated by SMS is TL 70 ($3.70), the set amount of Fitr or charity this year, Erbaş noted.