'Erdogan emerges as a symbol of Islamic renaissance'

Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) President Sardar Masood Khan said that Turkey has emerged as a centre of hope for the Muslim world and the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has risen as a symbol of the renaissance of Islam.

He expressed these views while addressing a send-off ceremony in honour of faculty members and students of the University of Azad Jammu and Kashmir proceeding to Turkey for higher studies under the Turkish Council of Higher Education International Scholarship Programme 2020.

The ceremony held at Aiwan-e-Sadr in Muzaffarabad on Friday was also addressed by the Turkish Ambassador in Pakistan Ihsan Mustafa Yurdakul, AJK University Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr Kalim Abbasi, Prof Dr Naeem Qureshi, representative of Higher Education Commission Dr Hassan Jalil Shah and others.

Masood thanked the Turkish government and the Turkish Council of Higher Education for facilitating quality higher education to the faculty and students of the AJK University, saying that already excellent relations existed among the peoples of Turkey, Pakistan, and Kashmiri people would further strengthen through this exchange programme at the university level.

He maintained that Turkey has always helped Pakistan and the Kashmiri people in every difficult hour and it is the first country to reach out to us in the wake of the 2005 earthquake and 2010 flash floods.

He appreciated the Turkish government for adopting a principled stand on the Kashmir issue and the right to self-determination of the Kashmiri people. "The boldness which the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had demonstrated first in his address to parliament of Pakistan and later to the UN General Assembly condemning unlawful actions taken by New Delhi in Indian Illegally Occupied Jammu and Kashmir [IIOJK] last year, and the forthright support he had declared to the liberation struggle of Kashmiri people, has no precedence."

Speaking about cooperation among Pakistan, Azad Kashmir and Turkey in the education sector, the president said that AJK government would extend full cooperation if Turkey establishes a chain of schools in Mirpur, Muzaffarabad, Rawalakot and other areas besides providing facilities of higher education to our boy and girl students in Turkey.

He also invited Turkish investors to make an investment in agriculture, tourism and education sectors in Azad Kashmir, saying: "We want to utilise the experiences of Turkey in these fields."

In his address on the occasion, the Turkish envoy expressed the hope that the students of Azad Jammu and Kashmir who were leaving for Turkey to get a higher education, would enjoy history, culture and the natural beauty of Turkey side-by-side with getting an education. He also assured that Turkey will continue to support AJK student and the government in developing the education sector.

Speaking on the occasion, Vice-Chancellor AJK University Prof Dr Kalim Abbasi said that 27 faculty members and students have been sent to Turkey for the doctorate and undergraduate studies since collaboration between AJK University and the Turkish Council of Higher Education has started in 2016, and now the Turkish government has announced 10 new scholarships, bringing the total number of scholarship to 37.

There is also “Mevlana Exchange Programme” between the University of Azad Jammu and Kashmir and the Turkish government through which faculty members and students are visiting well-reputed universities of Turkey for a short period of one to months. This, he said, the exchange programme is also effective in promoting research collaboration among different departments and faculty members and providing exposure to the students of the UAJK.

The vice-chancellor appreciated the Turkish government for raising the temporary structure of the city campus of the university which had collapsed in 2005 earthquake besides providing unprecedented humanitarian assistance to victims of the earthquake.