Speakers pointed out the constitution of Turkey stated it was a secular nation, which saw the use of religion for political propaganda as a criminal offence.
Those who spoke during the dialogue included Dr Behlül Özkan, author and assistant professor in the Department of International Relations at Marmara University, and Mian Sanaullah, the former ambassador of Pakistan to Indonesia.
Dr Behlül Özkan said Turkey had 90 years of secular tradition behind it. He added it was the only country in the Middle East and Africa with a secularised legal system which regulates marriage, divorce, child custody and inheritance.
Speaking from his experience in Indonesia, Ambassador Mian Sanaullah said it was the third largest democracy in the world and had a Muslim populace of 88.2%. However, he stated, “From a governance point of view, it’s a democracy and not a theocracy.
He added there were six recognised religions, Islam being one of them.
The ambassador said conservatives in Indonesia were flexing their muscles, but the soul of the country remained diverse and accommodating.
UoP Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences, Prof Dr Adnan Sarwar, appreciated such opportunities to expose students to international experiences. He said there was a lot of space in Islam for any community or state trying to adjust itself.
“In politics, governance and political systems, nothing is full, final and ultimate”, he said. He added successful democracies in the world were not the perfect models to replicate and needed to adjust according to time.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 18th, 2014.
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