Kuşadası MunicipalityAssembly has recognized the Alevi Cem House in the district as a place of worship andtherefore decided to treat its water bill as it does with the mosques. Kuşadası is a small town by the Aegean Sea in Aydın province. 

Talking to bianet about thesubject, Fevzi Gümüş, a member of central board of directors of the AleviBektashi Federation (ABF) and president of the Pir Sultan Abdal CultureAssociation (PSAKD), hopes that Kuşadası will not be an isolated case.

The Municipality Assembly passedthe proposal to treat the Cem Houses as any other house of worship and chargethem the same water rates as the mosques yesterday (September 3) unanimously.

Gümüş said the following:

“It is very important thatthe Municipality Assembly took this decision; it will help change the negative treatmentthe local administrations have been carrying out towards the Alevi beliefcenters.” 

Gümüş repeated their demandthat the Cem Houses should be recognized as places of worship.

“The pressure during theruling AKP has increased. They are forcing building of mosques in Alevivillages.They assign sunni religious heads. Cem Houses are still not recognizedas legal places of worship. Alevi children still have to go through themandatory religious courses.”

He thinks if thesepressures are removed, the treatment the Cem Houses have been going throughwill also change.

The proposal was made by the Justice andDevelopment (AKP) mayor Fuat Akdoğan and the assembly made up of members fromthe Republican People’s Party (CHP), the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) andthe independents passed it.(BÇ/EÜ/TB)