ANKARA - ''Enjoying fundamental freedoms and respecting rights and freedoms of individuals, particularly the religious values, are not elements contradicting each other. On the contrary, we can become freer societies if we apply these two in a balanced way,'' said Turkish PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Before flying to Strasbourg to participate in the summer session of Parliamentary Assembly of Council of Europe (PACE), Erdogan told reporters that he will have the opportunity to brief the European parliamentarians on the Alliance of Civilizations Initiative launched in cooperation with Spain and under the auspices of the UN Secretary General.
Erdogan recalled that he will inaugurate an exhibition in which photographs depicting the lives of the Jews in the Ottoman Turkish society will be displayed, and said, ''thus, we will have the opportunity to show how different cultures, religions and ethnic people could co-exist in peace in the Ottoman Empire for centuries. The European parliamentarians and people who visit the exhibition can learn more about the multi-cultural structure of Turkey.''
''I will also meet the President of PACE, the President of European Court of Human Rights, and European Commissioner for human rights,'' he added.