Dear Chairman Cooper,

As religious freedom activists who are concerned over the future of Christianity in its historic homelands, we are writing to ask the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) to continue to pressure Turkey on the protections for its Christian minorities and Christian cultural heritage.

For years, USCIRF has monitored and criticized Turkey’s actions concerning Christian cultural heritage. In its 2019 report, USCIRF cited the planned conversion of Chora Church into a mosque, noting that the structure, established as a church but at that point operated as a museum, is “famed for its mosaics and frescos depicting Christian imagery.” In 2020, USCIRF warned that the conversion of Chora Church would “possibly be setting a precedent for the similar conversion of the Hagia Sophia.” In 2022, as part of its outlining of the state of religious freedom in Turkey, USCIRF cited both the continuing “acts of vandalism of places of worship and cemeteries” as well as the continued conversion of Chora Church.

Despite the concerns raised by USCIRF, international experts on human rights and religious freedom, and Christians leaders around the world, it has been reported in Kathimerini and other publications that the Turkish government intends to proceed with the conversion of Chora Church.

The story of Chora is unfortunately part of a pattern that Christian minorities in Turkey and the Middle East - their native homelands - are all too familiar with. In 2020, the Turkish Council of State decreed that the Hagia Sophia – a Byzantine church-turned-museum and one of Istanbul’s greatest attractions – would be turned into a mosque. USCIRF and the international community warned Turkey against taking this step. Despite this, Ankara moved forward with its decision. The conversion of the Hagia Sophia was widely condemned, with USCIRF Commissioner Nury Turkel noting that “[t]his decision comes at a time of increased fear and insecurity due to recent attacks on churches and other threats against religious and ethnic minorities and will only add to their sense of marginalization under President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s government.”

We ask that the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom publicly condemn Turkey’s decision to move forward with converting Chora Church into a mosque and recommend that the United States government exercise all diplomatic and political influence to prevent this conversion. Measures that can be immediately implemented include the denial of visas for Turkish officials – specifically officials from Turkey’s Diyanet (Directorate of Religious Affairs) – involved with conversions of these heritage sites. We also urge USCIRF to visit Turkey and occupied Cyprus (for the first time since 2011) to properly assess the danger these Christian heritage sites face.

We are committed to working with USCIRF to advance religious freedom in Turkey and throughout the region and will be contacting you to follow up on this correspondence.