Tanzania to support Turkey bid for slot on Security Council

 

TANZANIA will support Turkey in its bid to secure a seat on the United Nations Security Council in 2015/16 as a thank-you gesture for excellent bilateral relations between the two countries.

The Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Mr Bernard Membe, made the pledge on Friday at a press briefing where he said that there were many things - economic, social and humanitarian - that Turkey had extended to Tanzania and supporting it in its bid for the Security Council was a gesture of appreciation.

"Tanzania and Turkey share a long history of bilateral and diplomatic relations. Turkey has done so much for us that there is no better way of repaying it than to support its bid for a seat on the UN Security Council, as well as opening up an embassy in its capital city, Ankara," he said.

Mr Membe said after holding talks with the visiting Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Ahmet Davutoğlu, that plans for the construction of a vocational complex for people living with albinism which will be funded by the Turkish government were in the final stages.

He said the complex would consist of a hospital, a hostel and a school with the capacity of accommodating 500 children, adding that its construction would be supervised by the Turkish embassy in Dar es Salaam while security of the children would be the government's responsibility.

"A 39-hectare piece of land has been earmarked along Bagamoyo road. We are forever grateful to

 the Turkish government for this noble gesture, especially when you consider that people living with albinism are becoming an endangered species," he said.

Mr Davutoğlu said that the exact location of the complex wasn't as important as having every human-loving person start loving the children as their own and having the moral duty of protecting them.

He said it was saddening that people living with albinism were being "hunted" down due to wrong beliefs and that having albinism wasn't a punishment from God as anyone could have children with albinism.

"These are all our children. There is no difference between a child with albinism and one who doesn't. It is the duty of us all to protect these children.

Turkey is ready to avail everything in our means to ensure all Tanzanian children with albinism are safe and well cared for," he assured Mr Membe.

The Turkish minister's tour is reciprocal to Mr Membe's three-week trip to Turkey. During Mr Davutoğlu's visit, he held meetings on bilateral as well as regional issues including a discussion on a partnership between Air Tanzania and Turkish Airlines under which the national carrier would ferry passengers and cargo from all neighboring land-locked countries to Dar es Salaam and Turkish Airlines would take them to different parts of the world.

He is scheduled to open one of four orphanages in the country which have been built by the Turkish government and have a chance to greet Turkish seamen and women who have anchored at Dar es Salaam port after visiting over 20 ports of the world.