Turkish lawmaker commemorates Bosnia's Wise King

By Muhammet Emin Avundukluoglu

ANKARA

The Wise King of Bosnia Herzegovina was commemorated Tuesday by a ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party's lawmaker.

"Alija Izetbegovic is one of the biggest names who was raised and dedicated to the humanity by Bosnia Herzegovina," Refik Ozen told reporters in parliament.

Ozen said that Izetbegovic was "the soul of Bosnia."

"Bosnia cannot be thought [of] without Alija, and Alija cannot be thought [of] without Islam," he added.

Izetbegovic came to international prominence during the 1992-1995 war and is credited with forging a new state for Bosniaks, earning him the epithet the Wise King.

Jailed over political activities

An early advocate of Bosnian nationalism, Izetbegovic was jailed for 14 years in 1983 for his political activities but released after five years amid pressure from human rights groups.

Following his release, he was instrumental in founding the Party of Democratic Action, which enjoyed electoral success in the early 1990s with the break-up of Yugoslavia.

Izetbegovic became president and in 1992 called a referendum on Bosnian independence that resulted in an overwhelming vote to .

Following the war, Izetbegovic continued to serve as president, although the position eventually became a three-person office. He stepped down in October 2000.

As a writer, his best-known work was “Islam Between East and West.” Published in 1980, it was an attempt to define the “place of Islam in the general spectrum of ideas” and argued that Islam is more than a religion.

He had previously penned The Islamic Declaration, which led to his jail sentence in the 1980s.