The chairman of Parliament's Human Rights Investigation Committee, Mustafa Yeneroğlu said it is essential to move away from racist rhetoric to prevent to all kinds of racism and discrimination.

In a statement to observe the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, Yeneroğlu said that in today's world racism no longer refers to biological differences and "superior race," rather it refers to economic and cultural differences and he underlined that prejudices and intolerances against different ethnic and religious groups are worrisome.

"Even though all the European countries claim that they are fighting against racism and discrimination, their treatment of refugees and their aim to associate terrorism with Islam and implementation of assimilation policies in the name of integration and also the lack of effective measures against attacks against minority buildings and Islamic institutions disproves this claim," Yeneroğlu said. "Additionally, we are able to see political and cultural racism's influence in the unfortunate decisions taken by the European Court of Justice's against the headscarf and the bans on gatherings of [Turkish] citizens in the referendum campaigns," he added.

Invoking the racism that rose before World War II, Yeneroğlu stressed that current trends indicate that Europe is not learning from its painful experiences and there is a risk Europe will fall into the same trap. He urged politicians to move away from racist rhetoric to prevent its reflection of racism in society.