As the Alliance of International Doctors, in cooperation with the Memur-Sen Istanbul Provincial Presidency and the IHH Humanitarian Relief Foundation, we launched the "World Cataract Surgery" campaign with the slogan "Time to See Beauties."

The Cataract Surgery project, which the IHH Humanitarian Relief Foundation launched in Africa in 2007 under the slogan "If You See, They Will See Too," has been completed. Within the scope of the project, with the help and support of benefactors, 100 thousand cataract surgeries were performed over 10 years, restoring healthy vision to tens of thousands of patients. This year, the campaign launched worldwide under the slogan "Time to See Beauties" aims for exactly 1 million cataract surgeries. At the launch of the campaign held at our association's headquarters, we signed a protocol to become a new light of life for patients who lost their eyesight due to cataracts, a condition that is the leading cause of blindness worldwide if left untreated, commonly caused by aging as well as malnutrition, prolonged exposure to intense light, and eye trauma.

Memur-Sen Istanbul Provincial President Durali Baki stated that they traveled to Africa through IHH and AID, expressing their desire to bring light to the eyes of the people on the continent, saying: "During our visit to the region, we felt ashamed of our humanity. I witnessed a mother's child seeing her for the first time in six years thanks to cataract surgery. What I felt at that moment is indescribable. We need to have an effort to care about people from all over the world. In this sense, we received an offer to help open the eyes of people in Africa. As a union, we are obligated to support healthcare workers. God willing, we will be there for them."

Baki pointed out that they faced heavy criticism because of the aid they provided, saying, "We are not doing this aid for IHH, but for the poor people in Africa whose world is in darkness and who cannot see. In this sense, we face criticism from some people, but we must make an effort and strive to care for the poor and needy in every corner of the world. When we went to our homes for iftar and ate all kinds of food, we witnessed people there mixing oats with water to feed their children. That is why we are here and support the campaign, and we invite others to support it as well."

IHH Humanitarian Relief Foundation General President Bülent Yıldırım expressed his wish that the signed protocol be a source of good deeds, saying, "We have a target of at least 1 million people whose eyes we will open through cataract treatment. God willing, everyone will contribute to our campaign."

Our General President, Specialist Dr. Mevlit Yurtseven, stated that cataracts are the leading cause of preventable blindness in the world, saying, "The World Health Organization (WHO) and the Islamic Development Bank rank first in the fight against preventable blindness. Sağlık-Sen and the Memur-Sen Branch No. 1 presidency and universities will perform 240 cataract surgeries starting today, reaching a total of one thousand throughout the year. I thank each of them on this occasion. IHH will also support the campaign and will be one of our main sponsors. Last year, instead of giving expensive iftars to its members, Memur-Sen had cataract surgeries performed; we thank them for their sensitive approach," he concluded.