"Santa Claus sparks row in his Turkish hometown
15 March 2005
ANKARA: A Turkish mayor on Monday defended a decision to remove a bronze statue of his town's most famous son, Saint Nicholas, and replace it with a brightly coloured model of his modern incarnation, Santa Claus.
The move has been criticised in the Turkish press, which said it risked making Muslim Turkey – an EU candidate – look intolerant towards a Christian figure who, among other things, is also Russia's patron saint.
Hurriyet daily said the Russian embassy had made an official complaint, although this could not immediately be confirmed."
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