The platform was inspired by Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's request for one minute from a moderator to complete his speech before a dramatic walkout in protest of Israel's Gaza policies at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos.
During a panel discussion on Gaza on Jan. 29, 2009, Erdoğan walked off the stage when a moderator cut off his remarks in response to an impassioned monologue by Israeli President Shimon Peres, who strongly defended Israel’s offensive against Gaza, which claimed the lives of hundreds of innocent civilians and injured thousands of others.
The Sultanahmet concert was held on the first anniversary of Erdoğan’s Davos protest. The main theme of the concert was “Let’s say ‘one minute!’ to discrimination, wars, hunger and injustice.” Famous Turkish singer Mazhar Alanson took the stage for a 30-minute show and called for an end to the suffering of children in every corner of the world in a brief speech he delivered. “I do not know what Davos is. I side with peace. I am here to sing songs for peace. This ‘one minute’ is a nice concept. I wish we could say ‘one minute!’ to ourselves and prepare the ground for lasting global peace. Then we can say ‘one minute!’ to the whole world,” he said. Participants in the concert called for global peace for several hours despite the heavy rain. Live connections with Gaza brought Palestinian children appealing for peace and justice to gigantic display screens set up in the concert area. Participants set dozens of doves free at 8:33 p.m., the exact time when Erdoğan exclaimed “one minute!” during the Davos session.
