ABTTF condemns closure of Turkish minority schools in Western Thrace
The Federation of Western Thrace Turks in Europe (ABTTF) has criticized Greece's decision to close eight Turkish minority primary schools in Western Thrace for the 2026-27 academic year, saying the move further undermines minority education rights protected under the Treaty of Lausanne.
The closures were announced in a government decision published on July 13. Under the same decision, the Turkish minority primary school in Mehrikoz (Kehros), in the regional unit of Rodopi, will reopen after previously being closed due to low enrollment.
Following the latest closures, the number of Turkish minority primary schools operating in Western Thrace will fall to 76 in the 2026-27 academic year, according to the ABTTF. The federation said the number of such schools has declined from 305 in 1930 to 194 in 2008, 103 in 2021, 90 in the 2023-24 school year, 86 in 2024-25 and 83 in 2025-26.
ABTTF President Halit Habip Oğlu said the continued closures represent a systematic weakening of the educational autonomy guaranteed to the Turkish minority under the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne.
"The annual closure of our schools is the result of a systematic policy aimed at gradually eliminating our educational autonomy," Habip Oğlu said. "Taking away a community's schools means targeting not only its educational institutions, but also its memory, language and future."
