ABTTF: "Positive developments in Türkiye, but the opposite in Western Thrace"

Western Thrace
Thu, 3 Oct 2024 9:17 GMT
The Federation of Western Thrace Turks in Europe (ABTTF) has expressed concern over the declining state of education for the Turkish minority in Western Thrace, contrasting it with positive developments for the Greek Orthodox minority in Türkiye.
ABTTF: "Positive developments in Türkiye, but the opposite in Western Thrace"

While the re-establishment of Greek schools in Gökçeada has led to a notable population increase among the Greek Orthodox community, the Turkish minority in Western Thrace faces deteriorating educational autonomy and quality due to state policies.

ABTTF President Halit Habipoğlu highlighted that the Greek Orthodox minority in Gökçeada saw significant growth following the reopening of schools in 2013 and 2015. In contrast, he lamented that Turkish minority schools in Western Thrace have been undermined by unilateral laws and regulations. The number of primary schools, for instance, has dropped from 188 in 2011 to just 86 today due to state-imposed closures. Habipoğlu also criticized the Greek government for ignoring longstanding requests for bilingual kindergartens and failing to address overcrowding issues in existing schools.

According to Habipoğlu, if the Greek government had engaged in a constructive dialogue similar to that in Türkiye, many of these educational challenges could have been avoided, ensuring better quality education for Turkish minority children in Western Thrace.

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