ABTTF: 'The tension between our country and our motherland has brought the Lausanne Treaty to the agenda again'
Western Thrace
Sun, 5 Jun 2022 7:35 GMT
The Federation of Western Thrace Turks in Europe (ABTTF), in its statement, noted that the recent debate between our country Greece and our motherland Turkey regarding the Dodecanese Islands once again brought the 1923 Lausanne Peace Treaty and the Turkis...
The Federation of Western Thrace Turks in Europe (ABTTF), in its statement, noted that the recent debate between our country Greece and our motherland Turkey regarding the Dodecanese Islands once again brought the 1923 Lausanne Peace Treaty and the Turkish community in our country to the agenda.
The following statements were included: "Our country has not fully respected the rights of the Western Thrace Turkish community, whose status was determined by the Treaty of Lausanne, for years, and does not fully comply with the provisions of the Treaty, and violates the rights of the Turkish community in Western Thrace, which it rejects the "Turkish" identity and the Turkish community in the Dodecanese Islands.
Regarding the issue, President of the Federation of Western Thrace Turks in Europe Halit Habipoğlu said: “We were very hopeful after the meeting of the prime minister of our country and the president of our motherland in Istanbul last March. However, the positive atmosphere that emerged after the meeting, unfortunately, deteriorated again soon after the latest developments. In recent days, the 1923 Lausanne Peace Treaty and the 1947 Paris Peace Treaty have come to the fore many times with the statements of our country and our motherland. With the Treaty of Lausanne, the educational and religious autonomy of the Western Thrace Turkish community and the Greek Orthodox minority in Istanbul, Gökçeada, and Bozcaada, and the Turkish community in the Dodecanese, especially Rhodes and Kos, were secured with the Paris Agreement. However, our educational and religious autonomy has been significantly weakened by various regulations and ministerial decisions. More than a hundred primary schools have been closed since 1923. Our elected muftis are not recognized by our country and are subject to arbitrary judicial prosecutions. Our country, which closed down our associations named 'Turk', has not implemented the decisions of the European Court of Human Rights for 14 years. In the Dodecanese, there is neither a Turkish school nor a mufti. Our country insists on not fully applying international law and international agreements to which it is a party when it comes to Turkish community.”
The following statements were included: "Our country has not fully respected the rights of the Western Thrace Turkish community, whose status was determined by the Treaty of Lausanne, for years, and does not fully comply with the provisions of the Treaty, and violates the rights of the Turkish community in Western Thrace, which it rejects the "Turkish" identity and the Turkish community in the Dodecanese Islands.
Regarding the issue, President of the Federation of Western Thrace Turks in Europe Halit Habipoğlu said: “We were very hopeful after the meeting of the prime minister of our country and the president of our motherland in Istanbul last March. However, the positive atmosphere that emerged after the meeting, unfortunately, deteriorated again soon after the latest developments. In recent days, the 1923 Lausanne Peace Treaty and the 1947 Paris Peace Treaty have come to the fore many times with the statements of our country and our motherland. With the Treaty of Lausanne, the educational and religious autonomy of the Western Thrace Turkish community and the Greek Orthodox minority in Istanbul, Gökçeada, and Bozcaada, and the Turkish community in the Dodecanese, especially Rhodes and Kos, were secured with the Paris Agreement. However, our educational and religious autonomy has been significantly weakened by various regulations and ministerial decisions. More than a hundred primary schools have been closed since 1923. Our elected muftis are not recognized by our country and are subject to arbitrary judicial prosecutions. Our country, which closed down our associations named 'Turk', has not implemented the decisions of the European Court of Human Rights for 14 years. In the Dodecanese, there is neither a Turkish school nor a mufti. Our country insists on not fully applying international law and international agreements to which it is a party when it comes to Turkish community.”
