BTTÖB condemns arbitrary appointment of principals in minority schools
In a written statement, the BTTÖB board criticized the State Education Directorate for neglecting the demands of the community-elected school councils and making unilateral decisions to appoint new principals. This action, BTTÖB asserts, constitutes a blatant violation of the educational rights of the Turkish minority.
BTTÖB stated:
"We are confronted with a new usurpation of rights, which proves the validity of our protests against the forcible removal of educational rights granted to us by international and bilateral agreements. In every minority issue, a mentality that does not acknowledge our minority is openly usurping our rights without any hesitation.
To date, our educational rights, which were secured through international and bilateral educational agreements, have been undermined by unilaterally issued decrees, laws, and directives. Minority education is on the brink of losing its status as a distinct educational category.
On Monday, September 2, 2024, a letter from the Provincial Directorate of Education announced the appointment of new principals to both minority high schools. According to statements from the school councils, these appointments were made entirely disregarding the opinions of the councils. For years, appointments or changes in school principals were carried out with the approval of the school councils and through official correspondence. The reason for this deviation from the norm has not been explained. The school councils have justifiably labeled this practice as arbitrary.
This administrative action, which is conducted annually in a regulated manner, was altered this year through the unilateral intervention of the İskeçe and Rodop Secondary Education Directorates along with the Eastern Macedonia-Thrace Provincial Directorate of Education, resulting in the appointment of new principals to our schools. The documents sent by the school councils to the secondary education directorates requesting the extension of the current principals' terms were returned by the directorates, claiming that the appointment of principals was beyond the councils' authority.
The objective here is to restrict, or even terminate, the authority of the school councils elected by the parents and serving as the administrators of our schools. This violates the established traditions and attempts to eliminate the Turkish minority community's say over their own schools. This unacceptable practice contravenes both international and bilateral educational agreements as well as international law. Efforts to undermine minority education and the status of minority schools are outright human rights violations.
OUR ANGER, FRUSTRATION, AND PROTEST ARE DIRECTED TOWARDS THIS PRACTICE.
THE PRINCIPAL WHO WAS REMOVED FROM HIS POSITION AND THE NEWLY APPOINTED PRINCIPAL ARE OUR TEACHERS."
