PASOK attacks Western Thrace Turkish newspaper over Minority Rights

At the opening of the restored Kimisis Theotoku Church in Bozcaada on July 26, 2025, PASOK–KINAL Chairman Nikos Androulakis’ speech emphasizing “Hellenism” and the Treaty of Lausanne drew strong reactions in Türkiye and among the Western Thrace Turkish Minority.

In Türkiye, Androulakis’ statements were described as “ultra-nationalist” and as Hellenism propaganda, while Millet Newspaper evaluated these remarks as double standards, hypocrisy, and political showmanship.

In its opinion column on August 1, 2025, Millet reminded that the elected muftis of the Muslim Turkish Minority in Western Thrace are not recognized, mosques are administered by state appointees, and their religious rights are systematically restricted. The column also highlighted Androulakis’ past acceptance of FETO fugitives and his rejection of the Western Thrace Turkish identity.

Millet argued that while Androulakis delivers speeches in Türkiye about minority rights, he ignores the lack of rights for the Turkish Minority in his own country. Unable to digest these facts being exposed, Androulakis and his party targeted Millet, the voice of the Turkish Minority, with statements lacking political ethics.

PASOK Spokesperson Kostas Tsukalas accused the newspaper of “provocative and immoral statements,” defending Androulakis’ speech as being in accordance with the Treaty of Lausanne.

Kostas Tsoukalas’ Statement Targeting Millet:

“The news in the press highlights provocative and immoral statements published in a Trakya minority newspaper (Millet) regarding PASOK Chairman’s participation in the opening ceremony of the Panagia Church in Bozcaada, managed by the Fener Greek Patriarch.

The newspaper (Millet) goes so far as to speak of ‘Hitlerist’ obsessions just because Nikos Androulakis mentioned the Hellenic presence guaranteed under the Treaty of Lausanne and expressed a wish for a school to open in Imbros (Gökçeada), as in the near future.

It is clear that the public presence and long-standing positions of Nikos Androulakis deeply disturb those inspired by the historically unfounded narrative called ‘Blue Homeland.’ This attack on the PASOK Chairman with heavy and inappropriate labels ultimately targets the policies long implemented by the Democratic Movement in the Thrace region.”

PASOK MP Panagiotis Dudonis: “Vulgar and Reckless”

PASOK quota MP Panagiotis Dudonis said:
“The attack by Millet newspaper and its publisher Cengiz Ömer on PASOK Chairman Nikos Androulakis is vulgar and reckless. Regardless of what they say, we will continue to raise issues such as the obstacles by the Turkish government against the heritage rights of Greeks, the absence of a school in Bozcaada, and lack of maritime transport. This is clearly a patriotic duty and a matter of justice, logic, and responsibility.”

PASOK Parliament Spokesperson Pavlos Hristidis:

“Nikos Androulakis expressed national theses in Bozcaada (Tenedos), where Hellenism and Orthodoxy have existed for centuries. If some in Türkiye are uncomfortable with the reminder of the truth, the answer lies in the implementation of the Treaty of Lausanne and International Law.”

PASOK MP İlhan Ahmet: “Groundless and Politically Unethical Attack”

Western Thrace-born PASOK MP İlhan Ahmet said to Vima newspaper:
“The attack by local Turkish-language newspaper Millet on our Chairman Nikos Androulakis, following his recent visit to Bozcaada, is groundless in terms of journalism and politically unethical, aiming to distort both his and PASOK’s image within the Muslim Minority. However, PASOK maintains unbreakable historical and political ties with the Minority, built on mutual trust and shaped by multi-dimensional efforts of governments from Andreas Papandreou to Kostas Simitis and George Papandreou.”

The Greek media also highlighted PASOK’s statements on their front pages. Millet was accused of “provocative and immoral attack” against the PASOK leader. Mainstream coverage systematically ignored the criticisms and human rights violations experienced by the Western Thrace Turkish Minority.

Millet Newspaper’s Editor-in-Chief responded firmly to reactions:

“Millet Newspaper revealed that PASOK-KINAL President Nikos Androulakis speaks differently when it comes to minority kinsmen in Türkiye, but completely differently when it comes to the Turkish Minority of Western Thrace in his own country, Greece, and that he displays a political stance accordingly. This double standard and hypocritical approach is the real issue that drew reactions.

Androulakis’ statements during the ceremony in Bozcaada, emphasizing ‘Hellenism’ and the Greek Minority, received harsh criticism from the local press and political circles in Türkiye. Millet based these parts of its critical article on this fact. Moreover, in the article, Androulakis’ double standards, hypocritical political stance, and comments disconnected from historical realities, both in Türkiye and Greece, were criticized.

Those who reacted against Millet’s report accused the newspaper of being “immoral” and “provocative.” Yet, upon careful consideration, it becomes clear that the real political immorality and provocation lie in the hypocritical and baseless statements of politicians and their supporters who try to distort the facts. The Turkish Minority in Western Thrace, denied by this manipulative mindset, is legitimate under international law and has been confirmed by countless rulings of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR). To deny the existence of a community and attempt to assimilate it with policies that disregard these facts and laws—if this is not an extension of a Hitler-like junta mentality, then what is it? If you ask this mindset, according to them, even the rulings of the European Court of Human Rights that call on Greece to recognize the identity of the Turkish Minority of Western Thrace and to restore the official status of Turkish associations are also “provocative and immoral.” We are faced with a mentality that tries to distort the truth and make politics by labeling everything that does not serve its interests as “provocative and indecent.”

This is precisely why the so-called leftists and democrats are struggling, because what Millet tried to draw attention to has been exposed, and this exposure disturbed them.

The criticism emphasized by Millet is this: If minority rights are to be defended, then equal rights must first be granted to the minority in your own country. To discuss the rights of the Greeks in Türkiye and the Turks of Western Thrace in Greece with double standards is unacceptable from the perspective of international law and ethics.

The Millet-PASOK debate was not limited to the ceremony in Bozcaada. The tension between the two countries over minority rights gained a new front with PASOK’s statements. The Turks of Western Thrace describe Androulakis’ stance as “trust-undermining.”

In this context, the Turkish Minority has not forgotten the response it gave at the ballot box to the parties that threatened it by wagging their finger during the last general elections. There is no doubt that in the upcoming elections, they will once again demonstrate their democratic will in the same way.”