Reaction to Mitsotakis from Western Thrace Turks: We were ignored once again

ABTTF President Habipoğlu: “As Western Thrace Turks, we have been subject to discrimination in socio-economic life for years.”

Halit Habipoğlu, the President of the Federation of Western Thrace Turks in Europe (ABTTF), evaluated the visit of Prime Minister Kiryakos Mitsotakis to Komotini on 8 July 2022.

President Halit Habipoğlu on his statement said, “As in the previous visit of our country's Prime Minister Miçotakis to our region in February 2020, we, as the Western Thrace Turkish community, which constitutes the majority in the Rhodope province, has been ignored again!

Mitsotakis did not meet with the elected representatives of our society during his visit to Komotini. Our Prime Minister continued the official state policy of denying our society. Once again he ignored our problems. We witnessed this.

As Western Thrace Turks, we have been exposed to discrimination in socio-economic life for years.

We have experienced concrete examples of this in the last period with the exclusion of Western Thrace Turkish minority press and tobacco producers from Covid-19 aid.

On the other hand, our country, which has restricted even our freedom of expression and closed down our associations named 'Turk', has not implemented the decisions of the European Court of Human Rights in this regard for 14 years, even ignoring their duties regarding the international law.

As the Turkish society of Western Thrace, we no longer want to hear empty words, we call on our prime minister to take immediate steps towards the real implementation of equality before the law in our region and the development of our region.” made statements.