Representatives of the Western Thrace Turkish community at the OSCE Human Dimension Conference
The ten-day conference, organized by the OSCE Polish Chairmanship with the support of ODIHR, addressed the state of human rights and fundamental freedoms in the OSCE region, as well as the impacts of current events and trends on regional security. K. Engin Soyyılmaz from ABTTF, along with Dr. Pervin Hayrullah and Kerem Abdurahimoğlu from BTAYTD, represented the Western Thrace Turkish community.
During the session on fundamental freedoms held on October 7, ABTTF highlighted that Greece has not implemented three adverse rulings related to Turkish associations in the Bekir Usta and Others case group from the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) for over 16 years. They stated that this situation represents an open attack on the rights and freedoms of the Western Thrace Turkish community, beyond just a violation of their freedom of association.
ABTTF noted that following the success of the Friendship Equality Peace (DEB) Party in the European Parliament elections on June 9, 2024, the party has faced stigmatization in politics and the media, with applications made to the Council of State and the Supreme Court for its closure on the grounds of being a supposed threat to Greece’s national security and territorial integrity.
ABTTF called on Greece to promptly and fully implement the ECHR decisions regarding the Bekir Usta and Others case group and to respect the Western Thrace Turkish community's freedom of thought, expression, and association, as well as their rights to vote and be elected.
In the session on tolerance and non-discrimination held on October 8, ABTTF emphasized that the Western Thrace Turkish community, whose status was defined by the 1923 Lausanne Treaty, has faced systematic discrimination in Greece for years. They pointed out that when the Greek state wants to increase pressure on the Turkish community, it resorts to financial and judicial investigations, leading to prosecutions of community leaders for various reasons.
ABTTF cited the case against Ozan Ahmetoğlu, president of the İskeçe Turkish Union, which was shut down due to its name containing "Turk," and the renewed investigation against İbrahim Şerif, the Mufti of Gümülcine, despite the ECHR's decision against Greece in March 2000 on the same issue, as examples of discrimination. They urged Greece to take results-oriented measures to eliminate discrimination and hate speech against the Western Thrace Turkish community.
