The 39-year legal struggle of the Xanthi Turkish Union

The second in the online program series titled "The Realities in Our Country" carried out by the Federation of Western Thrace Turks in Europe (ABTTF) on the Zoom platform was broadcast on 13 January 2022.

The guest of the second program, which was broadcast live simultaneously on ABTTF's YouTube channel and Facebook page, was Ozan Ahmetoğlu, the chairman of the first and oldest association of Western Thrace Turkish community, namely Xanthi Turkish Union (ITB), which was founded in 1927 and later was closed due to the word "Turk" in its name.

Ahmetoğlu answered the questions of the moderator of the program Melek Kırmacı Arık, about the legal struggle of the ITB that has been going on for 39 years.

Chairman Ahmetoğlu noted that ITB's 39-year legal struggle started in 1983, when the signboards of Xanthi Turkish Union, Komotini Turkish Youth Union and Western Thrace Turkish Teachers' Union with the word "Turkish" in their names were taken down by the state.

“It could mean recognition of Turkish identity”

In response to the question of why justice has not been served in Greece, and why has not persistently implemented the decision of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) on ITB for about 14 years, Ahmetoğlu said that the main issue is that Greece does not recognize the Turkish identity of the Western Thrace Turkish community, and that the implementation of the ECHR decision on the ITB could mean recognizing Turkish identity in the country.

Ahmetoğlu reminded that the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe has repeatedly and strongly warned Greece for not  implementing  the ECtHR decisions regarding the Bekir Usta and Others, which includes the ITB, the Rhodope Province Turkish Women Cultural Association and the Meriç Province Minority Youth Association cases.

ITB President Ahmetoğlu stated that Greece did not pay attention to these warnings the Committee of Ministers and said that the Macedonian Culture House won a lawsuit in the ECtHR with the decision that Greece violated the freedom of association, but this decision was not implemented either.

Ozan Ahmetoğlu emphasized that from now on, the Committee of Ministers should take a tougher stance towards Greece, because the issue is not the implementation of the ECtHR decisions, but the distorted democracy in Greece.

Ahmetoğlu called the Committee of Ministers to initiate the violation procedure against Greece.

Finally, answering the question of how politics, media and public view the Western Thrace Turkish society and in this context the ITB case in Greece, Ahmetoğlu said that the Greek state generally followed a policy of ignoring the Western Thrace Turkish society, and as a result of this policy, it became popular in the media and politics in Western Thrace an attitude against the Turkish community.

Stating that as citizens of Greece and the European Union (EU), the Western Thrace Turkish community have no other desire than to live in a country where rights and freedoms are respected.

You can watch the recording of the program, which was broadcast live on ABTTF's YouTube channel and Facebook page simultaneously, in English and Turkish, by clicking the links below:

YouTube Turkish:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-fmj1tXhXM&t=38s

YouTube English:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5ilmEaIWt4&t=2s

Facebook Turkish:

https://www.facebook.com/939989616164959/videos/3131992687056977

Facebook English: