Zeybek brings the issue of attack on the Turkish cemetery to the parliament
Zeybek submitted a parliamentary question to the Ministry of Interior and Education and Religious Affairs on Friday, March 18, regarding the destruction of the Turkish cemetery in the village of Horozlu (Petinos).
Zeybek stated that on Wednesday, March 16, the construction machines belonging to the Municipality of Bulustra (Avdira) entered the area where the old Muslim cemetery in the village of Horozlu is located and destroyed all tombstones and monuments on the grounds of building a social facility. ‘It has drawn the great reaction of our compatriots, Muslims and Christians, in the region. After all, respect for the dead is an indicator of both moral and civilizational level, but we see that the Mayor of Bulustra is far from all these values.’ said characteristically.
Drawing attention to the historical importance of the tombstones in the parliamentary question, Zeybek said, “I would like to state that the tombstones, which have a very high historical value, belong to the Ottoman period and date back to the 18th century, and are an important cultural heritage of our region.”
"CEMETERY BELONGS TO THE WAQF FOUNDATION"
Stating that the land in question is a property belonging to the Waqf Foundation Committee as a cemetery and that the foundation committee is responsible for its management, the SYRIZA MP said, “The Mayor claimed that the land in question was registered with the Land Registry and Cadastre Office and belonged to the Municipality, and even with the zoning plan change in 1987, the area became a 'green area'.”
The following statements were included in the parliamentary question: “The contradiction in the claims of the Mayor is also proven by the documents with the protocol number 14570/7-11-2019. As a matter of fact, in the written reply given by the Municipality, it is emphasized that the land is foundation property and that the municipality's approval is not required for the cleaning of the cemetery. The fact that the land is registered as a Muslim Cemetery in the Mufti Office of Xanthi is also confirmed by the document numbered 106/2020. Following this, the head of the Horozlu foundation committee made a request to the Bulustra Municipality regarding the legal transfer of the land in question and submitted the petition with the protocol number 10040/1-10-2020, but received no positive or negative response.
In conclusion, considering all these documents, it is proved that the land in question belongs to the Foundation Committee and that there is a Muslim cemetery on it. Most significantly, even though it is registered with the Land Registry and Cadastre Office, and the municipality has questioned as to who owns the property, it remains a cemetery that cannot be converted into a social facility."
“THE PROBLEM WITH MANAGEMENT OF VAQF FOUNDATIONS SHOULD BE SOLVED AS SOON AS POSSIBLE”
Zeybek underlined that what happened in the Horozlu (Petinos) cemetery once again revealed the fact that the government should bring an urgent solution to the foundation problem, and said, “This sad event once again reveals that the problem of the Management of Waqf Foundation should be solved by the Government as soon as possible. Moreover, the images show the desecration of the sanctuary and the destruction of all tombstones, despite the Mayor's claim that he did not cause any damage."
Zeybek asked the following questions to the Ministers of Interior, Education and Religious Affairs:
- Respect for sanctuaries and cemeteries determines the cultural level of a society.
- Since this action by the municipality constitutes an element of disrespect and insult to the dead, their families and all Xanthi people.
- Because the above-mentioned documents certify that the land in question belongs to the Horozlu Waqf Foundation and the Municipality has no authority to work or use the land in any way.
Dear Ministers are asked:
- How do you plan to restore the destroyed Muslim Cemetery in Horozlu village of Xanthi?
- How do you plan to prevent the land in question from being used for other purposes by leaving it as a Muslim Cemetery and returning it to the ownership of the Foundation Committee?
- What criminal action do you plan to take against this unprecedented act of destruction and violation of our Islamic values?
