Zeybek: “The closure of minority schools is no coincidence, but a deliberate choice”
İskeçe MP Hüseyin Zeybek strongly criticized the Greek government following the closure of the Mizanli Minority Primary School, arguing that the Ministry’s stance reflects a “deliberate choice to undermine the minority community’s right to education.”
Zeybek issued a press statement after receiving a response from the Ministry of Education, Religious Affairs, and Sports to his parliamentary question dated September 9, 2025, regarding the reopening of the Mizanli Minority Primary School.
He described the Ministry’s reply as proof of an “understanding that seeks to abolish rather than protect the educational rights of the minority community.”
“Parents’ Applications Were Rejected on Pretexts”
According to Zeybek, the applications submitted by parents were rejected on various pretexts, and the process was not conducted fairly. He raised several questions in his statement:
- “If the applications were flawed, why weren’t the parents asked to correct them?
- Why weren’t they given a reasonable period to fix the deficiencies?
- Why were the so-called ‘flawed’ applications initially accepted and processed, only to later be declared invalid and used as grounds for closing the school?”
These contradictions, Zeybek argued, reveal that the Ministry “did not act in good faith.” He added:
“The aim is to prevent minority children from receiving education in minority schools. Such an approach is completely unacceptable.”
“The Right to Education Cannot Be Sacrificed to Bureaucratic Games”
Emphasizing that education is a fundamental democratic right, Zeybek stated:
“No bureaucratic game can usurp this right. Our minority has never bowed to injustice throughout history, and we will not bow today. We will continue our rightful struggle with determination.”
Zeybek concluded his statement by stressing that if there had truly been a good-faith approach, the Mizanli Minority Primary School would have already been reopened. He reaffirmed that the minority community will persist in defending its educational rights.
