Cyprus-Forum.com

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Turks living in Aegean islands hope for a ‘democratic initiative' from Greek government
As Turkey discusses a democratic initiative which is expected to bring expanded freedoms and result in the abolishment of political restrictions in the country by expanding democratic rights for non-Muslim minorities and Kurds, another minority group, this time Turks living in Greece's islands in the Aegean Sea, increasingly hopes for the elimination of discrimination against them and an enlargement of their rights, especially after the report of the Parliamentary Assembly of European Council's (PACE) minority rights committee urging the Greek government for a “democratic initiative.”

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The report on two Turkish Aegean islands, Gökçeada (Imbros) and Bozcada (Tenedos), which stresses that the Greek population on these islands was forced to leave their land, has sparked debates on the need of giving more rights to the Turks in the islands.

Furthermore, Swedish reporter for the PACE committee on legal affairs and human rights Andreas Gross, who prepared the report, has said that he will collect information about the situation of Turkish minorities on the Greek islands of Rhodes (Rodos) and Kos (İstanköy). Members of the committee, in addition to Turkish and Greek parliamentarians, will go to Rhodes and Kos to research how Greece treats the nearly 5,000 ethnic Turks residing on these islands.

Main problem: Education in Turkish

Education in the mother language constitutes one of the main problems Turks on the islands face. Since 1972, when education in the mother language was abolished in the Aegean Sea by the Greek government, Turkish children's encounters with their mother language have been restricted with their family and close relatives.


Greek citizenship with a Turkish and Islamic identity

“We want our children to be good Greek citizens but at the same time to be Muslims and Turks by protecting their identities,” said Mehmet Cilasın, one of the seven managers of the Rhodes Muslims Association, complaining on the burdens of keeping Islamic and Turkish culture alive on the island. He added that for Turkish culture not to be forgotten, they have downloaded traditional Turkish folkloric dances and taught them to ethnic-Turkish children.

“Despite some problems, the condition of minorities in northern Greece has improved a lot since the beginning of the 1990s. Yet the Turks living there for centuries cannot identify themselves as Turks and are not allowed to mobilize under the name of ‘Turk',” he added. Touching upon developments in the European Council, Macar said it would have no political influence on Turkey and Greece but lead to psychological pressure which may turn to diplomatic pressure if problems continue.