The ghost convention, one of important document of Ministry of Foreign Affairs, reveals the reasons for which Greece hesitates to recognize the rights that are stated in the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities to the minority of Thrace.

 

VIRUS of SUNDAY (IOS TIS KIRIAKIS): THASOS KOSTOPOYLOS, DIMITRIS TRIMIS, ANGELICA PSARRA, ANTA PSARRA, and DIMITRIS PSARRAS.

 

The way that the affair of minority in the Thrace is discussed leads with precision to dialogue of deaf people. Specifically in the television, persons are presented as specialists and even though have not visited the region, but are ready to discuss with arguments how respectful is Greece to the rights of the minority, who are Pomaks and who are Turks and how suspicious to Ms. Kara Hasan or Mr. Ilchan.

 

Let us speak with real data. We below publish one important document. It is extremely confidential document of the ministry of Foreign Affairs (Decision number 1151.100/ AS 548, A2 DDS/ Branch of Minority Subjects, 11/8/98). It is addressed to the Diplomatic Office of undersecretary deputy minister and is signed with command of minister by the director, Mr. Gerokostopoulos. Its subject is the “Potential Practical problems that can be faced if Council of Europe’s Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities is applied in Thrace”.

 

As we know, Greece signed the Council of Europe’s Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities on 22/9/97. Since then, however, assiduously Greece has avoided ratifying it in the Parliament, despite the continuous promises of each governmental officials in charge to the international organisms (seeing relative text in the third page of “Virus”. The Framework Convention was adopted by the Committee of Ministers of Council of Europe on the 10/11/94.

 

The member States began to sign and afterwards ratify the convention from the 1/2/1995. The convention came in to force on 1/2/98. The states that ratified the convention are Azerbaijan, Albania, Armenia, Austria, Bosnia - Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Germany, Georgia, Denmark, Switzerland, Estonia, The United Kingdom, Ireland, Spain, Italy, Croatia, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Liechtenstein, Malta, Moldavia, Norway, Holland, Hungary, Ukraine, the FYR of Macedonia, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, San Marino, Serbia - Montenegro, Slovakia, Slovenia, Sweden, Czech Republic and Finland.

 

Greece, with Belgium, Iceland and Luxembourg simply have signed but they are delaying the ratification of convention. Finally, France and Turkey still have not signed. And France claims that considering groups according to their origin, religion or “race” clashes with her Constitution. In France the French population is the only recognized population and the criteria of origin, religion or “race” do not have legal substance. As far as Turkey is concerned, her acquaintance policy toward the minorities and her insistence not to recognize any other minority apart from those the Treaty of Lausanne forecasts is known. This insistence reminds us something.

 

In the document that we present the reasons why the Greek ministry of Foreign Affairs avoids the ratification of convention so many years are explicit, despite the representatives of Greek government each time ensure the international bodies that they will do it at the appropriate time.

 

The fear of MFA

 

The fear of minority policy makers of the ministry is that Turkey will exploit the application of convention and “instigate” agitation in the minority, with pretext the adaptation of Greek administration in those who ordains the convention.

 

However by this way the authors of document put Turkey to the position of regulator of the life of minority and they are dependent to a neighboring country that is not sincere in terms of recognition of the civil rights of Greek citizens.

 

In the document that begins like “From our side” it is stated that “we judge more advisable and enumerate the points that can impose the changes in minority policy that has been followed officially or informally up to now if the Convention is applied.

 

“The mentioned estimates are as in the opinion that the Turkish side will attempt via the consulate of Komotini and the Muslims that are influenced by this will interpret the Convention deceitfully with basic aim of not the improvement of life of Muslims, but the pumping of political benefits. These estimates were based on the each statement of articles of Convention, without taking into consideration neither the potential possibilities of states not applying completely some articles nor the mentality that shapes Council of Europe.”

 

Afterwards, the consequences that are expected the application of convention to have are recorded. We mention the articles of convention that are considered problematic by the authors of document and afterwards their comments and observations:

 

 

 

 

 

Comment [MFA]: “The Muslims of Thrace meet hindrances in the constitution of associations, especially when they have the words “Turkish”, “belongs to Turks” in their titles. These hindrances, that have no always legal arguments, will be rendered easier with the Framework Convention. It is marked that most of the associations are not friendly to our opinions”.

 

 

 

 Comment [MFA]: “The circulation and distribution of the press published in Turkey are impeded in Thrace. On the contrary, the publication and circulation of local Turkish newspapers that practices intense criticism at Greece are allowed”.

 

 

 

Comment [MFA]: “Minority language is not used in the relations of Muslims with the Public Administration. Occasionally translators have been used in the Prefecture of Rodopi, without however their existence is enacted. It is obvious that getting into Public Administration of Turkish language appointment of Turkish speaking employees would irritate enough Christians and would lead to big economic expenses for the creation of suitable infrastructure. But, the placement of small number of interpreters in each Prefecture, who can be addressed by the all Muslims who have difficulties in communication in Greek language, may solve the problem. By this way we would acquire also the occasion of placement of translators in Pomak and Roma languages, to create impressions”.

 

Comment (MFA) “The police do not use interpreters while arresting Muslims. This occasion exists, in any case, in the courts of Thrace. Abusing the things forecasted in the Convention with continuous demands of presence of interpreter could disturb the police’s work”.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Comment [MFA]: “The minority education is limited today in the first (primary) degree. The efforts up to now aimed the shrinkage of minority high schools and the imposition of Greek language in the education. This objective is also facilitated by the new way of accepting of Muslims to the Universities, which inclines them towards the public schools in order to learn better Greek and to pass the exam for higher education. The convention will constitute basis for the Muslims that wish to create extensive secondary minority education, the graduates of which will be marginalized, if they do not go to Turkey for higher education. Another problem would create the possibility of foundation of minority kindergartens in which the children of Pomaks and Gypsies could be familiar with the Turkish language in a very young age”.

 

 

 

 

Comment [MFA]: “Some efforts are made to change the proportion of Christians and Muslims in the Thrace by the installation of Pontics inhabitants emanating from the former USSR, but also other Greeks. The locomotion of Muslims to southern Greece is encouraged, also, for the same reason. These efforts, which have been denounced already by Turkey to the international organizations, will be rendered difficult from now on, because the states should not practice in such ways. Finally, it is reminded that to guarantee not to elect Muslim candidates in the determination of the limits of local government the prefecture of Xanthi was combined with the prefectures of Dramas and Kavala, the prefecture of Rodopi was joined to the prefecture of Evros, which is a practice, of course, opposite to the spirit of this Convention”.

 

 The Parties undertake not to interfere with the right of persons belonging to national minorities to establish and maintain free and peaceful contacts across frontiers with persons lawfully staying in other States, in particular those with whom they share an ethnic, cultural, linguistic or religious identity, or a common cultural heritage.

 

 

Comment [MFA]: “Although not being condemned officially, the cross-border contacts between Muslims of Greece and Turkey are not encouraged. This is also valid for the arrival of artistic groups from Turkey, as well as other forms of visits that could stimulate the Turkish cultural identity in Thrace. The spirit of convention aims the creation of reverse dynamics”.

 

The conclusion of the authors of this document is, of course, rejection and restores the argument for the exploitation of convention from Turkey:

 

“These warnings do not relieve the fear of the direction of International Affairs (A2) which is focused not to lead the possibility to be blamed on violating our undertakings to Turks, as well as the application of Convention in other regions that live Muslims of Turkish origin and in the particular way of application of Convention in Thrace where it should be combined the dissuasion of reactions of extreme Christians.

 

The opinions of the office of Political Affairs of Kavala are requested about the possible outcomes of the application of Convention in Thrace. ”

 

 

It is an institutional deviation that is based on the historical past of the region and on the arrangement of the protection of minority via the Treaty of Lausanne. However in a European system of protection of rights it is not possible for a portion of citizens of the state to be under a different jurisdiction than the one that is applied for all the other. Except the Ministry of Foreign Affairs all the other ministries should undertake completely their responsibilities. And perhaps then we all realize that the things are simpler when we face them straightly and do not maintain our head rammed in the sand. A recent example of how the things are so simple is the case of candidature of Ms Kara Hasan. Few years ago, the same party that inspired the maladjusted (ipernomarhia) widened prefects Drama-Kavala-Xanthi “for national reasons”, gives today a battle in order to win a representative of minority.

 

The Greek Hide-and-Seek (Tricks)

 

The European Committee against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI), in its second report on Greece that was drawn up on the 18/12/99, points out the delay of Greece to ratify the Framework Convention for the protection of national minorities:

 

“Greece signed the Framework Convention for the protection of national minorities in 1997. Nevertheless, the ratification of Convention depends from the adoption of certain number of legislative, particularly, modifications, aiming at the harmonization of Greek legislation with the derived from the Convention engagements. The ECRI calls insistently the authorities to accelerate these processes and to ratify the Convention”.

 

In the observations of Greek government that are incorporated in the text of Report there isn’t a report on the ratification of the Framework Convention for the protection of national minorities. Only some objections are formulated and it is pointed out that the “Greek government does not adhere in the perception regarding the multicultural character of Greek society”.

 

Four years later, in her third report on Greece (5/12/03), the European Committee against Racism and Intolerance comes back to the subject and reveals that the Greek government promises but does not keep her promises to ratify the Convention:

 

“In the second report on Greece that was drawn up, the ECRI proceeded in the recommendations to the Greek authorities to ratify as soon as possible the Framework Convention for the protection of national minorities, as well as the revised European Social Chart, the European Convention on the Legal Regime of Immigrant Workers, and the European Convention on the Citizenship, legal texts which Greece already had signed. It proceeded also in the recommendations to sign and ratify the Convention of UNESCO on the Elimination of Discriminations in the Education and the European Chart for the Regional or Minority Languages. Also it prompted the Greek authorities to make a statement of Article 14 of the Convention of United Nations on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discriminations, which allows examining individual reports by the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discriminations.

 

“The ECRI expresses its sorrow because from the moment of adoption of second report on Greece no progress has been made for the signature or the ratification of more legal texts, in contrast to the statements that had become as for certain legal texts at the year of preparation of second report of ECRI. It is possessed by concerned as informed that the authorities, even if they have signed the Framework Convention for the protection of national minorities, the revised European Social Chart and the European Convention on the Legal Regime of Immigrant Workers, still have not ratified the referred legal texts. The authorities informed the ECRI that they are working on the ratification of the Framework Convention for the protection of national minorities and revised European Social Chart. Moreover the authorities have not expressed their intention to sign and to ratify the Convention of UNESCO against Discriminations in the Education or the European Chart for the Regional or Minority Languages. However the authorities have underlined that the absence of ratification or signature of international legal texts that concern the fighting of racism and intolerance does not mean that the Greek legislation does not concern or support the rights that are guaranteed in the referred legal texts. The ECRI considers that, thus they have the things, there is nothing that would prevent Greece to accept the obligations that are legally forecasted by the texts, and that their ratification will determine the stability of Greece to progress further in the fighting of racism and intolerance”.

 

As it is proved by the document that we reveal in the next columns the promises of Greek government that it is imminent the ratification of Convention was rather pretentious.

 

 

 

FURTHER READING

 

K Tsitselikis, D. Christopoylos (epim.) “The minority phenomenon in Greece” (Preface X. Rozakis, [ekd]. Kritiki, Athens 1997).

Collective work of members of KEMO (Centre of Researches of Minority Teams).

 

VISIT

 

http://conventions.coe.int

 

The web page of Council of Europe includes the Framework Convention for the Protection of Minorities and watches the signature and its ratification by the member states.

 

Centre of Minority Researches (KEMO) www.kemo.gr

 

In the web page of Centre a lot of studies on the minority are entertained. We distinguish below that are related with our subject:

 

Antigoni Papanikolaou

 

“The more they deny my ethnic identity, the more Turk I become”

 

The consequences of refusal of national identity in the minority.

 

Giorgos Maurommatis

 

“Why little Memet does not learn Greek?”

 

(in the E. Tressou, S. Mitakidou[epim]. The teaching of language and mathematics: education of linguistic minorities, “Paratiritis” Press, Thessalonica 2002).

 

Questions of learning of Greek language in the children of Muslim minority of Thrace. The socio-economic inequality, the nationalism, the estimates of students for the symbolic and real value of Greek language but also their expectations for the profits that will result from their learning.

 

Domna Michail

 

“From “Locality” to “European Identity””

 

Department of Balkan Studies, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki.

 

Work that was presented in the 2nd Conference of the International Association for Southeastern Anthropology, Graz, 20-23/2/03.

 

The identities of Pomaks and their mutation.

 

Eleftherotipia - KYRIAKATIKI - 11/06/2006