ABTTF at the 3rd Meeting of the Fundamental Rights Platform

From 15-16 April 2010, the Federation of Western Thrace Turks in Europe (ABTTF) attended the 3rd meeting of the Fundamental Rights Platform. Representing the Turkish Minority of Western Thrace, Fatma Reşit and Melek Kırmacı, members of ABTTF International Affairs and Lobbying Group, participated in the meeting, which was held at the International Centre in Vienna.

162 civil society organizations out of 300 member organizations of the Fundamental Rights Platform participated in the meeting. The conference started with the opening remarks of Ilze Brands, Chairman of the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA), and Morten Kjaerum, FRA Director. Afterwards, the issues of poverty and social exclusion were discussed from the perspective of fundamental rights. It was also expressed that the fight against poverty did not mean assistance, and thus poverty presents a human rights violation. In addition, it was noted that persons living in poverty and deprived of social, economic, cultural and political rights, faced multiple discrimination. Therefore, minimum criteria and standards needed to be established to ensure basic protection.

At the meeting, which included a presentation of the FRA Annual Work Programme 2012, it was noted that the Fundamental Rights Agency was going to follow a four-stage process, including evaluation, analysis, observation and planning. Moreover, Kasin Jurczak from the Department of Equality and Citizen’s Rights of FRA, informed about the working groups with the two topics of FRA Annual Work Programme 2012 and the FRA Multi-annual Framework 2012-2017. At the working session, ABTTF International Affairs and Lobbying Group member Fatma Resit worked as a raparteur. While priorities about the Annual Work Programme 2012 and the Multi-annual Framework 2012-2017 were discussed, Melek Kirmaci emphasized that one of the priorities for the Multi-annual Framework needed to be the issue of discrimination based on gender, race, ethnic origin, religion, disability, age or sexual orientation, and discrimination against persons belonging to minorities. In addition, Kirmaci noted that the EU-MIDIS survey did not include the Turkish Minority of Western Thrace, which was the only officially recognized minority in Greece. Kirmaci, who drew attention on difficulties in collecting data in some EU countries, also noted towards the Agency that data research needed to be improved. After the working groups submitted their reports, candidates for the Advisory Panel of the Fundamental Rights Platform shortly presented themselves. On the second day of the meeting, the issue whether the Lisbon Treaty is a new potential in the field of Fundamental Rights for the European Union was discussed. Furthermore, the reports of the Advisory Panel with regard to the co-operation between the Agency and the Fundamental Rights Platform were presented. Massimo Toschi, FRP Networking and Civil Society Coordinator, made a presentation about the strategy of the Agency for the Fundamental Rights Platform and about members of the FRP and rules for e-FRP. In his presentation, Toschi emphasized with regard to future work of the FRP that national, sub-regional and thematic sub-groups needed to be established within the FRP, proposing to bring together members of the Platform. After Toschi’s presentation, elections were hold and the new members of the Advisory Panel were announced. The meeting ended with the closing speeches of Mortan Kjaerum, FRA Director, and Ilze Brands Kehris, Chairman of the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights.

With regard to the subject matter, Halit Habipoğlu, President of the Federation of the Western Thrace Turks in Europe (ABTTF) stated the following: “The Fundamental Rights Platform, created by the European Union Agency for Fundamental Right with the aim to co-operate with civil society, realized its third meeting in Vienna. The importance of the meeting is presented due to the fact that the number of member organizations has been doubled. It is of high importance that representing the Turkish Minority of Western Thrace, ABTTF is member of the Platform. It is very important to be a member of the Fundamental Rights Platform, of which powers have expanded and gained more weight as a result of the Lisbon Treaty.”