ABTTF President: “We will definitely not allow these and similar provocations by extremist circles to disrupt the peace in our region and target our community for their political interests before the upcoming local and regional elections in our country.”
In a written statement published on 29 May 2023, the list of ‘‘Spartakos’’ represented in the Komotini Municipality Council objected to the fact that doctors and other health personnel from the Turkish community in Western Thrace working in Komotini State Hospital speak Turkish among themselves and some Turkish women employees wear headscarves.
In a statement titled ‘‘In which country does the Komotini Hospital operate?’’ prepared by the ‘‘Spartakos’’ list which is known for its extreme nationalist views, it is claimed that the health personnel from the Turkish community in Western Thrace, who work at Komotini State Hospital and graduated from universities in Türkiye, speak Turkish among themselves and are not interested in whether their Christian colleagues understand these conversations.
In the statement, it is argued that the number of doctors and nurses belonging to the Turkish community in Western Thrace who exhibit this provocative attitude is increasing gradually, and it is claimed that this attitude is endangering the health of the patients and creates a negative environment for the majority members who do not speak Turkish.
Furthermore, the statement also refers to the headscarf of Turkish female health personnel working in the hospital, and argues that the headscarf, which symbolises a religious affiliation, is prohibited in the Greek health institutions. The statement of Spartakos ends with the following question: ‘‘Is Komotini a Greek territory or not?’’
“The statement of the Spartakos list, which smells of provocation, is aimed at disrupting the peace and tranquillity in our region by targeting the Turkish language and the headscarf. As the members of the Spartakos list, who grew up in our region’s cultural and religious riches, are well aware, the majority of the population in the prefecture of Rodopi is Western Thrace Turks, and the most spoken language is Turkish. Therefore, it is quite natural and the most basic right of doctors and nurses in our community to speak their mother tongue Turkish among themselves. Regarding the headscarf, as it is clearly indicated in our country’s Constitution, everyone has the right to freedom of religion and conscience and is completely free to fulfil their religious obligations as long as they do not violate the Constitution and the law and harm the rights of others. We will definitely not allow these and similar provocations by extremist circles to disrupt the peace in our region and target our community for their political interests before the upcoming local and regional elections in our country’’, said Halit Habip Oğlu, President of the Federation of Western Thrace Turks in Europe (ABTTF).
