ABTTF President: “This is not just a matter of names; it is part of our identity, our history, and our honour. There may be those who ignore us, who dismiss us. But we exist. And we will continue to exist, to make our voices heard on every platform’’.
President of the Federation of Western Thrace Turks in Europe (ABTTF) Halit Habip Oğlu delivered a statement regarding the written statements that ABTTF regularly submits to the United Nations (UN) Human Rights Council on the issues faced by the Turkish community in Western Thrace living in Greece and the systematic human rights violations they are subjected to.
Emphasising that ABTTF has been struggling internationally for years to be the voice of the Turkish community in Western Thrace, Habip Oğlu stressed the following: ‘‘As ABTTF, we have submitted 50 written statements to the UN Human Rights Council since obtaining special consultative status with the UN Economic and Social Council in 2006. We have been the voice of our community in the work we have been carrying out at the UN for nearly 20 years. However, last year we experienced an interesting situation. We noticed that in the last three written statements we submitted to the UN Human Rights Council, the term ‘‘Western Thrace’’, which we always use, had been changed to ‘‘Thrace’’ without our permission or knowledge. Looking at the timing of this situation, we saw that it was May 2024, and notably, this coincided with a court’s decision to dissolve the Western Thrace Fenerbahçe Culture and Sports Association on grounds of the term “Western Thrace” in its name. We then initiated a lengthy exchange of mails with the relevant UN bodies, stating that we did not accept this change made without our knowledge and approval, and we filed a complaint. We submitted evidence to the UN proving that the use of the term “Western Thrace” was not incorrect. Finally, at the end of last October, we received the news we had been waiting for from the UN, and we received a response indicating that it was appropriate to use the term “Western Thrace, Greece.” Those who were uncomfortable with the name “Western Thrace” and “Western Thrace Turks” tried to erase the term “Western Thrace,” but we know that erasing it does not make it disappear. Yes, we objected. We took the necessary steps. Ultimately, the phrase “Western Thrace, Greece” will be re-instated in our written statements. Indeed, this is not just a matter of a name; it is part of our identity, our history, and our honour. There may be those who ignore us, who dismiss us. But we exist. And we will continue to exist, to make our voices heard on every platform’’.
