FUEN President addressed EC Vice-President Viviane Reding on the issue of preschool education in Western Thrace

Federal Union of European Nationalities (FUEN) President Hans Heinrich Hansen, in his letter to European Commission (EC) Vice-FUEN President addressed EC Vice-President Viviane Reding on the issue of preschool education in Western Thrace

Federal Union of European Nationalities (FUEN) President Hans Heinrich Hansen, in his letter to European Commission (EC) Vice-President Viviane Reding, pointed out that the right to education in mother tongue of the children belonging to Western Thrace Turkish Minority is violated by Greek State and the government in charge.

Hansen informed Reding on his findings about bilingual kindergartens during his mission to Western Thrace

Hansen indicated that he performed a mission to Western Thrace along with Member of the Euro-pean Parliament François Alfonsi and Human Rights Without Frontiers International (HRWF) Director Willy Fautre upon the invitation of Federation of Western Thrace Turks in Europe (ABTTF) on 16-20 October 2012 and he had meetings with Minority representatives in Komotini and Xanthi, Muslim religious leaders and civil society. Through his letter, Hansen underlined that according to the Lausanne Treaty signed in 1923, Western Thrace Turkish Minority is conferred the same rights with the non-Muslim minority in Turkey as for establishing and managing its education institutions and the use of mother tongue. Further to this, Hansen depending on his observations during the mission informed that the lack of bilingual kindergartens is the primary problem minority suffers from.

In reference to the Act 3518/2006, Hansen suggested that Greece is in violation of the principle of non-discrimination as no adjustment or additional regulation are introduced for the children who do not speak Greek as mother tongue, though the regulation retains preschool education mandatory for the children who completed their 5 year-of-age and increases the compulsory education from 9 to 10 years. Having reported on meeting with parents of the 20 children who were denied from regis-tration to minority primary school in Echinos village of Xanthi on the ground of not having attended Greek speaking public kindergarten, Hansen noted that parents did not consent sending their children to public kindergarten because there were no minority kindergartens. Hansen pro-vided also the current developments on the issue and said that the problem with the registration has been settled in November 2013. Yet, one should not consider that ultimate solution is reached. As the minority children still have to attend the Greek speaking public kindergartens, the very problem might break out next year again.

Referring to report prepared in 2008 by Gay McDougall, the former United Nations Independent Expert on Minority Issues, Hansen claimed the use of both languages, Greek and Turkish, from young ages at the bilingual minority kindergartens would contribute to integration. Further to this, Hansen called on Greek government to integrate kindergartens into minority bilingual school sys-tem. With an explicit reference to Treaty of Lisbon and its emphasis on the protection of minorities, and also Charter of Fundamental Rights as the backbone of the EU legislation, Hansen called for a more dedicated approach of the EC Vice-President on the situation of minorities in EU Member states, including Greece.