During the meeting, the Western Thrace Turkish delegation comprised of representatives from ABTTF, WTMUGA and FEP Party expressed the rights violations and the discriminations faced by the Turkish community in Western Thrace in the digital age.
The Federation of Western Thrace Turks in Europe (ABTTF), the Western Thrace Minority University Graduates Association (WTMUGA) and Friendship, Equality and Peace (FEP) Party, representing the Turkish community in Western Thrace attended the Supplementary Human Dimension Meeting of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) entitled “Digital Technologies and Human Rights – Opportunities and Challenges” which was held online on 12-13 July 2021.
Deniz Servantie and Nihan Ayan from ABTTF, Dr. Pervin Hayrullah and Secretary General Meltem Giritli from WTMUGA and General Coordinator Fatih Hüseyinoğlu from FEP Party attended the meeting which was organised by the Swedish OSCE Chairpersonship and OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR).
In the meeting which started with the opening remarks of 2021 Swedish OSCE Chairpersonship Director-General for Political Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Sweden Elinor Hammarskjöld, OSCE/ODIHR First Deputy Director Kateryna Ryabiko and UN Special Rapporteur on the right to privacy Joseph Cannataci, the impact of the design and use of digital technologies in the 21st century upon human rights was discussed.
Speaking at the first session entitled “Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms in the Digital Age” on 12 July, ABTTF stated that the Turkish community in Western Thrace has been discriminated against and targeted in the digital age, adding that the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) judgments concerning Western Thrace Turkish associations have not been executed by Greece for 13 years. ABTTF urged Greek authorities to take measures against disinformation and hate speech targeting the Turkish community in Western Thrace in the media, including in the digital space.
Intervening at the same session, WTMUGA noted that Greece denies the Turkish identity of the Turkish community in Western Thrace in the digital age, closes its associations and does not allow its culture to live freely. WTMUGA urged Greece to abide by international law and human rights conventions.
Also speaking at the first session, the FEP Party said that although the Turkish community in Western Thrace is a peaceful community, those who demand the rights of the Turkish community have been defamed in local and national media and that they have been targeted by revealing their names and addresses in the media. The FEP Party urged Greece to take the necessary steps to protect the Turkish community which is targeted by radical groups by following the provocation writings and those who commit hate crimes.
Speaking at the second session entitled “Collection and Use of Personal Data” on 13 July, WTMUGA noted that activists defending the rights of the Turkish community in Western Thrace in Greece are subjected to hate speech on digital platforms every day and recommended Greece to take special measures to protect the Turkish community from cyberattacks and hateful publications.
Using its right of reply in both sessions, Greece reminded that the Greek state recognises solely a “Muslim minority” in Western Thrace and that the minority is not experiencing discrimination.
