Members of the European Parliament (MEP) François Alfonsi (France, Greens/EFA), Loránt Vincze (Romania, EPP), Herbert Dorfmann (Italy, EPP) and Yana Toom (Estonia, Renew) submitted a written question titled ‘‘Double-shift schooling in Western Thrace’’ to the European Commission.
In the written question submitted with the joint signature of four members of the European Parliament, at the initiative of the Federation of Western Thrace Turks in Europe (ABTTF), it is noted that there are further problems that concern the Turkish community in Western Thrace in addition to the issues expressed in Written Question E-002144/2023/rev.1 titled ‘‘Access to high-quality preschool education for children from the Turkish-minority community in Western Thrace (Greece)’’.
In the written question, it is noted that double-shift schooling has been in place at Xanthi Minority Secondary School and High School for many years due to the lack of sufficient and sustainanle classrooms, but that students and parents are opposed to it, and it is further indicated that a protest demonstration was held between 18 and 28 September 2023, demanding the end to double-shift schooling and a new school building but that no response was yet received from the authorities.
In the written question, Alfonsi, Vincze, Dorfmann and Toom asked how the European Commission can protect the rights of EU citizens belonging to a national minority and ensure equal access to quality education in this region of Greece and safeguard linguistic and cultural diversity.
Four MEPs also asked what steps the European Commission can take to protect the members of the autochthonous Turkish community, whose rights guaranteed by international treaties are not respected and whose existence and identity are under threat.
Furthermore, the four MEPs asked what impetus can the Commission give to the Member State to improve their education systems in order to ensure that all children can benefit from high quality education, as indicated within its recommendation titled “Investing in children: breaking the cycle of disadvantage”.
The aforementioned written question can be accessed from the following link:
https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/document/E-9-2023-003346_EN.html
