ABTTF President: “Over the years, our country has systematically closed dozens of our primary schools in violation of our educational autonomy guaranteed by the Treaty of Lausanne, thereby infringing upon our community’s right to education and jeopardising our children’s future.”
The Turkish community in Western Thrace protested on 11 September 2025 against the Greek authorities’ refusal to allow the Turkish primary school in the village of Paleo Zigos (Mizanlı), in the prefecture of Xanthi, to reopen, despite reaching the required number of pupils and applications being made by parents.
In a press statement read during the protest action organised by the Union of Western Thrace Turkish Minority Schools in front of the Turkish primary school in the village of Paleo Zigos (Mizanlı), attended by parents and representatives of the Turkish community in Western Thrace, it was emphasised that the Greek state has closed dozens of Turkish primary schools over the years under the pretext of ‘‘lack of sufficient number of pupils’’ but has not re-opened them even when the number of students has increased.
The press statement recalled that last year a primary school was opened for one pupil in the village of Argiri in Karditsa, and this year for two pupils on Pserimos Island, and explained that the failure to apply the same practice to Turkish primary schools deeply saddened the Turkish community in Western Thrace.
Furthermore, the press release demanded the immediate reopening of the Turkish primary school in the village of Paleo Zigos (Mizanlı), an end to discriminatory policies against Turkish minority schools, and the guarantee of the Turkish community in Western Thrace’s right to education in accordance with the Treaty of Lausanne.
As is known, in 2010, Greece’s Ministry of Education, Religious Affairs and Sport decided to close the primary schools with fewer than nine pupils nationwide as part of the austerity measures to combat the economic and financial crisis. In accordance with this decision, the Turkish primary school in the village of Paleo Zigos (Mizanlı) was closed in the 2023-2024 school year on grounds of lack of sufficient number of pupils. After the number of pupils in the village reached ten, parents submitted two petitions to the Directorate of Primary Education in Xanthi in February and August 2025 requesting the re-opening of the primary school, but these applications were rejected on various grounds.
‘‘The sharp discrimination our community faces in the field of education continues. While schools in our country Greece are re-opening for one or two pupils, the refusal by the official authorities to allow the Turkish primary school in the village of Paleo Zigos (Mizanlı) to re-open for ten pupils is a clear double standard and proof that there is no equality in education in our country. Over the years, our country has systematically closed dozens of our primary schools in violation of our educational autonomy guaranteed by the Treaty of Lausanne, violating our community’s right to education and mortgaging our children’s future. We call on the official authorities of our country to immediately cease their practices aimed at completely eliminating our autonomous schools and demand the re-opening of our primary school in the village of Paleo Zigos (Mizanlı), which has reached the required number of pupils’’, said Halit Habip Oğlu, President of the Federation of Western Thrace Turks in Europe (ABTTF).
*Image: gundemgazetesi.com
