- Press releases
From 14-15 September 2017, Turkic organisations that are members of the Federal Union of European Nationalities (FUEN), participated in the Human Dimension Implementation Meeting of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), held in Warsaw, Poland. The OSCE meeting, which is the largest conference in Europe in the field of human rights and democracy, was attended by the Western Thrace Turks, Rhodes-Kos Turks, Ahıska Turks and Crimean Tatars, who are member of the FUEN Working Group of Turkic Minorities/Communities (TAG) and also Kosovo Turks, who are not yet FUEN members but attended the FUEN TAG Annual Meeting in 2016.
The following organizations took part in the meeting: the Western Thrace Turks were represented by the Federation of Western Thrace Turks in Europe (ABTTF) and Western Thrace Minority University Graduates Association (WTMUGA), the Rhodes-Kos Turks by the Rhodes, Kos and Dodecanese Turks Culture and Solidarity Association (ROİSDER), the Ahıska Turks by the International Society of Meskhetian Turks VATAN and Crimean Tatars by the Crimean Tatars Community. The Kosovo Turks represented by the Kosovo Youth Union, which FUEN Vice-President Halit Habip Oğlu visited in April 2017, attended the OSCE meeting for the first time. FUEN member organizations, that participated in the meeting, raised the significant problems they encounter in their countries during the speeches they delivered at the meeting.
Western Thrace Turks and Rhodes-Kos Turks raised the problems they face in Greece
With many speeches at the various sessions of the meeting, the Western Thrace Turks and the Rhodes-Kos Turks criticized the minority policy of Greece. ABTTF and WTMUGA representing the Western Thrace Turks, along with the problems of Western Thrace Turks in the field of education and religion articulated the hatred discourse and hate-motivated attacks against Western Thrace Turks covered in Greek media, which is one of the prominent headings of the meeting about hate discourse and hate crimes.
ROİSDER stated that the Turkish community living in Rhodes and Kos are recognized as "Greek Muslims", not as "Turks" and these Turks living on those islands are subject to discrimination. ROİSDER criticized the lack of protection of the cultural heritage left from the Ottoman Empire on the islands, and that recently the Murat Reis Complex was closed down.
Crimean Tatars brought up political detentions and torture in Crimea under invasion of Russia to the agenda
The Crimean Tatars Community brought up the problem of political detentions and missings regarding the Crimean Tatars in Crimea under invasion of the Russian Federation to the agenda. And they informed that Renat Paramalov, a young Crimean Tatar, was recently detained and tortured by the Russian FSB in Crimea
Ahıska Turks told about the problems on the repatriation to their homeland in Georgia
The International Society of Meskhetian Turks VATAN told about their problems on the repatriation process to their homeland in Georgia.
Photo source: FUEN TAG
