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Resolution 1704 (2010) Final version
Freedom of religion and other human rights for non-Muslim minorities in Turkey and for the Muslim minority in Thrace (eastern Greece)
1. The Council of Europe aims to promote
mutual tolerance in order to contribute to the peaceful coexistence
of religions. It has already emphasised that religious beliefs and
traditions constitute an entire dimension of culture, and has recognised
that knowledge of religions plays an important role in mutual understanding
and respect.
2. Intercultural dialogue, including its interfaith dimension,
is a means of making the diversity of European cultures into a source
of mutual enrichment. As was recently pointed out by the Council
of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, “the existence in [a country]
of minority groups, be they ‘national’, ‘religious’ or ‘linguistic’,
should be considered as a major factor, not of division, but of
enrichment for society”.
3. Pluralism, tolerance and a spirit of openness are the cornerstones
of cultural and religious diversity. They need to be accompanied
by proactive measures, particularly by the governments and civil
society of member states.
4. The Parliamentary Assembly is aware that – heavily influenced
by history – the question of the religious minorities in Greece
and in Turkey is emotionally very highly charged. It notes that
the tenor of bilateral relations between Greece and Turkey during
the 20th century largely determined the treatment of their respective minorities.
5. The Assembly emphasises that the members of the religious
minorities concerned are in both cases citizens of the countries
in which they live. For historical reasons, the principle of reciprocity
is regularly invoked on both sides. While the “kin states”, Greece
and Turkey, may consider that they have responsibilities towards members
of religious minorities in the neighbouring country, it is actually
first and foremost the countries where the minorities live which
are responsible for their own citizens, including the members of
the respective religious minorities.
6. The Assembly stresses that the European Court of Human Rights
has asserted, in the judgment in Apostolidi
and Others v. Turkey, that the European Convention on
Human Rights (ETS No. 5) transcends the framework of mere reciprocity
between the contracting states.
7. Nevertheless, basing themselves on Article 45 of the Treaty
of Lausanne, and referring to “reciprocity” while interpreting it
in negative terms, Greece and Turkey alike have sometimes called
into question several of the rights of their citizens who are members
of the minorities protected by this treaty.
8. The Assembly considers that the recurrent invoking by these
two states of the principle of reciprocity as a basis for refusing
to implement the rights guaranteed to the minorities concerned by
the Treaty of Lausanne is anachronistic and could jeopardise each
country’s national cohesion in these early years of the 21st century.
9. The Assembly invites Greece and Turkey to treat all their
citizens without discrimination, without taking into account the
way in which the neighbouring state might treat its own citizens.
It also calls on them fully to implement the general principles
relating to the rights of national minorities developed in the case
law of the European Court of Human Rights, which apply independently
of the ratification or non-ratification of the Framework Convention
for the Protection of National Minorities (ETS No. 157) and the
European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages (ETS No. 148).
10. Generally speaking, the Assembly fully shares the position
of the Commissioner for Human Rights, according to which “freedom
of ethnic self-identification is a major principle in which democratic
pluralistic societies should be grounded and should be effectively
applied to all minority groups, be they national, religious or linguistic”,
and the expression of which must be consistent with national unity.
11. The Assembly shares the Commissioner’s concern regarding the
possibility for minority groups to express their diversity and existence.
12. The Assembly notes that Greece and Turkey alike have recently
shown greater understanding of the specific characteristics inherent
to the minorities which are the subject of this resolution. The
Assembly welcomes a degree of new awareness by the authorities of
both countries, which have demonstrated their commitment to finding
appropriate responses to the difficulties facing the members of
these minorities.
13. Steps have been taken on both sides of the border to improve
these minorities’ situation. The Assembly also welcomes recent events,
including the historic visit to Turkey by the Greek Prime Minister,
in January 2008, and his meeting with his Turkish counterpart, an
expression of a constructive approach and of mutual respect.
14. However, some questions remain unresolved and require the
two states to continue their efforts, which cannot succeed without
open and constructive dialogue with the members of the minorities
concerned.
15. The Assembly encourages both countries’ authorities to do
everything possible to alter people’s perception of members of these
minorities, who are sometimes regarded as foreigners in their own
country. It is vitally important that both the members of the majority
and the members of the minorities understand and feel that the latter
are full citizens of their country of residence.
16. The Assembly also encourages the two countries to sign and/or
ratify the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities.
Ratification of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages would
also indicate an understanding and acceptance of specific cultural
characteristics.
17. Greece and Turkey must also realise the crucial importance
of the education of the members of minorities. The governments must
ensure that the level of teaching in the minority schools is of
high quality and enables the children from minorities to fully integrate
into the national community, while preserving their cultural identity.
18. Specifically concerning Greece, the Assembly urges the Greek
authorities to:
18.1. provide appropriate
support to minority schools so that they are in a position to provide
high-quality teaching, in particular through the – long-awaited
– issuing of certain school books for minority schools which were
updated in 1997 in the framework of a European Union-financed project,
whilst considering the possibility of creating new minority upper-secondary
schools;
18.2. guarantee that the Special Teacher Training Academy of
Thessaloníki (EPATH) provides high-quality education in both the
Greek and Turkish languages, so as to provide appropriate training
for future teachers who will work in the schools of the Muslim minority
in Thrace;
18.3. provide lasting support – including funding – for initiatives
geared towards better understanding between the members of the Muslim
minority and the majority, and to better learning of the Greek language
by the members of that minority, particularly for the “Education
of Muslim children” programme, education being a factor of integration
and understanding;
18.4. fully implement Law No. 3647 of February 2008, the provisions
of which should be able to regulate, in substantial measure, the
problems – pending for several decades now – connected with the legal
status of vafks (foundations
of the Muslim minority);
18.5. allow the Muslim minority to choose freely its muftis
as mere religious leaders (that is, without judicial powers), through
election or appointment, and thus to abolish the application of
Sharia law – which raises serious questions of compatibility with
the European Convention on Human Rights – as recommended by the
Commissioner for Human Rights;
18.6. ensure that no attempts are made to impose an identity
on a person or a group of persons, even by representatives of other
groups within the minority concerned, in keeping with the spirit
of Article 3 of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National
Minorities;
18.7. pursue development of the economy and infrastructure of
Thrace, for instance by investigating the possibility of making
use of European Union programmes to create rural development zones
or free-trade zones in this region;
18.8. resolve as soon as possible the cases of persons still
affected by the withdrawal of their Greek nationality in pursuance
of Article 19 of the Nationality Code (an article now repealed),
including the persons who became stateless in application of the
said article although they no longer live in Greece;
18.9. fully implement the judgments of the European Court of
Human Rights concerning freedom of religion and of association, inter alia, relating to the titles
of associations, and to allow associations to use the adjective
“Turkish” in their name if they so wish;
18.10. implement fully and speedily the 2008 legislation providing
for quota-based admission to the civil service for members of the
Muslim minority;
18.11. encourage development by the media of a code of ethics
on respect for religious minorities, bearing in mind the vital role
that they can play in the perception of these minorities by the
majority, and to penalise any incitements to hatred passed on by
the media, in accordance with the principles set out in Recommendation
No. R (97) 20 of the Committee of Ministers to member states on
“hate speech”;
18.12. organise a national campaign against racism and intolerance,
stressing that diversity is to be regarded not as a threat but as
a source of enrichment.
19. Specifically concerning Turkey, the Assembly urges the Turkish
authorities to:
19.1. come up with
constructive solutions concerning the training of religious minorities’
clergy and the granting of work permits for foreign members of the
clergy;
19.2. recognise the legal personality of the Ecumenical Orthodox
Patriarchate in Istanbul, the Armenian Patriarchate of Istanbul,
the Armenian Catholic Archbishopric of Istanbul, the Bulgarian Orthodox
Community within the structures of the Ecumenical Orthodox Patriarchate,
the Chief Rabbinate, and the Vicariate Apostolic of Istanbul; the
absence of legal personality which affects all the communities concerned
having direct effects in terms of ownership rights and property
management;
19.3. find an agreed solution with the representatives of the
minority with a view to the reopening of the Heybeliada Greek Orthodox
Theological College (the Halki Seminary), inter
alia, by making official in writing the proposal to reopen
the seminary as a department of the Faculty of Theology of Galatasaray University,
in order to initiate genuine negotiations on this proposal;
19.4. give the Ecumenical Orthodox Patriarchate in Istanbul
the freedom to choose to use the adjective “ecumenical”;
19.5. resolve the question of the registration of places of
worship and the question of the mazbut properties
confiscated since 1974, which must be returned to their owners,
to the entitled persons or, where the return of assets is impossible,
to provide for fair compensation;
19.6. ensure that the Orthodox Syriac monastery of Mor Gabriel,
one of the oldest Christian monasteries in the world, founded in
397 ad, is not deprived of its lands, and that it is protected in
its entirety. The Assembly expresses equal concern about the current
status of the unlawful appropriation of significant amounts of land
historically and legally belonging to a multitude of other ancient
Syriac monasteries, churches and proprietors in south-east Turkey;
19.7. recognise, promote and protect the Syriac people as a
minority, which is indigenous to south-east Turkey, in conformity
with the Lausanne Treaty and related international conventions which
guarantee their fundamental human rights and dignity; this shall
include, but shall not be limited to, officially developing their
education and carrying out religious services in their native language,
Aramaic;
19.8. take practical measures to make admission to the police
force, the army, the judiciary and the administration possible for
members of national minorities;
19.9. firmly condemn all violence against members of religious
minorities (whether they are Turkish citizens or not), and conduct
effective investigations and promptly prosecute persons responsible
for violence or threats against members of religious minorities,
particularly in respect of the murders of an Italian Catholic priest
in 2006 and three Protestants in Malatya in April 2007;
19.10. complete the legal proceedings concerning the murder of
Hrant Dink in 2007. The Assembly particularly invites the Turkish
Parliament to follow up without delay the report of its sub-committee responsible
for investigating the murder of Hrant Dink, a report which has highlighted
errors and negligence on the part of the security forces and the
national police, without which this murder could have been prevented;
19.11. ensure that the circular on the freedom of religion of
non-Muslim Turkish citizens, issued by the Ministry of the Interior
on 19 June 2007, is implemented, and evaluate its impact;
19.12. fully implement Law No. 3998, which provides that cemeteries
belonging to minority communities cannot be handed over to municipalities,
and thus to prevent the building of housing which has been observed
on certain Jewish cemeteries;
19.13. address seriously the problem of the desecration of the
Catholic cemetery in the Edirne-Karaagac quarter, which is a sacred
burial place for Polish, Bulgarian, Italian and French Catholics,
and facilitate the restoration of the destroyed memorials and sepulchres
there;
19.14. adapt the legislation so as to allow children from non-Muslim
minorities, but without Turkish nationality, to be admitted to minority
schools;
19.15. implement Resolution
1625 (2008) of the Assembly on Gökçeada (Imbros) and
Bozcaada (Tenedos): preserving the bicultural character of the two
Turkish islands as a model for co-operation between Turkey and Greece
in the interest of the people concerned;
19.16. institute the office of ombudsman (pending since 2006),
as this will be of key importance in avoiding tension in society;
19.17. make anti-Semitic statements and other hate speech criminal
offences, including any form of incitement to violence against members
of religious minorities, in accordance with Resolution 1563 (2007) of the Parliamentary
Assembly on combating anti-Semitism in Europe and General Policy
Recommendation No. 9 of the European Commission against Racism and
Intolerance (ECRI) on the fight against anti-Semitism;
19.18. encourage the development by the media of a code of ethics
on respect for religious minorities, bearing in mind the vital role
that they can play in the perception of these minorities by the
majority, and to penalise any incitements to hatred passed on by
the media, in accordance with the principles set out in Recommendation
No. R (97) 20 of the Committee of Ministers;
19.19. organise a national campaign against racism and intolerance,
stressing that diversity is to be regarded not as a threat but as
a source of enrichment.
20. The Assembly asks the governments of Greece and Turkey to
report back on the progress made on each point in paragraphs 16,
18 and 19 of the present resolution by February 2011.