Turkish signs in a toy store in Western Thrace were asked to be removed

ABTTF President Halit Habip Oğlu: “The efforts to deny insistently the existence of the Turkish Minority of Western Thrace by some groups in Greece will benefit nobody and also will damage the peace and security environment in the region as well”

With the statement issued by the movement called “Thrace Citizens Initiative”, it was asked to be removed immediately the Turkish signs in a toy store that serves during the summer months within the boundaries of Iasmos (Yassıköy) municipality in Western Thrace. According to the Gündem newspaper, local authorities and relevant ministries were invited to the task for the removal of Turk-ish signs in Greece’s largest toy store company “Jumbo”s Iasmos (Yassıköy) store. The company is using Greek and Turkish signs as well in its summer opened store in Iasmos considering the popula-tion density of the Turkish Minority in the region of Western Thrace.

Related to the topic, President of the Federation of Western Thrace Turks in Europe (ABTTF), Halit Habip Oğlu, said: “The usage of both Turkish and Greek signs by toy store company “Jumbo” which has opened in Iasmos (Yassıköy) where the Turkish Minority of Western Thrace lives, is a logical and appropriate action. I congratulate “Jumbo” company executives for this application. We live in a democratic country where free market economy is prevails. Greece is not a state that nei-ther is a banana republic nor is ruled by dictatorships. Some groups behave as if they newly discovered the existence of the Turkish Minority Western Thrace. There are many bilingual minority schools that teach both in Turkish and Greek and two bilingual junior high and high schools as well including Iasmos (Yassıköy) in Western Thrace. Like the efforts of denying the Turkish Minority of Western Thrace, whom which the rights and status were guaranteed by the 1923 Lausanne Peace Treaty and is autonomous in the fields of education and religion, by some groups will not benefit anyone but rather will damage peace and tranquillity in the region. Both majority and Minority to-gether should not let these efforts and approaches.”