ABTTF President: “It is obvious that the words used by Stylianidis which are inconsistent with the facts, do not benefit the positive agenda and dialogue efforts that have gained momentum between our country and our motherland after the recent high-level talks. The facts that are confirmed by the numbers is that the FEP Party became the first party by receiving the most votes in the prefectures of Rodopi and Xanthi in the EP elections in 2014 and 2019, in which it participated as the voice of our community. As the Turkish community in Western Thrace, we will vote for the FEP Party in the 2024 EP elections, making our presence felt more strongly in our country and in Europe, and expressing our issues loudly.”
New Democracy (ND) Deputy from Rodopi Evripidis Stylianidis touched upon the participation of the Friendship Equality Peace (FEP) Party in the European Parliament (EP) elections to be held on 9 June 2024, in his interview with Parapolitika radio.
Stylianidis indicated that the participation of the FEP Party in the EP elections is not a new situation, but has new features, claiming that attempts to instrumentalise the Muslim minority are an established policy of Türkiye, so that the main goal is not to protect and properly implement the rights arising from the Treaty of Lausanne, but rather to abuse the treaty in accordance with its own foreign policy interests.
Stylianidis claimed that the FEP Party is a tool and that the goal is to measure the power of influence of mechanisms on the Minority and to make the political game easier.
“Our region’s deputy Stylianidis once again expressed his delusions about our community by making unfounded accusations about the FEP Party, the only political party of our community, in his interview. It is absurd for Stylianidis to try to portray the legitimate policy of our motherland, which respects the educational and religious autonomy and rights of our society guaranteed by the Treaty of Lausanne, as attempts to instrumentalise our community. It is obvious that the words used by Stylianidis which are inconsistent with the facts, do not benefit the positive agenda and dialogue efforts that have gained momentum between our country and our motherland after the recent high-level talks. The facts that are confirmed by the numbers is that the FEP Party became the first party by receiving the most votes in the prefectures of Rodopi and Xanthi in the EP elections in 2014 and 2019, in which it participated as the voice of our community. As the Turkish community in Western Thrace, we will vote for the FEP Party in the 2024 EP elections, making our presence felt more strongly in our country and in Europe, and expressing our issues loudly”, said Halit Habip Oğlu, President of the Federation of Western Thrace Turks in Europe (ABTTF).
*Image: www.anadoluimages.com
