Turkish Forum

Tag: Omer Celik

  • Istanbul’s Greeks Demand Citizenship Restoration

    Istanbul’s Greeks Demand Citizenship Restoration

    By Nicky Mariam Onti on April 21, 2013 In Immigration, News, Turkey

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    The Greek population of Istanbul, which was rather forced to leave Turkey because of the sociopolitical situation, is now asking for its citizenship rights’ restoration, Sunday’s Zaman reported.

    Greeks in İstanbul, known as Rums (Turkey’s Greeks), are finally given the chance to actually voice their demands thanks to recent improvements relating the minorities’ rights. Talks have been carried out with government officials through the İstanbul Rums Universal Federation, established in 2005.

    The federation, after sending a letter to Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan addressing their problems and demands, also sent a written statement to the Foreign Ministry and the Ministry of EU Affairs in September, 2012. The federation’s head, Nikolaos Uzunoğlu, presented a number of suggestions, among which were granting quick Turkish citizenship to people who would like to return, giving them orientation classes in order to help them open up small businesses and learn Turkish.

    In the beginning of March, Deputy Prime Minister Bülent Arınç highlighted to his government members the importance of improving the lives of minorities in Turkey by expanding their rights, while calling minorities to return to Turkey.

    Recently, Culture and Tourism Minister Ömer Çelik also made relevant statements in Moscow during an official visit.

    According to Sunday’s Zaman’s extended article, Uzunoğlu also underlined that it is highly important for young Greeks to return to Turkey in order to keep their culture alive. That is why in a written statement presented to the government by his federation last year, was included the demand of support and encouragement for young Greeks’ returning.

    Apart from the citizenship, the organization demands the return of property seized by members of the Greek minority who had to leave, providing students from EU member nations with the opportunity to enroll in Greek schools in Turkey, handing over the Rum Literary Society library to an İstanbul-based Greek organization, as well as financial and educational support for young Greeks in Turkey.

     

  • Minister calls on Christian and Jewish minorities to return to Turkey

    Minister calls on Christian and Jewish minorities to return to Turkey

    Christian and Jewish minorities who have left Turkey can come back to their home country as the mistakes of the past will not be committed again, said Culture and Tourism Minister Ömer Çelik during his visit to the Russian capital, Moscow, March 16.

    Culture and Tourism Minister Ömer Çelik attended the Tourism Fair in Moscow. AA photo
    Culture and Tourism Minister Ömer Çelik attended the Tourism Fair in Moscow. AA photo

    “If you encounter troubles anywhere in the world, know that the first place you can appeal to is the Turkish embassy. Turkey has become a democracy that protects every identity and their historical legacies,” he said, adding that minorities had faced many problems in the past. “Turkish democracy now gathers in itself every identity.”

    Çelik added that the same care was shown in the restoration of mosques, churches and synagogues. He also mentioned that the Taksim Barracks, known as Topçu Kışlası, which are planned to be restored in the near future, had marks of Russian architecture. “[As the Justice and Development Party] we consider the traces left from the Russians in Anatolia as historical legacies,” he said.

    Speaking about tourism, Çelik said the government expected an increase of 15 percent in the number of Russian tourists who visit Turkey this year.

    March/17/2013

    via POLITICS – Minister calls on Christian and Jewish minorities to return to Turkey.

  • Turkey’s AKP to boost local power

    Turkey’s AKP to boost local power

    images_59The ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) is preparing to present a far-reaching proposal that strengthens the power of local administrations when Parliament’s Constitution Conciliation Commission meets again on January 21, Hurriyet Daily News reports.

    All four parties are expected to introduce their proposals on “administrative structure and public services,” which is an issue that the Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) attaches high importance to, as it wants local administrations to gain more power and autonomy.

    The AKP’s representatives on the commission gathered January 17 at the AKP headquarters for a meeting chaired by AKP deputy chair Ömer Çelik in order to draft their proposal on the issue.

    via Turkey’s AKP to boost local power | Vestnik Kavkaza.