New Democracy: It’s a shame for PASOK’s MP to call the Muslim minority as “Turkish”

PASOK Greek Muslims in Thrace Turkey

The position for the suspension of the Muslim PASOK MP in Xanthi, Burhan Baran, who characterises the Muslim minority of Western Thrace as “Turkish”, was taken by New Democracy with its announcement.

It states:

“The Muslim MP of PASOK in Xanthi, Burhan Baran, in a public post, who declares himself a member of the “Advisory Committee of the Turkish Minority of Western Thrace” (BTTA Danışma Kurulu), announces the candidate pseudo muftis and invites Greek Muslims to attend in the “elections” on 9/9. Furthermore, he boldly declares that he will stand by whoever is elected!

“It is a shame that a Greek MP actually calls the minority “Turkish” and to motivate Muslim citizens to participate in the elections for the new pseudo-mufti of Xanthi, i.e. the one not recognised by the state.

“The president of PASOK to take a stand: Why is he hosting a member of parliament who recognises the minority as “Turkish”?

“Do PASOK respect Greek legislation or not? Do they respect or not the legal procedure for electing a mufti, which the Parliament voted on a few weeks ago?”

The 1923 Treaty of Lausanne saw a population exchange of Christians and Muslims between Greece and Turkey, with Muslims in Thrace and Greeks in Constantinople, Tenedos and Imvros exempt.

In violation of the Treaty of Lausanne, Turkey claims that the 120,000 Muslims in Thrace are Turkish, despite the majority being Greek, Pomaks (Slavic Muslims) and Roma.

Turkey’s own Foreign Ministry website affirms that there is only a Muslim minority in the Treaty of Lausanne Part VI Article 2 that states:

“Moslems established in the region to the east of the frontier line laid down in 1918 by the Treaty of Bucharest shall be considered as Moslem inhabitants of Western Thrace.”

READ MORE: Greece slams Turkey’s false claims: “There’s 120,000 Muslims in Thrace but only 3,000 Greeks in Turkey.”