Turkish Court Rules Against Restrictions on Greek Orthodox Clerics Serving on Foundations

Turkey’s Constitutional Court has ruled that barring two Greek Orthodox clerics from serving on a foundation board violated their right to freedom of association.

This decision, published in the Official Gazette on Friday and reported by Agos news website, follows a similar ruling in 2023.

The case involved clerics Atanasios Mamasis and George Kasapoğlu, affiliated with the Ecumenical Patriarchate of İstanbul, who were elected to the Samatya Aya Analipsis Greek Orthodox Church Foundation board in 2011. The Turkish government’s General Directorate of Foundations (VGM) refused to validate their election, arguing that their religious roles were incompatible with board membership.

The clerics challenged this decision, citing the 2008 Foundations Regulation, which they argued did not prohibit clergy from serving on such boards. The VGM countered with interpreting the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne, claiming it restricted religious leaders from administrative and political roles. The Treaty of Lausanne guarantees the rights of non-Muslim minorities to manage their religious, educational, and charitable institutions. However, Turkish authorities have often interpreted it as limiting the roles of minority religious leaders to strictly spiritual matters. Critics argue this interpretation undermines the treaty's promise of autonomy.

After exhausting other legal options, Kasapoğlu and Mamasis filed an individual application with the Constitutional Court in 2019. On September 18, 2024, the court ruled in their favour, stating that the prolonged legal uncertainty violated their right to freedom of association (Article 33 of the Turkish Constitution). Each cleric was awarded 30,000 Turkish lira ($847) in damages.

This ruling echoes a similar 2023 Constitutional Court decision favouring Kasapoğlu and another cleric, Niko Mavrakis, who faced similar restrictions regarding board membership in other Greek Orthodox foundations. These cases highlight ongoing challenges faced by minority religious groups in Turkey.