UN Report of the Independent expert on minority issues. Mission to Greece.

The long awaited report of the independent expert on minorities issues by Gay McDougal is now available.


click the link below:
http://www.macedoniancommunity.com/repo ... s_2008.pdf

http://documents-dds-ny.un.org/doc/UNDO ... penElement

90. The government should retreat from the dispute over whether there is a Macedonian
minority or a Turkish minority and place its full focus on protecting the rights to
self-identification, freedom of expression and freedom of association of those communities.
The Greek government should comply with the judgments of the European Court on
Human Rights that associations should be allowed to use the words Macedonian or Turkish
in their names and to freely express their ethnic identities. Those associations denied in the
past must be given official registration promptly. Their further rights to minority
protections must be respected as elaborated in the Declaration on Minorities and the core
international human rights treaties.

I wonder what their reaction will be to this.

Just been reading this Rogi.

This should rile a few people in high places not least Dora,Dora,Dora,the kamikaze
politician.

I also saw that Lord Robertson former NATO chief has given them a verbal political
broadside today as well.

They're really starting to piss people off now.

Just had a quick scan thru' it. Looks good on the surface

Looks ok.

It could have had more on the Macedonians, but a positive step nevertheless

CONCLUSION

Paragraph 80.

"The Independent expert is concerned with matters solely within the domestic jurisdiction of the Greek government relating to its treatment of minorities and disadvantaged groups within Greece. This report has focused on the degree to which legislation, policy, and practice fulfill obligations under international human rights law, including minority rights, which take precedent over bi-lateral treaties and agreements"

Paragraph 84.

"Associations have been denied registration because their desired named includes the words "Turkish" or "Macedonian". Their rights to freedom of expression and freedom of association as protected under Article 19 and Article 22 of the ICCPR respectively have been infringed.

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This is significant.

Good, but could have been better.

We'll see what this gets us.

As I see it, the more reports that comes out, the more difficult it will get to protect/justify the Greek track-record on minority rights, especially in EU.

I agree. The thing is, there is no one to enforce these reports and rulings.

Athens - "No speak English"

I find it highly irrelevant that the expert brought up the issue of Ancient Macedonia, but I remember from a news report months ago that the Greeks brought her to Pella to show her the "Greek" Inscriptions as proof that the people in Macedonia are Greek. Perhaps she should had also been showed a copy of Krste Misirkov's famous book "On Macedonian Matters" (1903), since he too was born in the village of Pella....

So the Turkish Minority in Thrace have had public education in their mother language all this time. That's the reward you get when your community is strong and united.

Wrong. That's the reward you get when your existence is recognised by a treaty. Plus the nation that you belong (and the one that "protects" you) has a state that is stronger than Greece. This does not apply for Macedonia. But even in their case they are not recognised as a Turkish national/ethnic minority by the Greek state, but only as a religious minority.

As for the minority of Thrace, it is not entrely Turkish. Its vast majority hold a Turkish national conscience. But there are some people that hold a Pomak national/ethnic identity and some thousands of Roma people. The Pomaks' and the Romas' maternal language is not Turkish but Pomatski (Bulgarian?) and Romani. They are taught the Turkish language in the minority schools, along with Greek (state language) and Arabic (Koran language).

Descendants of the Thracians?

Please stick to topic.

pissweak they should be ashamed of themselves still pussyfooting around, with their little fascist brat greece.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SSCF_VeF82Y

Gruevski's comments: This report doesn't surprise us, it might surprise some, well all know this in Macedonia, however we are satified that the issue has recieved international recognition because it was negated by the other side (Greece).

gruevski must be diplomatic, we must tell it as it is.

what is the relevance of the neo greek perspective on the ancient kingdoms relationship to the modern world.

who the fuck are the greek makedones why isnt there self declared identification analysed and explained.

i say its a dispointement and its pissweak.