An Open Letter to President Papoulias

We, as members of the Hellenic Electronic Center a US non-profit organization, represent part of the Academia and part of the health and legal professions of the Diaspora, Greece and Cyprus, and philhellenes. We extend our congratulations to you on becoming President of the Hellenic Republic. We extend to you our best wishes. The letter below is an open letter which will be distributed to the Greek media and elsewhere.

This letter is intended to respectfully convey to you our most profound distress with regard to the various crises confronted by Hellenism in Cyprus, Macedonia, Constantinopolis/Imbros/Tenedos, Northern Epirus, and the Aegean. We are most alarmed by the diplomatic activity undertaken by the great powers of the United States, Great Britain, the European Union, and the United Nations with regard to Cyprus and the other national issues. The interest of the great powers in Cyprus might have been a powerful catalyst for bringing about a settlement based on human rights conventions, on EU’s Laws, Constitution and Democratic political traditions and on international law and the rule of law.

Unfortunately, the relevant parties involved in Cyprus have demonstrated a greater interest in paving the way for Turkey’s eventual accession to the European Union, and completely ignored the humanitarian and legal issues upon which a successful resolution for Cyprus is dependent. We believe that a state of crisis exists in Cyprus and that this crisis is the most severe that the Republic of Cyprus has faced since the twin Turkish invasions of 1974. The Republic of Cyprus had one powerful advantage over the past thirty years in that it was universally recognized by the international community. In the aftermath of the Annan Plan, and the persistent pressure imposed on President Papadopoulos and the citizens of Cyprus to accept it, efforts are now under way to establish defacto recognition and legitimacy of the Turkish occupation by promoting economic and commercial activities in the territories where Greek Cypriots are denied access to their lands, and where several thousand subjugated Greeks live under oppressive and inhumane conditions.

We respectfully call for a new diplomatic stance on Cyprus that is consistent and supportive of the declared aims and positions of President Papadopoulos and of the Greeks of Cyprus who expressed their views with great courage and dignity in the referendum of 24 April 2004. As international support for the Republic of Cyprus is slowly beginning to crumble, it is most urgent that the Hellenic Republic use its prestigious position as a member of the European Union and the NATO alliance and its present position in the UN Security Council to make known its unconditional support for the Republic of Cyprus, and its fervent opposition to the continued Turkish occupation of and/or partition of Cyprus.

If the solution of the Cyprus problem, unlike what the Annan Plan proposed in 2004, is not in compliance with the fundamental principles of International Law, the United Nations Charter, and the Conventions of Human Rights, democratic principles, and laws and practices of the European Union of which of which the Republic of Cyprus is a member, we believe Ankara should be barred from entering the European Union. We believe that now is the time for Greece to demand that Ankara withdraw all occupation forces and settlers from Cyprus, just as the United States of America is demanding the withdrawal of all Syrian troops from Lebanon.

With regard to the issue of Macedonia, we believe that the reversal of policy undertaken by Washington following last November’s recognition of Skopje indicates that a settlement that prohibits FYROM from using the name Macedonia is possible. However, this necessitates a firm and decisive stance, and may require further political pressure and activity directed at FYROM, the United States, and the European Union. The future security of Greece and the Balkan Peninsula heavily depends on the willingness of FYROM to abandon any and all claims to the name, history, and territory of Macedonia.

There are historical precedents pertaining to a formal change of official titles by sovereign states, and which may be applicable in the case of FYROM. The French initially objected to London’s use of the title Great Britain as they feared the British could claim the prefecture of Brittany as their own. A French veto of London’s candidacy for the European Union under this name led to admission under the title of the United Kingdom. In the aftermath of the Second World War, the United States pressured Austria to abandon the formal title of “German Republic of Austria”.

The conflict between Great Britain and Argentina over the Falkland Islands in 1982 resulted in a brief war. The problem was triggered from the fact that Argentina issued a stamp depicting these islands under the name Malvines.

The actions of Argentina had been fueled by domestic policies such as teaching Argentinean school children that the Malvines had been Argentinean. This is precisely what has been occurring in FYROM for decades as school children have been indoctrinated with false propaganda asserting that Macedonia is theirs. A further example includes that of the case of Germany in which West Germany insisted that the Soviet controlled portion not acquire a composite with the name “Germany”, a development Bonn feared could, inter alia, undermine the international position of the country.

Greece should assure FYROM that once they formally agree to abandon all claims to the heritage and territory of Macedonia, Athens will help them politically and diplomatically to restore stability within their own borders which are presently threatened by Albanian separatists. Even within FYROM’s borders there is no stability, because of its multiethnic makeup. The Albanian population makes up approximately 30% of the total population.

FYROM should decide on a name which will reflect the ethnic and religious diversity of their state.

We respectfully call to your attention the unpleasant situation faced by the Greeks of Constantinople, Imbros, and Tenedos. The Greek minority in Turkey numbers between 1,500 and 2,000. While we believe that present day and future relations between Greece and Turkey should not be decided by the injustices of the past, we fear that Turkish repression and intimidation of the Greek minority remains official state policy in Ankara. This September will mark the fiftieth anniversary of the infamous state sponsored anti-Greek pogroms which destroyed the Hellenic presence in Constantinople, Imbros, and Tenedos.

Despite public promises and assurances given to the American President, Ankara has not allowed the Theological School of Halki to reopen. More ominous are the public statements put forward by the Turkish National Security Council asserting that the opening of Halki would be “treachery”. Demonstrations outside the Ecumenical Patriarchate are a common occurrence, as are bomb attacks such as the one which occurred last October.

It is our view, that all restrictions and prohibitions against the Ecumenical Patriarchate and against the various schools, hospitals, and other institutions belonging to the Greek minority must be lifted for Ankara to proceed with its candidacy for membership in the European Union.

The Greek government must link the fate of the Greek minority and the Ecumenical Patriarchate with the course of Greek-Turkish relations. We believe that Turkish refusal to crack down on the violent demonstrations outside the Patriarchate, or refusal to reopen the Halki School of Theology should be countered by a Greek refusal to support Ankara’s bid for membership in the European Union which remains an ongoing process. We believe that Greece should demand that Ankara return the Prinkipos orphanage to the Greek community, and that all present and former Greek inhabitants of Constantinople, Imbros, and Tenedos be compensated for all property that has been seized by the Turkish state. The Turkish State must cease impeding the function of the Patriarchate in Phanar by recognizing its “Ecumenical” character and its status as a “legal person/entity’” allowed to own, manage and control at its own expense its historic charitable and educational institutions. Also, the Turkish State must allow clerics from the Patriarchate’s Sees situated outside Turkey to join the Patriarchal Holy Synod.

It is our belief that the time has come for Greece to officially commemorate the Hellenic (Greek) Genocide, as per law 2645/98 voted unanimously in the Greek Parliament, and to promote awareness of the suffering and martyrdom endured by the Hellenes of Asia Minor. As the world at large demands greater freedom and democracy, and as the struggle for human rights is taken up by international bodies such as the European Union and the United Nations, the time appears right for Hellenism to challenge and remove the constraints imposed during previous political and historical eras that made the pursuit of the international recognition of the Hellenic(Greek) Genocide impossible. The form of censorship practiced and advocated by Ankara in both foreign and domestic affairs is inconsistent with liberal and democratic values. Recognition of the Hellenic, Armenian, and Assyrian Genocide, will help Turkey to come to terms with its own history and its own past. The Hellenic (Greek) Genocide is a part of modern Hellenic history that must not be allowed to be forgotten, and the recognition of this dark period of our history by historians, diplomats, and political leaders throughout the western world will likely strengthen Hellenic interests.

We have been most alarmed by the violation of Greek airspace by Turkey, and by Turkish provocations in the Aegean Sea. We call on the Hellenic Republic to take decisive legal action and to bring these violations by Turkey before the International Court at the Hague.

We wish to raise our concerns pertaining to the Greeks of Northern Epirus who have suffered for decades under both Albanian Communist repression, and under the post Communist government of former President Sali Berisha. We recall the Stalinist like show trials of the Omonia five one decade ago under the Berisha regime. We call on the Hellenic Republic to encourage Tirana to protect the human rights of the Greek minority, as well as the religious freedom and cultural rights of this long suffering Greek community. We would like to emphasize the importance of welcoming and embracing Vlach- and Albanian-speaking individuals who express Greek identity as bona fide members of the Greek minority in Albania. Historically, Vlach and Arvanite Greeks constitute one of the most dynamic elements of Modern Hellenism. The same applies for the long neglected Vlach-speaking community in southern FYROM, the progeny of the once flourishing Vlach Hellenism of Pelagonia.

Finally, having mentioned the Ecumenical Patriarchate, we would like to express our appreciation to the Hellenic Republic for the support that it has traditionally extended to the Great Church of Christ in Constantinople, and for the support it has extended towards the Greek Orthodox Patriarchates of Alexandria and Jerusalem, and towards the Monastery of Saint Catherine’s on Mount Sinai. The Greek Orthodox Patriarchates and the Monastery of Saint Catherine’s serve as outposts of Hellenic civilization as they preserve not only the Orthodox faith, but the continuity of the Hellenic language and culture. We would like to express our support for the continued autonomy of the Monastic Republic of Mount Athos as well, as the traditions of the Holy Mountain have begun to be challenged within the European Union.

We ask you kindly to convey our concerns to the government of Greece, and the political parties in opposition.