ACCORDING TO "HURRIET", TURKEY CONSIDERS ETHNIC MINORITIES AS ALIEN,
THEREFORE THEY APPLY TO MFA DEALING WITH FOREIGNERS’ ISSUES

ISTANBUL, AUGUST 17, NOYAN TAPAN – ARMENIANS TODAY. In the August 17
issue of the newspaper "Hurriet", Mehmed Yelmaz, author of articles in
"Hurriet", reminds about the report (published the day before) about
the regulations of the Armenian Patriarchate of Turkey. According
to the report, the Armenian Patriarchate of Turkey expressed a wish
that the Patriarchate would be within the jurisdiction to the state
ministry accountable to the Inspection of Religions and not to the
ministry of foreign affairs. With this aim, the Patriarchate applied
to Turkey’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs with a request to intervene.

Mehmed Yelmaz notes that all Turkish citizens have the right to apply
to the appropriate body regarding their problems. In this respect
the Armenian Patriarchate should also be eligible to apply to the
appropriate body. It is quite logical that Turkey’s MFA should not
be on the list of bodies to consider such application, as it deals
with foreign countries and foreigners. After expressing this opinion,
M. Yelmaz ironically reminds that on various occasions the state has
considered ethnic minorities as alien. The last time, the minorities
were put on the list of foreigners owning estates in Turkey. The
author concludes: if the state considers our minorities as alien,
the latter naturally should apply to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.