‘ASSYRIANS PART OF TURKEY’

Hurriyet
Dec 18 2008
Turkey

ANKARA – A Swedish parliament deputy of Assyrian origin will attend a
hearing Friday for a land dispute between a 1,600-year-old monastery
and locals in the southeastern Anatolian town of Midyat, populated
by about 3,000 Assyrians.

"I hope a fair verdict will be delivered and the case will be resolved
within Turkey’s legal system, so that the country’s image is not
harmed in Europe," Yılmaz Kerimo told the Hurriyet Daily News &
Economic Review in a telephone interview.

Kerimo has served in Sweden’s parliament for 10 years. He is from
Midyat and moved to Sweden three decades ago.

The land dispute has been brought by local officials of three nearby
villages who contest the borders of the monastery, which they argue
are bigger than any place of worship in the world. Concerned by
the re-drawn borders following land surveying proceedings in the
area, officials from the monastery foundation applied to the court,
saying they are not occupiers as they’ve been paying tax for the land
since 1938.

"Our goal is not to denigrate Turkey. On the contrary, we want to see
the country in the EU. The monastery has been there for centuries. The
Assyrians peacefully live in the region without engaging in any
terrorist activity. I cannot understand why the group is branded as
occupiers," Kerimo told the Daily News.

More Assyrians claimed to return home

The land dispute is rooted in uneasiness about the return of migrant
Assyrians to their former lands in Turkey, according to some Assyrian
groups. Kerimo said their migration to Europe started 30 years ago but
democratic reforms in Turkey over the last five years have prompted
some to return home, leading to land disputes.

"Some of the Assyrian land was occupied [by the locals] and ended up
in courts. Turkey must protect its Assyrian community. There are only
3,000 left in Midyat. Assyrians are a richness of Turkey and part of
its mosaic," he said.

The EU is closely monitoring the situation for religious groups
in Turkey. A draft report of the European Parliament drew adverse
reactions from Ankara when it referred to an alleged "genocide"
of the Assyrians, but that was later removed. "The Assyrians are
non-Muslims but they are considered neither a minority nor Turk. In
other words, the Assyrians were caught in the middle. An Armenian or
a Jew has the right to education and religion but not an Assyrian,"
said Kerimo. Jews, Greeks and Armenians are the only recognized
minority groups spelled out in the Lausanne Treaty, the founding
agreement of the Turkish Republic.

–Boundary_(ID_tnqA9Jp5B/+rJIQF4sOEWg)- –