Forum on Minority Issues Geneva, 15-16 December 2008 Statement by the Representative of the Hellenic Government Deputy Permanent Representative of Greece Ambassador M. Diamessis Thematic focus on “Minorities and the Right to Education” Madame President,  We thank the Independent Expert on Minority Issues for her work and her leadership as well as you, Madame President, for chairing this meeting. We also thank the High Commissioner for Human Rights Ms Navi Pillay for her insightful remarks.  Now, allow me some brief comments:  Greece believes that it is of utmost importance to promote the integration of minorities into the societies they live in while respecting their particularities. We strongly support the recommendation provided for in paragraph 9 of Chapter III of the draft Recommendations entitled “Essential requirements for an effective strategy”. We do believe that state or local policies of educational segregation through special classes or special schools for minority pupils should be discouraged;  We do, however fully respect the status of minority schools as established by the Lausanne Treaty of 1923, both in Greece and Turkey.  I thought, Madame President, that we are here to comment on the draft recommendations, not to issue political declarations, such as the one delivered by Mr. Voskopoulos, a Greek civil servant himself, who represents Rainbow, a political party that has freely participated in a series of previous elections in Greece.