Name of Organization: Federation of Western Thrace Turks in Europe (ABTTF) Name of Main Contact Person(s): Mrs. Melek Kırmacı Arık E-mail(s): melek.kirmaci@abttf.org; info@abttf.org Language(s): ENGLISH ONLY UNITED NATIONS 8th SESSION OF THE FORUM ON MINORITY ISSUES 24-25 November 2015 Geneva Session III: Challenges of criminal justice systems in addressing the needs and demands of minorities The right to fair trial and the limitations on the right to association of the Turkish Minority of Western Thrace in Greece The principle of non-discrimination including, specifically, equality before the law and before the courts, is enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and all other international human rights documents. We fully share the opinion in general considerations (para. 9) that an effective and responsive criminal justice system must, at the front end, combat social, economic, political disadvantage of minorities and that States, in this regards, should consider taking special measures for minority groups. We recall Recommendation 13 of the general recommendations for States that international law requires States that all individuals within their jurisdiction benefit from a fundamental basis of rights throughout the process: the right to a fair trial by a competent, independent and impartial court established by law. We fully agree with the Recommendation 14 that States should take measures that specifically promote equal treatment of minorities within the criminal justice system. The restrictions and limitations on the right to freedom of association are still persistent in Greece. There are currently no associations in Greece operating legally with their names including the words “Macedonian” or “Turkish”, which reflect the ethnic or national identity of their members. Greece only recognizes a “Muslim minority in Thrace” and denies the existence of an ethnic Turkish minority in Western Thrace. On 18 February 2009, the report of the former Independent Expert on Minority Issues, Gay McDougall, following her mission to Greece on 8-16 September 2008, stated that “The absence of formal recognition by the state of a particular societal group as constituting “a minority” is not conclusive”, and continued that “Rather, the existence of a group to which a state owes minority protections is a matter of objective facts and exercise of the right of self-identification by persons belonging to the group”. The former independent expert urged Greece to protect the right to self-identification and the freedoms of expression and association of minority communities. Although some other groups are recognized and even welcomed and supported by Greek authorities, there are currently no associations in Greece operating legally with their names including the word “Turkish”, which reflect the ethnic or national identity of their members. The Greek government declared in 1983 that there were no Turks in Greece and claimed that the members of Muslim minority are Greek Muslims. Xanthi Turkish Union, Komotini Turkish Youth Union and Western Thrace Turkish Teachers’ Union were dissolved in 1986 by local courts and the Supreme Court decided the dissolution