by Panayotis Doumas

Our fellow-countrymen Pomaks of Thrace are probably the most characteristic case of a population group in Greece, which has suffered the cruel consequences of the Greek state's indifference and the irresponsible governmental actions during the last decades. They had the "misfortune" of living in a sensitive region of the contemporary Greek state, near the borders with Bulgaria, mainly in the mountainous regions of the Xanthi and Rhodope prefectures.

The cold-war period of the Yalta era proved disastrous for their culture, since the USA and NATO interests forced their turkification. The miserable Greek governments co-operated and signed with Turkey the disgraceful educational protocols, which imposed on them the Kemalic education, baptizing as "Turks" this proud ancient Thraco-Hellenic people, along with the other muslims of our Thrace (Gypsies, islamized Greeks, even ...negros from Africa, who live in the village of Evlalos in Xanthi!). The systematic turkification of the Pomaks goes on criminally until today. In the context of the new Greek-Turkish rapprochement, the situation has reached the last straw. Age-old folklore customs are spoiled, school books come directly from Turkey, all the Turkish TV channels and newspapers pour out daily the Kemalic venom on the region, alienating the cultural structure of the Pomak peculiarity.

The president of the Hellenic Front Makis Voridis.

However during the last years a resistance effort started from young Pomaks, mostly of a higher educational level, who strive, with the recording of their language, their songs, traditions and customs, to reverse the tide of their advancing turkification. Hellenic front party cadres met during the 1999 Euro-elections campaign with representatives of these young Pomaks and our president himself, Makis Voridis, promised them that in case our party elected a Euro-deputy, the Hellenic Front would be the party to bring the Pomak issue in the European parliament, informing the European public opinion about the problems and the anxiety of the Greek Pomaks and denouncing their turkification which is brought about with the tolerance or even the co-operation of the Greek authorities. He committed himself to invite Pomak representatives in the European parliament, to set out themselves their problem in its true dimensions in front of the responsible committees of the European parliament. This honourable position of the Hellenic Front, in combination with the careful deployment of the electoral campaign in Thrace, had as a result the party to muster a local percentage triple to the pan-hellenic one, with many votes in the mountainous Pomak area.

The Hellenist French deputy in the European parliament Carl Lang.

Unfortunately the Hellenic Front didn't elect a deputy in the European parliament. However two years later, in April 2001, it found the opportunity to realise its promise to our Pomak fellow-countrymen. After the Hellenist Euro-deputy of the French National Front, Carl Lang, invited a delegation of 40 members and friends of the Hellenic Front to visit the European parliament, Hamdi Omer, president of the Pomak Research Center, author of the Pomak language primer and one of the most active young Pomaks who struggle for the preservation of their cultural identity, was included in the delegation. In the last national elections Hamdi Omer was a candidate of the Democratic Regional Union of Michalis Haralambides in the Rhodope prefecture and he accepted with special joy the invitation by Yannis Kourianidis, the Macedonia - Thrace regional chairman of our party.

So during our visit to the European parliament on Wednesday 4 April 2001, we presented to Carl Lang a complete dossier which described the Pomaks' situation and the turkification ways and means, but also their requests to the Greek state for the recognition of their cultural identity and the teaching of their mother language, instead of the Turkish, in the schools of their region. Lang, who had already been briefed by the president and the cadres of the Hellenic Front, consented eagerly to promote their requests by submitting a relevant question to the European parliament. In a display of honesty and political morals, he pointed out that it would be more proper for a Greek European deputy to submit the relevant question and he and his party would support with their vote their Greek colleague, as they do for years now in issues related to the Greek national interests. However he pledged to advance the procedure himself, if no Greek deputy shows the necessary eagerness.

The New Democracy party European deputy Stavros Xarhakos.

A few days later, the deputy Stavros Xarhakos (New Democracy) submitted a question to the European parliament, which among other he underlines "the total contempt which Turkey shows for the Christians of Constantinople, Imvros and Tenedos", but also pinpoints "the odd tactics of the Greek authorities which, instead of promoting the peculiarity and the cultural identity of the Pomaks, force them to be taught Turkish in their schools, while they have their own alphabet and Pomak teachers have composed primers in Pomak, which however remain unused". Concluding, he asks the European Committee and the EU Minister's Council, "whether these tactics of the Greek authorities are consistent with the principles and goals of the EU, which proclaims ceaselessly its dedication to the protection of the languages and idioms which are spoken throughout its territory and which specific measures does the Union intend to take, so as to induce Greece to respect the language of our fellow-countrymen Pomaks, by ceasing their violent turkification".

Links Hellenic Front European Parliament National Front (France)

The objective was achieved. The Pomak problem was posed in the European parliament. The wretchedness of the Greek governments can not continue any longer, at least so openly. The Greek Pomaks have now the support of the European institutions. A support which the miserable and Greek state and its underbidder politicians refused. The achievement was realised thanks to the Hellenic Front. For so many years the "worried" pomakologists, which tour the Rhodope villages drawing votes or subsidies of EU programs, did nothing to support the Greek Pomaks and prevent their turkification. The Hellenic Front pressed towards this direction, utilizing the existing institutions and proving that it doesn't have neither to be in power, nor to beg any representative of the slimy political establishment. In the end all those were dragged where we wished. As Hellenic Front we proved once again that the patriotic bloc can get out of the fringe and return again back to politics.