Emancipation of the minority
A total of two Muslim deputies were elected in Xanthi and Rhodope last week, but what went on behind the scenes of this event neither flatters our political culture nor is in step with European democratic principles. Citizens belonging to minority groups have an unquestionable right – a constitutional right – to vote for whomever they want and for whatever reasons. Even ethnic ones. What is appalling and of great concern are the dark machinations used to control the wills of these minorities and to coerce them to vote against their preference. Every time Muslim citizens head for the polls to exercise their democratic right, the wheels of the «deep state» are set in motion. This is a system of manipulation operated through subterranean channels by the Turkish Consulate in Komotini, which tries to control and steer – sometimes using despicable methods – the vote of the Muslims, the majority of whom are simple, illiterate folk. One chilling example is the case of the imams who, on the eve of the elections, conveyed the threats of the (pseudo)mufti of Xanthi, Ahmet Mete, that any Muslim who dared vote for a Christian candidate would be damned to hell. The situation is much the same in municipal elections, in the elections for the (pseudo)muftis and in parliamentary elections: pressure to vote not for candidates considered by the people to be suitable and capable of representing them and resolving their day-to-day problems, but those candidates dictated by some «national interest» as generally defined by the most extreme element on the other side of the Aegean. Those who do not toe the line – and this can be easily ascertained in these closed Muslim communities – are ostracized, are reviled by their fellow villagers, and are looked down on when they go to the mosque for prayers. The minority in Thrace has been relatively isolated for decades and over the course of this long, dark period has suffered the consequences of a policy of suspicion foolishly pursued by the state. The atmosphere has changed these past few years and the Muslims of Thrace now enjoy equal rights with other Greek citizens. This can be seen most clearly in Xanthi and Rhodope. A growing number of people, young people mostly, are emancipated, educated, thinking and creative citizens who envisage their futures in an open society of peaceful coexistence where the democratic principles of Europe are ensured. This emerging, more modern face of the minority has provoked the wrath of those dark and wretched mechanisms operating deep within these societies and in order to crush it, they will not hesitate to strangle the freedom of expression and political freedoms of ordinary citizens in the name of «ethnic rallying.»
