Tzaner Imam honored Turkey’s Victory Day celebration at Koptero school
A mayor in Greece's Iasmos municipality led a Turkish "Victory Day" celebration at a minority school, raising questions about Greek authorities' response to such provocations.
Serious political and institutional questions have been raised following an event held in the village of Koptero in the Municipality of Iasmos, where mayor Tzaner Imam led a gathering that transformed into a celebration of Turkey’s “Victory Day” (Zafer Bayramı), using local residents as a front.
The assembly, which included both unofficial muftis and the entire pro-consular apparatus, was hosted on the grounds of the minority school, turning an educational facility of the Greek state into a venue for promoting Turkish military anniversaries.
This unprecedented incident now directly raises the question of the degree of reaction and reflexes of the competent Greek authorities in the face of such machinations. The choice of a Greek school for holding events directly connected to the celebration of the Turkish state’s victory at the expense of Greek forces in 1922 constitutes a direct provocation, bringing state services, supervisory authorities, and control bodies before their responsibilities for the tolerance shown in public spaces of Thrace.
Editorial Comment: Hypocrisy Beyond All Limits
The duplicity and political hypocrisy of Mayor Tzaner Imam now exceed every limit. On one hand, he systematically seeks to approach Christian residents, hypocritically trumpeting that he supposedly constitutes the “unifying link” and cohesive force between Christian and Muslim elements in the Municipality of Iasmos, carefully ensuring he appears as co-organizer at purely Greek events. On the other, he does not hesitate to lead the concealed celebration of the crushing of the Greek Army and Turkey’s “Victory Day,” proving what his real agenda is.
At the same time, responsibilities are widening and now also weigh on the administration of the Region of Eastern Macedonia and Thrace (PAMTH). At the event venue, a service vehicle of the Regional Unit of Rhodope with state license plates was recorded, which apparently transported regional councilors Osman Pechlivan and Ritvan Molla Isa. This is a fact that places the administration of PAMTH before its historical and institutional responsibilities for making public resources available for such festivities.
Above all, the relentless question remains about the school building itself: The event took place inside the Greek minority school in Koptero. Was official permission ever given for the use of the school premises, by whom was it signed, and—most importantly—was the actual reason and content of the event articulated with clarity and honesty?
The Greek state and the competent authorities must stop turning a blind eye and be held accountable for the tolerance shown to the consular shadow state.
Historical Reminder
August 30, 1922, constitutes for Hellenism the day of remembrance of the beginning of the tragedy of the Asia Minor Catastrophe, marking the end of the Asia Minor Campaign, the crushing of Greek forces in the Battle of Dumlupınar, and the beginning of persecution, massacres, and the uprooting of hundreds of thousands of Greeks from their ancestral homes in Ionia. While Turkey celebrates this day as “Victory Day” and Armed Forces Day, for Greece it remains the ill-omened anniversary that led to the burning of Smyrna, the martyrdom of Metropolitan Chrysostomos, and the exodus of over 1.5 million people, leaving behind an indelible historical wound.
Source: Local reports, residents’ complaints, visual material, and historical archive
Location: Koptero, Municipality of Iasmos, Rhodope
Source: TAXIARCHISpress
