Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) Language, Culture, Art, Sports and Education Policy Commission sent a letter to international institutions on the occasion of World Child Rights Day. HDP has sent a letter to the United Nations Children's Committee, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, the Anti-Discrimination and Equality Committee, UNESCO and UNICEF regarding the violations of rights by preventing the right to education in the mother tongue and bans on Kurdish in all areas of life in Turkey.

 

Drawing attention to the fact that millions of children in Turkey are deprived of their rights and forced to live with problems greater than their age, the letter reads, “There are countless violations against children in Turkey including child abuse, discrimination and violence against girls, child labour, refugee children, children with disabilities, children in prison, children in the grip of war and physical violence, increasing dependency as a result of social and economic conditions, children deprived of their right to education in their mother tongue and children who are exposed to assimilation policies."

 

EDUCATION IN MOTHER TONGUE

 

In the letter that underlined the importance of efforts to develop and implement multilingual or bilingual education models like it is done in many countries of the world, including authoritarian states, it was  said, “However, in Turkey, especially Kurdish children, children whose mother tongue is not Turkish, are not allowed to receive education in their mother tongue. It is strictly prohibited by Article 42 of the Constitution. In addition, other ethno-religious groups in Turkey are forced to take compulsory religion classes and are deprived of learning their own beliefs. Today, millions of children living in Turkey cannot receive education in their mother tongue."

 

CALL TO UN CHILDREN'S RIGHTS COMMITTEE

 

The letter continues as follows, "It is very important to ensure and implement equal rights and opportunities for children, who are the continuation of the common future of humanity, to live in a more just, free, democratic and peaceful world and to receive education in their mother tongue. Children's rights are also fundamental human rights. The restrictive and prohibitive practices regarding children's rights in Turkey show that children's rights remain only on paper. Children's most basic rights are under threat. We think that the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child should assume an observer duty in order to ensure that the Convention on the Rights of the Child fulfills its responsibilities to all parties that have signed the Convention to ensure and implement all other rights of children in Turkey, especially their right to education in their mother tongue, and to implement universal legal norms. The implementation of the aforementioned universal legal norms by the parties remains a historical responsibility of the relevant committee of the UN. On the occasion of this day, you reminding the importance of each article of the contract and its place in the development of the child is very important."