From: sachz@montebello.ecom.unimelb.EDU.AU (SAS)
Subject: *** Anti-Macedonian Legal Acts [in Greece] ***
Followup-To:  soc.culture.yugoslavia,soc.culture.europe
Summary: List of Greek Govt Acts clearly against Macedonians.
Originator: sachz@montebello.ecom.unimelb.EDU.AU
Organization: Dept. Engineering Computer Resources, Melbourne Uni.
Date: Wed, 23 Dec 1992 00:03:38 GMT


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	The typical Greek Netter's response to earlier articles I have
	taken time to post we are all familair with. These require no
	response, for their time isn't of interest. By retaliating to
	their own tactics would merely let them think there is something of
	interst to converse with them. Below are actual GREEEK LAWS which
	show *CLEAR DISCRIMINATORY* actions by successive Greek Governments
	against Macedonians of Macedonia!! People have asked for official
	reports, not just loose journalistic ends. Elaborations of official
	material is provided at the reference below. Many people wonder about
	Macedonian Minority in Greece, which Greece tries to neglect. There
	is another side to the opposition of Greek Prime Minister Mitsotakis,
	on recognising the Independence of the Republic of Macedonia.
	Having Macedonia recognised internationally he would have to explain 
	the past treatment of a minority group within his borders, which due
	to discriminatory laws (which is common in Greek history, re: turkish,
	and many other minorities) he would have a hard time explaining himself.
	Fortunately, these are already being looked into by western governments
	having seen evidence of the facts, becoming aware of the problem.
	Enjoy.

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II. Anti-Macedonian Legal Acts [in Greece]

   In order to justify their shameful and inhumane practices, the
Greek authorities have issued a number of legal Acts infringing the
identity of the Macedonian nation. It should be noticed that all the
Acts run counter to the decisions of the agreement of August 10,
1920 and to the international legal Acts binding in this respect.
Despite this, they are still in force.

   Here are some of these inhumane Acts which give clear evidence of
disregard for not only the Macedonian nation but also for world
public opinion at large. They portray the cynicism of successive
Greek governments.

  * November 1926: a legal Act was issued on the charge of Macedonian
    geographic names into the Greek version. The news was published
    in the governments daily Efimeris tis Kivernisoes No. 332 of
    November 21, 1926. The same newspaper in its No. 346 published the
    new, official, Greek names. The names of the people were changed
    too. First names as well as family names were changed to Greek
    versions. These are still officially binding to this day.
    (text provides ref. to enclosures 2 and 3).

  * 1929: during the rule of Eleatarios Venizelos a legal Act was
    issued "On the protection of public order". In line with this Act
    each demand for nationality rights is regarded as high treason.
    (Please compare this with his statement of November 11, 1930
    above.) This law is still in force.

  * On December 18, 1936 Metaksas' dictatorial government issued a
    legal Act "On the activity against state security" on the strength
    of which thousands of Macedonians were arrested, imprisoned or
    expelled.

  * On September 7, 1938 the legal Act No. 2366 was issued which
    banned the use of the Macedonian language. All Macedonian
    localities were flooded with posters: "Speak Greek". Evening
    schools were opened in which adult Macedonians were taught Greek.
    Not a single Macedonian school functioned at that time.

  * In 1947, during the Greek Civil War, the legal Act L-2 was issued
    on the strength of which all who left Greece without consent of
    the Greek government were stripped of Greek citizenship and
    banned from returning to the country (see enclosure 10). This
    included Greeks and Macedonians. In its modernized version the
    Act is still binding for Macedonians.

  * On January 20, 1948 the legal Act called M was issued on the
    strength of which the property of those who were stripped of
    their citizenship was confiscated. The law was updated in 1985,
    but it is still binding on Macedonians.

  * On August 23, 1953 the legal Act No. 2536 was issued, on the
    strength of which all those who left Greece and who did not
    return within three years time could be deprived of their
    property.

   A decision on the resettlement of Macedonians was taken. A
wide-flung campaign was launched in the mass media to induce the
Macedonians to leave their native areas voluntarily and to settle in
the south of the country and on the islands. The Greek authorities
intended to create a 60 kilometre-wide belt along the border with
Yugoslavia where "the faithful sons of the Greek nation" were to be
settled.

   In the first point of this Act it is stated that the resettlement
was necessary owing to the humanitarian aspect of the matter as the
living standard of the Macedonians would improve. The actual
intention was to separate Macedonians living in Greece from the
Republic of Macedonia, then part of Yugoslavia. Due to a firm
reaction from Yugoslavia the realization of the shameful plan was
cancelled.

  * 1959: the legal Act No. 3958 was issued, on the strength of
    which the land of those who left Greece and did not return
    within five years time was confiscated. The law was amended
    in 1985, but it is still binding on Macedonians.

   Acts from the years 1948, 1953 and 1959 concerning property
confiscation are a consequence of the 1947 ban on returning.

  * 1962: the legal Act No. 4234 was issued, on the strength of
    which persons who were stripped of their Greek citizenship were
    banned from returning to Greece. The ban on crossing the Greek
    border also extends to spouses and children! It is still in
    force for Macedonians, even those who left Greece as children.

  * 1969: a legal Act was issued on the strength of which the
    settlement of the unoccupied Macedonian farms by Greeks by
    origin was permitted.

   Currently it is planned to locate on this territory over one
   hundred thousand immigrants of Greek origin from the ex-Soviet
   Union. In the future this will be a source of new national
   tensions.

  * On December 29, 1982 during the rule of Andreas Papandreou the
    legal Act No. 106841 was issued. On the strength of that Act
    only Greeks by origin had the right to Greek citizenship and the
    right to return to Greece restored. Macedonians born in Greece
    and their families have been excluded. They were and are doomed
    to live in exile. Heads of various rungs of the state
    administration received the right to make free use of the
    property left in Greece by Macedonian refugees.

   The Greek authorities refer to that hostile Act whenever they
reject Macedonian demands for the recovery of Greek citizenship
taken away by default. They refer to that "law" even in their
explanations to the Centre for Human Rights in Geneva! (text
provides ref. to enclosures 10 and 11).

   The Universal Declaration of Human Rights - Paris, December 1948:

  Art. XIII, Point 2: "Everyone has the right to leave every
                      country, including one's own, and to return
                      to his own country."

  Art. XV, Point 1: "Each man has the right to have a citizenship."

  Art. XV, Point 2: "No one can be freely dispossessed of his
                    citizenship."

  * In April 1985 during the rule of Andreas Papandreou the next
    hostile Act, No. 1540, was issued. This amended the previously
    issued Acts regulating the property relations so as to make it
    absolutely impossible for Macedonians to return. This Act
    permits the recovery of illegally seized property to "Greeks by
    origin only". The Macedonian refugees from Greece are excluded.

   The Universal Declaration of Human Rights - Paris, December 1948:

  Art. XVII, Point 2: "Nobody can be deprived of his property freely."

  * On August 30, 1989 a legal Act rehabilitating the participants
    in the Greek Civil War of 1946-49 was issued. These
    participants had hitherto been recognized as bandits.

   The Act granted damages and disability pensions to fighters in
the civil war who now have Greek citizenship. By the same toke, the
Macedonian fighters living in exile - who earlier had been stripped
of their citizenship - were eliminated.



What Europe Had Forgotten:
The Struggle of the Aegean Macedonians.
A Report by the Association of Macedonians in Poland.

Published by POLITECON PUBLICATIONS
PO Box 57, Asquith NSW 2077, Australia.
ISBN 0 646 12211 8