Panel and Film Screening: "Re-Constructing Citizenship: Non-Muslim Foundations in Turkey"

On January 24th, 2009, Saturday, TESEV Democratization Program organized a discussion panel titled "Re-Constructing Citizenship: Non-Muslim Foundations in Turkey" in Çanakkale with the support of the Association to Support a Humane Life (İnsanca Yaşama Derneği). The panel, which was open to the public, was followed by the screening of TESEV's documentary on 'residual' citizens.

 

The panel was moderated by Dilek Kurban, Program Officer of the Democratization TESEV Program, and the speakers were Etyen Mahçupyan, the Director of TESEV Democratization Program and Kezban Hatemi, expert on minority law.

 

Following the discussion, a screening of the film 'residual' citizens took place. Prepared by SUFilm within the scope of the "Minority Rights and Constitutional Citizenship Project" conducted by TESEV's Democratization Program, the documentary examines the property problems of non-Muslim foundations in Turkey. The documentary aims to shed a light on the survival struggle of these foundations whose properties got confiscated through unlawful practices since the end of 1950's, and to reveal the meaning of this struggle for the daily lives of Turkey's non-Muslim citizens.