Turkey may ban schoolchildren from Armenia from enrolling in Armenian private schools in the country according to a report published in Istanbul-based Armenian weekly Agos.
The paper reports that inspectors from Turkey’s Education Ministry visited Armenian schools in Istanbul and told school administrators they would no longer be allowed to accept students from Armenia and that these students would have to continue their education at state schools.
On March 20, 2012, the ministry’s Regulation on Private Educational Institutions was published in Turkey’s Resmi Gazete (Official Gazette),the only official journal of Turkey that publishes the new legislation and other official announcements.
It stated: “Foreign-national guest students may also attend schools, subject to the institution’s enrollment quota; however, these students may not receive diplomas. Students who leave the school shall receive a document prepared by the school administration listing the courses they attended and the grades they earned.”
Armenian private schools have been accepting students from Armenia for nearly fourteen years, taking this provision into account. However, diplomas cannot be issued to these students.
Agos writes that the inspectors came with lists containing the names of students from Armenia, asked about the fate of guest students who had received education in previous years, and raised the demand that the students’ current registrations, if there is any, be transferred to state schools.
These inspections are not limited to Armenian schools, and that Greek and Jewish schools are also within their scope.
Armenian schools, which have educated students from Armenia for many years without facing such problems, are now awaiting a resolution. School administrators are expected to meet in the coming days to discuss the issue, and Patriarch Sahak Mashalian, the Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople, is also understood to have been informed.
The ministry’s request is being criticized on the grounds that it would restrict students’ right to education.
Photo: agos.com