Turkish Court Disbands Assyrian Association Over ‘Unity’ in Its Name
April 2015
A Court of First Instance in the southeast province of Mardin, Turkey ordered a Syriac [Assyrian] association to disband due to the word “unity” in its name and title “co-chair” used for the leadership.
The Mardin 2nd Court of General Sessions ordered the Mardin Syriac Unity Association to disband, stating that the word “unity” should not be used in the name of an association.
Additionally the court stated that an association’s president should be a single person and not a “co-chair,” which the association uses instead as a way of having one male and one female leader.
The court previously had banned another association, the Anatolian Arab Unity Movement Association, for the same reasons.
Speaking about the decision, association head Yuhanna Akta? said they would objection to the ruling, adding that if their objection is rejected they would apply to the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR).
© Assyrian International News Agency.
