Özet:

One of the issues discussed at the peace conference in Lausanne, Switzerland in 1922 was the Western Thrace region. The region was discussed under three main topics. First, the plebisit for the region was discussed. The second title concerning Western Thrace was the population exchange. As a result of the discussions under this title, it was decided that Muslims living in the Western Thrace region should be excluded from the population exchange. Thus, the legal status of the Western Thrace Turks who were excluded from the population exchange was born. In this respect, minority rights of Western Thrace Turks were determined under the third and final title. In the first part of the study, these developments in Lausanne will be discussed in general and the legal status of Western Thrace Turks in accordance with the provisions of Lausanne will be determined. In the second part of the study, the basis of the minority rights of Western Thrace Turks in today’s legal system will be shown. In this second part, we will also investigate why Western Thrace Turks do not fully acquire their minority rights under Lausanne. On the other hand, the question of whether there is a connection between human rights violations in the region and minority rights violations will be sought.

Anahtar Kelimeler: