İşhan Erdinç

In Istanbul, Turkish Language and Literature teacher İsmibey Güşeli faced disciplinary action for bringing Agos and Evrensel newspapers to the teachers' lounge and allegedly "praising Armenians" in conversations with colleagues. Güşeli was reassigned from Avcılar Firüzköy Anatolian High School to Kadriye Moroğlu Anatolian High School in Küçükçekmece, while also receiving penalties including the suspension of professional step advancement and salary deductions. Güşeli has filed a lawsuit against the Istanbul Governor's Office for the cancellation of the disciplinary actions and the reassignment.

The economic bottleneck experienced by a portion of the Armenian community maintains its place on the agenda. The Patriarchal Social Aid Commission (PSYK), church poor relief branches, and the Mer Hayer (Our Armenians) Association are implementing various steps to combat poverty within the community during this process. While food aid is the first thing that comes to mind when poverty is mentioned, the needs of community members such as health, housing, utility expenses, or funerals never come to mind and therefore never reach the agenda. Considering that a normal funeral ceremony in the Armenian community currently costs a minimum of 180,000 TL, it is obvious that this cannot be met by every family. This very poverty and economic bottleneck has been manifesting itself in the funeral ceremonies of the Armenian community for some time. Some families are forced to turn to funeral ceremonies held in cemetery chapels because they struggle to cover church and other funeral expenses. When this path is preferred, a significant decrease in funeral ceremony fees occurs. However, this decrease of approximately 50% still constitutes a high amount for poor families in mourning and puts them in a difficult situation.

The Court of Cassation stage has been concluded in the "Priests’ Houses" (Papazevleri) lawsuit between the Kumkapı Meryemana Patriarchal Church Foundation and businessman Norayr İşler. The 3rd Civil Chamber of the Court of Cassation ruled in favor of İşler, upholding the decisions rendered by the local court and the Court of Appeals.

The "Legal Personality and Property Issues of Community Foundations in the Context of Minority Rights" conference, organized by the Beyoğlu Üç Horan Church Foundation, has commenced in Istanbul. The two-day event features prominent legal experts and academics specializing in minority issues.

The fact that no new students were enrolled at Phanar Greek Orthodox College for the 2025-2026 academic year, had caused public repercussion. 31 students are currently receiving education at the 571-year-old school. On the other hand The Ministry of National Education announced that the building must be vacated within 90 days for reinforcement work. Principal Dimitri Zotos stated that they cannot afford the cost and are searching for a new building.

After years of legal battles, efforts to find funding for the renovation of the dilapidated The Pringipos Greek Orphanage (İstanbul-Turkey) , which was returned to the Greek community, have been unsuccessful. The Ecumenical Patriarchate decided to “take the necessary steps to develop tourism activities.” Laki Vingas, who has been working for years to find resources, said in a statement to Agos, “It is impossible for such a large building to survive without a source of income. The Patriarchate had to make a rational decision,” and emphasized that there was no political intervention.

There has been an important development regarding the Maryakop Armenian Church Foundation, which was established to manage the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem’s properties in Turkey but was given the status of “fused foundation” (foundation with no service left) by the General Directorate of Foundations (GDF) in 1973. A court ruling finalized that the foundation would not be deemed as an fused foundation. Following the decision, the General Directorate of Foundations sent a letter to the relevant places stating that the Maryakop Foundation will be removed from the status of fused foundation and will be registered as an active community foundation.

Protests against Aram Ateşyan, who maintains his seat as General Vicar of the Patriarch, continued this week. People gathered in front of Feriköy Surp Vartanants Church for staging protest.

Two teams from Istanbul gained success in Euro Armenian Games which was held in Geneva between April 14 and 16. “Sassoun Lugano” team from Switzerland featured Hrant Dink's photo on their uniform.