What the Greek Foreign Ministry and the world view of the name “N. Epirus” today

As of 1913 when the northern part of Epirus was by the Great Powers cut off being rendered to the newly constituted Albanian state, the name “N. Epirus” has repeatedly been used by Greece on an international level. Today officially it is come across within the framework of legal statutes of the Hellenic state in clauses concerning fellow-country N. Epirotans but also in the office of the Metropolitan of Dryinoupolis, as “exarch of all N. Epirus”. Of course, it is due to ignorance, fixation or servicing foreign interests that certain circles in Greece view the name “N. Epirus” as a kind of war cry. Extremely representative of the kind was the recent letter of the Chairman to the Pedagogic Institute addressing the N. Epirotan Youth. In response to their expostulation in regard with leaving N. Epirus’ Hellenism out of school books he promised an addendum of relative references would come up using thrice the term “Greek Minority in N. Epirus”.

But what happens in the rest of the world? The Greek Foreign Ministry pertinent to inform citizens worldwide has not probably been aware of the name “N. Epirus” In its website the “Greek minority in Albania” is referred to with the same wording as the communities in S. Italy or in Egypt.  But luckily enough there exist about the foreign websites. In Internet’s Encyclopedia “WIKIPEDIA” alone, the entry “N.Epirus” offers information in 12 languages: Northern Epirus, Epiri i Veriut, Nordepirus, Epiro del Norte, Épire du Nord, Epiro settentrionale, Severný Epirus, ??????? ????, ???????? ????, ?????????. In related bibliographic links anyone would bump into a plethora of writings under foreign titles in which the name is used as such. It should also be mentioned that in such writings N. Epirus comprises the entire historical area and not just the so-called “acknowledged” villages. According to the British version in the area around Avlona there are 8.000 Greeks inhabitants. A striking doctoral thesis with an in situ research carried out in Drymades around Chimara , by Nova Goriça University in Slovenia analyzes the “N. Epirotan” identity. As about Korytsa, in the encyclopedia’s Portuguese version, there are sources in the 19^th century underlined, by which is purported that “2/3 of the population are consisting of Greek Orthodox people “.

However what leaves our Foreign Ministry irretrievably exposed is the ……Italians’ activity regarding the N. Epirus Question in the official website of Italy’s National Council for International Law Research (ISGI) under the 1147/3 title “La questione dell’ Epiro settentrionale” as well as that of Serbian Foreign Ministry’s official website placing it among issues concerning Kosovo-Metohjia! Furthermore for philatelists around the world N. Epirus is in the list of states since it existed as independent entity during its Autonomy in 1914 while its stamps issued at the time, part of the Moscow World Philatelist Lexicon in 1988, are smashing!

As Catalans managed to put their region’s name on the map as Cataluña and not just N.E Spain, Scotts the name Scotland instead of Northern U.K., so will the N. Epirotans, with historical truth and international law at their side, get that their homeland be called N. Epirus “erga omnes”.

Related article published in the “N. Epirotan Tribune” issue July-August 2009 titled:

At last the Foreign Ministry’s website should be updated!

Βόρειος Ήπειρος, Northern Epirus, Epire du Nord, Epiro del Norte, ???????? ????, an internationally accepted name, an issue well known to any sound political analyst around the world provisioning very often research and news reports. The struggles of the N.Epirotans make the world think, get people interested in and incited. No doubt there are people who are less interested in the question. Just like the official website of the Greek Foreign Ministry! As there is nothing related to the issue in that site, whereas it is the official speech of Greece through the Internet, we have suggestively turned to research some information among the thousands of reports with the view to be of assistance to our Ministry’s website so that it would redact a relative report. Thus,we would strongly recommend that Foreign Ministry’s official visit the website of Italy’s National Council for International Law Research (ISGI) as about the N.Epirus question’s history, the official site of Minorities’ Rights Group (MRG) -a UN associate- regarding encroachment of human rights of Greeks in N. Epirus. The Serbian Foreign Ministry’s official website,- under a subcategory where the Serbian Ministry handles issues such as Kosovo-Metohjia- regarding prospects of possible resolutions of our issue. The geopolitical analysis, including the possible reclassification in Europe, in the website of the Spanish news agency Asinorum, as about figuring out the exact location of… N. Epirus. Finally you are kindly requested to read an article posted on the Russian news agency RPMonitor’s website referring to Metropolitan of Dryinoupolis’ struggles and the organizations for N. Epirus’ struggle if you wish to figure out who we are and perhaps express your thankfulness.