Armenian expat children to continue attending Istanbul schools under “guest student” status
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Armenian schools in Istanbul will continue to admit children of families from Armenia who will receive education in Türkiye under “guest student” status, the Istanbul Armenian newspaper Jamanak reported.
According to the report, Armenian MP Sevan Sıvacıoğlu, elected from the ruling Justice and Development Party, made the announcement after discussing the issue with Türkiye’s Minister of National Education Yusuf Tekin.
In particular, Sıvacıoğlu conveyed the minister’s statement that “there are no new regulations concerning guest students studying at schools belonging to the Armenian community.”
This means that children of families who have emigrated from Armenia and obtained the right to work or reside in Türkiye will be able to continue their education normally at local Armenian schools.
For more than a week, the Istanbul Armenian community had been discussing reports that Türkiye’s Ministry of National Education had issued a new directive banning children from Armenia from studying at local Armenian schools. Instead, according to the reports, it had been announced that these children would have to attend Turkish public schools.
The issue was also discussed at a meeting of the Union of Armenian Foundations (vakıfs) in Türkiye on August 24, which was attended by Sıvacıoğlu, Armenian Patriarch of Constantinople Archbishop Sahak Mashalyan, and directors and representatives of Armenian schools.