Refugee associations in Ano Poli

During the first years after their settlement in Greece, refugees mainly organised in associations and unions according to their place of origin. From their inception and until the completion of the refugee rehabilitation process, these organisations took on a semi-institutional role. To illustrate, it was refugee associations that were tasked with identifying people as refugees by issuing relevant certificates. These organizations served the interests and asserted the demands of the refugee population, becoming the first step towards refugee integration into Greek political, social and economic life.

After refugees started settling in more permanently, many refugee unions and associations were created based on place of residence (sometimes even combining place of origin and place of residence). On the local level, these organisations demanded housing, rehabilitation and, in general, better living conditions for the refugees. Many of them were constituted in refugee settlements which had been created from scratch for the purpose. Simultaneously, other kinds of groups were also established, such as various charitable, political, and professional associations, as well as sports clubs.

These are the statutes of three associations, geographically covering the entire area of Ano Poli, Thessaloniki, where refugees of various origins settled en masse. Two of them had the word ‘refugees’ in their name while the third one didn’t, despite the fact that refugee welfare was one of its main objectives and the organisation was an integral part of Thessaloniki’s ‘Pan-refugee Association’.

The ‘Refugee Association of the Kule Kafe and Islahane Quarters – Proodos’ was established in 1927 and all refugees could join regardless of gender. Among its main objectives were fostering solidarity between members and local residents, ensuring urban settlement and rehabilitation for all refugees, as well as maintaining their exempt status from all obligations until these goals had been achieved.

The ‘Association for the Cinar, Profitis Ilias and Agia Aikaterini Quarters – Anagennisis’ was established in 1927. Its main objectives included ‘long-term refugee settlement and protection of their exempt status’, as well as ‘the expansion of reconstruction efforts in the region, funded by the Municipality and the State, with a view to overcrowding reduction and providing proper housing to people currently living in unhygienic and decrepit dwellings and shacks’.

Article 20 of the association’s statute mentions: ‘The Association constitutes an integral part of the Pan-refugee Association. The administrative and financial relations between the two associations are established in the statute of the Thessaloniki Pan-Refugee Association and are binding for the Association’.

The ‘Refugee Association of the Eptapyrgio Quarter – Frourion’ was established in 1929 and brought together refugees who lived within the Acropolis. Even though the word Eptapyrgio is included in its name, its statute designates ‘Yedi Kule, Thessaloniki’ as the base of its operations.

Other refugee unions from the interwar period in Ano Poli or neighbouring areas are listed below (followed by the year of their establishment): ‘Association of the Parish of Profitis Ilias and the Cinar Quarter’, 1926, ‘Agios Pavlos Quarter Union’, 1930, ‘Sykies Quarter Association’, 1930, ‘Eski Delik Neighbourhood Association – Agios Sotirios’, 1931, ‘Resident Association of Hor Hor and surrounding neighbourhoods’, 1931, ‘Association for the Akropoli region’, 1932, ‘Thessaloniki  Association of Homeless Refugees from Hor Hor Tsesme’, 1932, ‘Resident Union of Kallithea Square – Allilovoitheia’, 1933, ‘Kule Kafe Neighbourhood Society – Anagennisis’, 1933, ‘New Resident Association of the Eptapyrgio Quarter – Panorama’, 1935, as well as the sports clubs ‘Olympiakos Terpsitheas’, 1926, ‘Byzantine Sports Clubs’, 1926, ‘Cinar and Kanaris Quarter Sports Club’, 1928, and ‘Doxa – Cinar Football Club’, 1930.