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This huge half wrecked structure of 23,000 square meters on the top of a large hill covered by a rich pinewood forest, is visible to anyone who sails around the waters of Prinkipo Island. In spite of its present day ghost-like appearance, this masterpiece of Ottoman wooden craftsmanship which was initially built to be used as an hotel during Sultan Abdul Hamid´s time, was bought by the Istanbul Greek banker Georgios Zarifis in 1902 and was donated to the Greek Patriarchate in Istanbul to be used as an orphanage for the destitute children of the Istanbul Greek (Rum) community. As “Foundation of the Greek Orphanage” it was apparently accepted as a “legal entity” as it was mentioned in the statement filed by the Foundation in 1936 according to the Foundations Law (Law 2762/1935). A focal point for the life of the Istanbul Greek Community, it operated for six decades until the Turkish state decided to close it down in 1964 “for the fear of fire” and was kept closed as an “attached foundation.” In 1997 the Turkish General Directorate of Foundations declared it a “mazbut vakif” canceled its Secretariat and started collecting its income from 11 smaller properties belonging to it. The Patriarchate appealed to the Turkish courts, lost the case and in 2005 the Directorate of Foundations secured a verdict through the Turkish courts by which the Istanbul Greek Orthodox Patriarchate could not own any real estate as it does not possess any “legal entity” according to the Lausanne Treaty. In 2006, the Orphanage Foundation was transferred to the registered list of foundations belonging to the Turkish Foundation Directorate.
http://www.turkishdailynews.com.tr/article.php?enewsid=109725
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