Irem Guney Columnist, Turkish Weekly Germany Corespondent printable version send your friend message to author add comment (2)

Saturday, 7 February 2009

The Partnership Agreement with the European Economic Community (EEC) has not resulted in the free movement of Turkish people in Europe. The visa application procedure is one of the most important and controversial issues today and the legal decisions have not changed much.

The situation becomes even more controversial, when you consider that restrictions on the free movement of Turkish people might be imposed even if Turkey becomes a member of the EU.

It looks like the debate on Turkey’s EU accession is never going to end. I believe that it is very important to clarify that the EU is not identical with Europe. Long before the European Union existed, Turkey was referred to as European. However today, after the opening of negotiations for becoming a “European country” - by entering the European Union -, Turkey’s Europeanness is still being discussed. That is also why it is legitimate to ask, why the door for Turkey was opened in the first place.

For the sake of readability, let’s use the concept as it is used in the mainstream. Hence, there are “European” societies who are scared of more and more Turks coming to stay in their countries, a view even espoused by some EU officials. This fear is - according to them - the legitimization for possible restrictions on the free movement of Turkish people - as if such restrictions were not already in place today.

If that were to become reality, I cannot see any difference between a privileged partnership and a full membership with restrictions on the freedom of movement.

So, if there is this fear of more and more Turks coming to Europe - again leaving aside the definition of Europe - then it becomes very important to focus our attention on those Turks that already live in Europe, the EuroTurks. To use the words of the CEPS study: Are they a bridge or a breach?[1]

One of the classical locations in Germany when it comes to EuroTurks or GermanTurks is Kreuzberg. Kreuzberg or Little Istanbul as it is sometimes called is the district where the majority of Berlin’s Turkish community has settled. Today, it is one of the most multicultural neighbourhoods in the city. Situated in direct proximity to the former Wall, it used to be an island in itself. Thus, it is not very hard to understand why Turkish immigrants did not need to learn another language stuck as they were in such an isolated area where they could stay within theır own group.

In Kreuzberg, you find the most delicious food in Berlin (I am aware of the subjectivity of this statement). In Kreuzberg, you are also likely to run into a photographer from a German daily newspaper who wants to take some stereotypical pictures to fill in the blanks next to an article on integration - one of the most hotly debated topics in Germany. Since I have moved to Germany approximately 3 years ago, I cannot recall a single week during which I did not hear the word “integration”.

In late January, the Berlin Institute for Population and Development released a study showing that among all immigrant groups, Turks are those who refuse to integrate the most[2]. On the internet, a quick search on integration in Germany yields millions of results and an immeasurable number of studies on integration. Yet, even if it is not openly expressed, for many the term integration is tantamount to the integration of Turks.

Of course, there are other studies which have quite different results. A comparison of some studies on integration made by the Turkish embassy in 2002, demonstrated that many standard hypotheses about Turks living in Germany have to be rejected, especially those alleging a low estimation of education in Turkish families, or the prevalence of violent and criminal tendencies.

Yet, there are only few studies like this one. And studies alone cannot change people’s minds that quickly; changing ideas is a very difficult thing especially when prejudices have been built up over many years.

When we discuss cases of Turkish people living in Europe and their integration, do we discuss their integration or rather the question to what extent Turkish people are European and will be perceived as European? Should we maybe ask, what is European?

You can argue about the cultural, geographical and political definitions of Europe. But one thing is widely accepted: “Europe” is about values as the EU itself was founded based on “the principles of liberty, democracy, respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, and the rule of law”.

But I do not think that it is a democratic approach if those Turks that moved to and settled in Germany, and whose kids may have become German citizens, still do not have the right to vote in elections although they have been living here for more than 30 years. Are they not a part of “Europe” or should we say “Western” Europe?

Given the open admission that many people fear a huge wave of immigration from Turkey to Europe, should we not ask if the EuroTurks are in fact the reason for the restrictions on the freedom of movement for Turkish citizens from Turkey? Or are they actually the bridge between Western Europe and Turkey with their dynamism, new market opportunities, bilingualism and so on?

It is not easy to answer all the questions, although you cannot avoid facing them in your daily life if you are a Turk in Germany. In that case, it does not matter if you are a EuroTurk or not; as somebody from Turkey, you must have answers.

But I do not always have answers. I do not know how integration became such a big problem and topic of discussion. I read and heard about it, but I wasn’t here. Now I am here, and I want to be careful with words. I have rather got a feeling than an answer: Germany’s Turks belong to two worlds. They are at home both in Germany and Turkey.

And when I read in the newspaper about young EuroTurks taking new entrepreneurial steps, when I hear about a German-Turkish politician, talk with my German friends who want to learn Turkish, I become more hopeful about the strength of “European” values.

Then I read that it has been a whole year since the fire in Ludwigshafen killed 9 Turkish citizens. After the fire there were huge discussions about the possibility of a racist attack like in Solingen in the 1990s. The Ludwigshafen-file is now closed and the state attorney has not found any incriminating evidence. Still, even the likeliness of such an attack is bad enough. That is why I just cling to my hope for the strength of these European values.