What is acceptable: Turkey’s immigrants in Europe or Turkey as an EU country?

Turkey should enjoy a ‘privileged partnership’ with the European Union claimed Angela Merkel. She made opposition to Turkey’s membership the flagship of her foreign policies during the election campaign. The scepticism about Turkish membership of the European Union is not only manifested through the German Christian Democrats. Germany’s citizens point to insurmountable cultural differences and diverging historical perspectives too and claim these could make integration of the new member state impossible. Sarah Schaefer, Greg Austin and Kate Parker have tried to analyse the matter in their recent report Turks in Europe: Why we are afraid?

German fear

Why does the possibility of Turkey joining the European Union cause so much fear in German society? The changing attitude of the Germans to the Turkish minority evoked the new Immigration Act, introduced on 1 January 2005. German governments had been inviting guest workers to come to their country for many years to fill the labour shortage caused by World War Two. Germans never saw their country as an ‘immigration country’ however. Under the new legislation, immigrants have to take an active role in integrating with German society, by following German classes and taking integration courses. The CDU criticised the new law sharply, suggesting that Germany should first address the problem of integrating existing residents before admitting more immigrants. CDU politicians frequently argue against immigration on cultural grounds, warning of the risk of parallel societies and ‘ghettoisation’. The CDU proposes to concentrate on more targeted recruitment, by addressing recognised skills shortages. Labour market tests should in their view ensure that no domestic worker was available to fill the vacancy in question (CDU, Bundesgeschäftsstelle, (2003)).

Responsibilities

The integration difficulties of the Turkish population has recently become an important theme in German literature and cinema. It provoked a long expected debate about the failure of the integration. The existence of ‘parallel societies’ is slowly being accepted by the German citizens. The former policy to treat Turks as guests has worsened the isolation of Turkish women in German society. They belong to the most disadvantaged group in German society. They often do without a German passport and without electoral representation. In many cases, they do not speak German and usually they do not leave the district they live in. The policy of rejecting integration was an impulse to the formation and development of fundamentalist groups within the Turkish community, something that has come to symbolise the clash between the two cultures. A dialogue is necessary to overcome this lack of understanding and acceptance of Turks as immigrants, not as guest workers staying for just a limited period in Germany but as a significant group in German society. The new Immigration Act is the first step in the right direction and puts the responsibility for integration with the Turkish community. For the future, active participation of migrant organisations in politics will be necessary on the one hand, while the CDU and CSU should on the other hand become more open to migrants interested in politics.

Prospects

The authors of the report stress the connection between the German opposition to Turkish membership and the allegedly failed integration of the existing Turkish population in Germany. Opening the negotiations with Turkey gives that country a unique opportunity to introduce political, social and economic reforms that would transform Turkey into a modern, secular country. The rapport concludes that the prospect of Turkey’s accession to the European Union will stimulate the Turkish community in Europe to integrate and accept the culture of the hosting country.

British consensus

People in Great Britain do not fear ‘parallel societies’ like the Germans do. The prospect of Turkey’s membership did not evoke such anxiety among the British public as in Germany. The authors of the report explain the different attitude to the Turkish membership and the Turkish community in Great Britain and Germany by the different structure of the immigration. Turks in Britain can be divided into three main groups: Turkish Cypriots, mainland Turks and Kurdish refugees. Each of these groups have different traditions, cultural roots and experiences in integration. The Turkish Cypriots have a colonial connection with Great Britain and first began to migrate to Great Britain between 1945 and 1955, looking for work. They have an established position in Great Britain and are seen as a quite prosperous group. Turks from the mainland migrated to Great Britain in the late 1960s, while Kurds began to enter in large numbers in the late 1980s. According to a study conducted by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, ‘Young Turks and Kurds’, these communities do not feel a cultural gulf between themselves and the Brits. The Turkish minority do still face some socio-economic disadvantages but they have good prospects for better integration due to the combination of continued economic growth, the heterogeneity of the Turkish speaking community in Great Britain and the granting of citizenship. In contrast to Germany, British political parties showed a surprising degree of consensus on the need for labour migration between 2000 and 2004. The political debate focuses on controlling immigration that is not economically productive, especially asylum seekers.

Knowledge

In the conclusion, the authors of the report indicate there is a strong link between opposition to Turkey’s accession and weak knowledge of the country, including its migrants in Europe and historic participation in ‘European’ institutions. The problem of accepting immigrants like those from Turkey may also be explained by the fact that Europe as a whole has not promoted the advantages of migration in broad social and economic terms, as has happened in countries like the United States, Canada and Australia, which have depended heavily on migration for population growth. In Europe, there is a rising political tension with regard to immigration. Some see integration as a one-side operation, with new comers being in fact obliged to assimilate. Others believe integration is an open process, which is manageable and allows for changes in both the ‘host’ population and in that of the new-comers.

Secular

The report also touches on the issue of a secular Europe. The growing sense of religious identity among Muslim residents of Europe causes some anxiety whether Turkey can remain a secular state. According to a study commissioned by the Dutch government, religion can and should remain an important part of personal, community and national life. Taking into account Turkey’s accession, principles like freedom of religion, freedom of worship, freedom of conscience, non-discrimination on the basis of religious belief should be discussed once more on both the European and the national level.

Multiculturalism

The report stresses the importance of the term ‘multiculturalism’, which corresponds nowadays with the ethnical situation of many European countries. Discussions about a unique and unchanging national culture could prove to be detrimental for either Turkey’s accession negotiations or for policies affecting immigrants.

Katarzyna Mlynczak, Willy Brandt Centre for German and European Studies, Wroclaw

Sarah Schaefer, Greg Austin and Kate Parker, Turks in Europe: Why we are afraid? (London: The Foreign Policy Centre, 2005)