Lack of freedom of expression, inflation, poverty. More and more Turks are fleeing to Germany. Information from the federal police is available to DW.
Increasingly refugees and traffickers with Turkish citizenship located on the German border. This is also confirmed by data from the federal police, according to a relevant response given to Deutsche Welle.
In the first nine months of this year alone, police arrested 5,362 Turkish nationals who had illegally entered the German border. Last year it was 2,531. And in 2020, when travel was limited due to the pandemic, there were 1,629 people.
According to the Federal Police Directorate in Munich, the number of Turkish refugees from January to September 2022 increased by 254% compared to the same period last year. For the same period in 2020, the authorities even recorded a 368% increase.
The number of traffickers with Turkish passports also increased. According to the federal police, a total of 185 traffickers with Turkish citizenship were detected in the first nine months of this year. The whole of 2021 was 111 and in 2020 only 56. According to information from the refugees themselves they come to Germany via the Balkan Route. The cost varies between 6,000 and 8,000 euros per person. But why are more and more people from Turkey making this dangerous journey?
Business hope
In Turkey, both the political and economic situation have been rapidly deteriorating for a year. The government’s majority in Parliament recently passed a law that provides prison terms of up to three years for spreading “false” or “misleading” information. Pro-government prosecutors decide whether a message is false or misleading. For critics, the ‘disinformation law’ is another attempt to undermine freedom of expression and freedom of the press, ahead of parliamentary and presidential elections in the early summer of 2023.
At the same time, the galloping inflation is making the lives of citizens more and more difficult. According to official data, inflation in October was at 85.5%. Purchasing power is declining and many people cannot meet even their basic needs despite having a job.
Young people in particular are disappointed. According to a recent study, over 71% of people between the ages of 17 and 30 do not see a future in the country. Almost 82%, if they could, would leave Turkey and live abroad. The TTB Medical Association reports that by September, about 2,000 doctors had applied for work permits in a foreign country.
In the 3rd place the Turks in asylum applications
The wave of people fleeing Turkey is also reflected in the asylum statistics. According to the Federal Migration and Refugee Service, almost 16,000 Turks applied for asylum from January to October 2022, which means an increase of 175.7%. After Syria and Afghanistan, Turkey is the third country of origin of asylum seekers.
For the Member of Parliament of the Left, Clara Bünger, this development is not a surprise. As he says, the repression is increasing and the situation is becoming more and more dangerous, especially for the Kurds. Experts, such as the lawyer Dydar Keloglou, estimate that the number of refugees from Turkey will continue to increase because no one expects the political situation to ease before the elections, nor the troubled economy to improve.
DW – Elmas Topsou/ Maria Rigoutsou
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I am currently a news writer for News Bulletin247 where I mostly cover sports news. I have always been interested in writing and it is something I am very passionate about. In my spare time, I enjoy reading and spending time with my family and friends.
