The phenomenon of racism in Turkey has grown during the last three years, against immigrants and refugees in general and Arabs in particular, and has become a real threat not only to the Arab presence in Turkey, but to the security and stability of the Turkish state with the multiplicity of reasons driving this growth, and the multiplicity of parties involved in this phenomenon, which requires research in maps of causes and parties, on the one hand, and the repercussions and dangers of this on the other hand, and then search for confrontation mechanisms and how to avoid these repercussions on the third hand.

With the multiplicity of reasons driving the growth of racism in Turkey, there are many parties interacting with it to direct or contain

Building strategic stability in this region is linked in one aspect to Arab-Turkish relations, official and popular, and any decline or deterioration in these relations will be accompanied by a decline and deterioration in this stability.

Within the framework of the maps of causes and parties, there are many factors and considerations driving the growth of racism in Turkish society during the past years, some of them social, some economic, some internal political, as well as external political, and among these factors and those considerations:

  • The presence of categories of Turkish citizens who are inherently racist, in light of the growing nationalist tendencies, against immigrants in general, regardless of their nationality.
  • The emergence of groups of Turkish citizens who are racist against Syrians in particular, in the face of the large number of Syrians in the country after 2011, and the use of this card by the political opposition to escalate against the ruling regime.
  • Economic conditions have deteriorated, with the Turkish lira depreciating, inflation levels soaring, and consumer prices rising, with some accusing migrants of being the cause of this decline.
  • The increase in real estate rental prices by up to 400% compared to 2019, on all residents, citizens or immigrants, and accusing Arabs, with their large numbers in Turkey, of being the reason behind this.
  • The political situation in Turkey has worsened, the centrality of the electoral process, whether presidential and parliamentary in 2023, or municipal in 2024, and the use of immigrants as an electoral card by all political parties.
  • The shaking and even the decline of government policies in the face of the racist tide and the political exploitation of the migrant file, in an attempt by the government to contain the anger in order to secure victory in the elections.
  • The turmoil of government policies with regard to legal and security procedures in dealing with the file of residencies, nationalities and their types, and the controls for their renewal, which resulted in a state of ambiguity among tens of thousands of residents in Turkey, to the extent that some were unable to register their children in schools or universities due to the non-renewal of residency, despite his presence in the country for extended years.
  • The existence of a real gap between Turkish officials and officials of communities and entities representing migrants and refugees in Turkey of all nationalities, not only Arab nationalities, this gap gave the opportunity for bidding from some of them, which were employed within the framework of campaigns targeting immigrants on the one hand, or targeting the regime on the other hand, due to the absence of accurate information, and thus the lack of clarity of vision in dealing with many files related to migrants and refugees.
  • The existence of electronic committees and media channels for external parties that push towards aggravating the situation, in an effort to hit the Turkish economy on the one hand, and weaken the existing system on the other hand, away from talking about normalization policies, intimate relations and the language of diplomatic discourse that envelops the meetings of officials of these parties with Turkish officials, which I do not build on much in assessing the levels of their relations with Turkey, because these relations are governed by tactical practices and not by serious and objective strategic visions.
  • Turkey's normalization policies with a number of political systems in the region, and Turkey's retreat from many of the populist slogans that were raised during the first ten years after the Arab popular revolutions, these slogans raised the ceiling of the expectations of many Arab immigrants towards the Turkish regime, and with the retreat and reneging on some of them, the state of frustration and consequently the tension and anger grew among many, some of whom actually began to search for alternatives to reside in Turkey.
  • The entry of a number of Arab and Turkish "political analysts" with a popular presence on social networks on the crisis line, with the absence of accurate information about the reality of the situation for some of them, under what can be called the administration with emotions and desires, and not serious practical management based on facts and practices on the ground, and this entry unfortunately contributed from my point of view to complicating matters and not settling them.

    • On the repercussions of the crisis and its consequences, and how to confront it

    The growth of racism in any society is evidence of a defect not only in policies but in the structure of these societies, and with the inability to deal effectively with this phenomenon, the repercussions will not stop at the limits of the security and stability of the ruling political system in these countries, but will extend to the security and stability of countries and peoples, and their ability to remain united, and history is full of dozens of experiences about cases of social collapse in front of the growth of racism and nationalism and the extremism of some of them in some countries.

    Therefore, in order to preserve the unity of the Turkish state, its territorial integrity, the stability of its political, economic and social conditions, prevent it from undermining its capabilities, and remove everything that would undermine its Arab relations and extensions, it is important to adopt a number of urgent policies and measures, without complacency under the pressure of waiting for the results of the municipal elections scheduled for March 2024, and at the forefront of these measures, to activate the law clearly and decisively in the face of everyone without exception, who raise, support or stand behind racist slogans, or They carry out any practices that would fuel tension and instability inside Turkey.

    On the other hand, strengthening direct contacts between official Turkish institutions and institutions and bodies of foreign communities of migrants and refugees working in Turkey, providing data and information that would build bridges of trust, and cooperation in confronting this phenomenon, based on the fact that everyone is a partner in protecting the security and stability of the state.

    On the third hand, enhancing the capabilities and capabilities of bodies and committees concerned with dealing with the files of migration, asylum, residency (of all kinds), nationality and tourism, and increasing the number of Arabic speakers, based on the fact that Arab nationalities are the most present at the level of residency or tourism, especially since many reliable reports indicate a decline in the number of Arab tourists this year in Turkey, and even a decline in the number of Arabs enrolled in Turkish universities this year.

    And after ...

    Building strategic stability in this region is linked in one aspect to Arab-Turkish relations, official and popular, and any decline or deterioration in these relations will be accompanied by a decline and deterioration in this stability.

    It is certain that Turkey cannot do without its political and economic relations with the Arabs, and on the other hand, many Arabs, peoples and governments are in need of effective and stable relations with Turkey, and with this mutual need, there must be rational treatments for many issues and problems of these relations, foremost of which is now the issue of racism.