Director of Communications Altun: "Today, populist tendencies in the media and politics are fueling hatred toward immigrants and refugees, sadly leading to an increase in racism and xenophobia. Reproducing prejudices against refugees and immigrants in the media and politics only serves to perpetuate the oppression."
In the opening speech of the Immigrants and Media Workshop organised by the International Media Information Association (UMED) with the support of the Presidency’s Directorate of Communications, the Presidency’s Director of Communications Fahrettin Altun said, "Türkiye, as a stabilising force, has fought for its own security and stability, as well as the security and stability of the countries in the region, on the field and at the negotiating table. In this respect, Türkiye has set a precedent for the rest of the world through its realistic and humane migration policy."
Director of Communications Altun noted that the latest century has witnessed a dizzying set of events and humanity to transformations unprecedented in any other century of history and emphasised that we are now confronted with a world scene in which international balances shift through wars and crises, and uncertainties and humanitarian tragedies reign supreme.
Director of Communications Altun said that they saw in this landscape a simultaneous weakening of the established rules, norms, and behaviour patterns pertaining to the international system, noting that one of the most pressing issues facing the world today is the issue of "migration and refugees."
"Decision-makers should avoid attitudes that may trigger migration sentiments"
Noting that migration is a dramatic process that most of the time begins with people being forced to flee their country and continues for an indefinite period of time, Director of Communications Altun stated, "At this point, the most critical issue is for decision-makers to avoid attitudes and behaviours that may trigger migration sentiments, to act rationally and with common sense, and to not jeopardise the lives and future of millions of people."
Quoting the Gokturk State's prominent Turkish statesman Tonyuquq the wise, "When something is thin, it is easy to pierce it; when something is thick, it is difficult, or impossible, to pierce it," Director of Communications Altun explained that the saying meant that it is easier to solve a problem at its root than later.
Director of Communications Altun underlined that the media and media members had critical responsibilities in this regard, stating that the workshop will discuss the media's role in resolving the migration issue and how to produce more accurate, objective, and fair representations of migrants in the media, free of personal and global ambitions and desires.
Director of Communications Altun said that as they left behind a period when globalisation rhetoric and liberalisation tendencies peaked, they noticed that the West was undergoing a social state crisis on the one hand and a political disintegration trend on the other.
Director of Communications Altun said, "At this stage, the Western world, unfortunately, appears in the international arena as a cultural geography where racism is intensifying, xenophobia is escalating, and social ghettoisation is expanding."
"Türkiye has set a precedent for the rest of the world through its realistic and humane migration policy"
Director of Communications Altun said that a new era had begun in which problems ceased to be national and took on an international status, and added:
"In such an atmosphere, Türkiye is trying to exist, expand, and prosper in geography full of challenges and witnessing serious humanitarian and political crises. The developments in our region, particularly after 2010, resulted in the establishment of fragmented states, the growth of terrorism, and the emergence of the worldwide migrant and refugee problem.
Türkiye, as a stabilising force, has fought for its own security and stability, as well as the security and stability of the countries in the region, on the field and at the negotiating table. It has made highly tangible progress. Türkiye has set a precedent for the rest of the world through its realistic and humane migration policy."
"Türkiye was the country that faced the migration problem most severely"
Emphasising that the whole world is facing the migration problem today, Director of Communications Altun said, "However, Türkiye was the country that faced the migration problem most severely. This was not our choice. In our region, there was a massive fire. We did not start this fire; on the contrary, we have worked hard to put it out and will continue to do so."
Underlining that Türkiye is attempting to heal the wounds of the victims of this fire, that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan stands by the victims and is working to heal and remedy their wounds through the policies he implements as the conscience of humanity, Director of Communications Altun made the following remarks:
"What caused this fire to start? Let us clarify; it arose as a result of the new West-centred neo-colonialism policy. It erupted as a result of the greedy and destructive practices of our region's Westernist political collaborators. It started as a result of mistakes made by minority governments, who became estranged from their own society under the tutelage of foreign powers, and it came at a high cost. This cost was supposed to be borne by the people of the region in which we live, by the oppressed peoples.
Türkiye has borne the greatest burden in this regard. The issue of terrorism and immigrants stemming from Syria gravitated towards our country. With its long-term colonialist Middle East policy, the Western world has been both the source of the problem and has failed to contribute to the solution of recent global terrorism and immigration problems. It has pretended to make contributions but has failed to do so. Throughout this process, Türkiye confronted and handled these issues with tenacity under the leadership of our President.”
Number of international migrants likely to reach 405 million by 2050
Director of Communications Altun pointed out the tragedy endured by asylum seekers due to the political and military conflicts in the world and drew attention to the fact that the number of refugees in the world, which was 2 million in 1960, has reached 26 million today, according to the data of the United Nations High Commissioner.
Stating that the number has reached 76 million, including the displaced people and also people seeking asylum, Director of Communications Altun said, "According to the United Nations data if this number continues to rise at the same rate as in the previous 20 years, the number of international migrants in the world is likely to reach 405 million by 2050.”
Director of Communications Altun emphasised that Türkiye, which has long faced this bitter reality of the 21st century, has done its part as a responsible actor for a safer world for all.
"Nearly 500 thousand Syrian brothers and sisters have returned to their countries"
Director of Communications Altun stated that Türkiye was, on the one hand, protecting those who fled from war, terrorism and massacres, and on the other hand, it worked and continued to work with all its power to establish an honourable, safe and voluntary return opportunity for the displaced people.
Director of Communications Altun added:
"Türkiye has made exceptionally successful endeavours as a stabilising power to establish safe zones free of terrorism by deploying the elements of hard power beyond its borders. At this point, President Erdoğan acted decisively and articulated a very clear position on the Syrian crisis, which has been one of the primary drivers of refugee and migration issues in recent years, despite opposition, most notably from the Western world.
In this sense, Operations Olive Branch, Euphrates Shield, and Peace Spring maintained our border security, eradicated terrorist threats to our country and region, severely curtailed terrorist organisations, and established a vast safe zone in Syrian lands, allowing for the return of the displaced. Indeed, almost 500 thousand Syrian brothers and sisters have returned safely, voluntarily, and honourably to the territories of northern Syria that we have secured thus far."
“We attach great importance to ensuring that they return to their countries safely, voluntarily, and honourably”
Director of Communications Altun said, “We attach great importance to ensuring that the oppressed people who have been displaced from their homelands return to their countries safely, voluntarily, and honourably. This is a critical component of our migration policy. In this sense, our actions are substantive, not rhetorical, and as a transformational actor in the region, we make efforts that contribute to the region’s stability and peace.”
Recalling that President Erdoğan presented the "safe zone free from terrorism" proposal at the UN General Assembly 2.5 years ago in the clearest and most concrete way, allowing 1 million Syrian refugees to return to their homes, Director of Communications Altun stated that this initiative did not receive the necessary support in Western nations.
“We are the target of disinformation campaigns”
Director of Communications pointed out that today, Germany currently hosts 530 thousand Syrian immigrants, while Sweden hosts 130 thousand, and no other Western country has more than 50 thousand Syrian immigrants.
Noting that Türkiye has eight times the number of immigrants as Germany, Director of Communications Altun made the following assessments:
“It is unimaginable that such a vast population would have no socio-economic impact on the country to which they relocated. In this regard, it is critical that politicians, in their assessments of asylum seekers, and the media, in their coverage of refugees, demonstrate sensitivity in terms of human and professional values. It is self-evident that comments and news based on populist discourses, far from being objective, have the potential to foster the emergence of serious societal issues.
Today, unfortunately, we are subjected to disinformation campaigns aimed at negatively affecting and shaping the social perception of Syrians residing in Türkiye through all means of communication, most notably social media platforms.”
“Asylum seekers and immigrants are most exposed to disinformation”
Director of Communications Altun stated that the issue of “asylum seekers and immigrants” stands out as one of the areas where Türkiye’s efforts are mostly overlooked and exposed to disinformation.
Reminding that in the recent past, there was even a claim that “Britain would establish refugee facilities for Afghans in Türkiye” and that the media outlet that spread this fake news apologised upon the attempts taken to demonstrate that the claim was false, Director of Communications Altun emphasised that they actively monitored disinformation campaigns and perception management operations aimed at reasserting a negative attitude toward immigration in the society.
Director of Communications Altun pointed out that as the Directorate of Communications, they also struggled with information pollution and disinformation regarding Syrian refugees in the Turkish and international public.
Reminding that in this context, they organised field visits to terrorist-free-zones at the Syrian border, Aegean, Mediterranean and Syria with the participation of international media members to explain Türkiye’s fight against irregular migration to the international community in the best way possible, Director of Communications Altun said that representatives of leading media outlets of many countries ranging from the USA to Japan, from Sweden to Italy, watched the events from the coast guard boats.
Director of Communications Altun stated that through these media efforts, Türkiye’s investments and activities in safe zones established on Syrian territory, how irregular migration to Türkiye and Europe was taken under control, and how the pressure of irregular migration to Europe increased due to the regime attacks in Syria and the threats from the PKK/YPG terrorist organisation were demonstrated.
Stating that they were also informed about how refugee boats were sunk in the Aegean Sea and the Meriç River, how innocent people were left to die, and even how families who set foot in the European Union were put on boats by armed people and thrown into Turkish waters, Director of Communications Altun underlined that they showed how Türkiye was a stabilising force in the era of global chaos.
“We will continue to tell the world what is happening on the field”
Emphasising that such efforts were a part of the struggle with the truth, Director of Communications Altun said, “Despite all denial policies and disinformation attempts, we will continue to tell the world what is happening on the field. All the activities we have carried out have helped international actors and countries to appreciate Türkiye’s efforts in this regard from time to time.”
“To reproduce prejudices is to make persecution permanent”
Underlining that immigrants and asylum seekers were not the source of the problem but the victims of the problem, Director of Communications Altun said:
“Today, populist tendencies in media and politics fuel the hatred towards immigrants and asylum seekers and unfortunately cause racism and xenophobia to rise. To reproduce prejudices against asylum seekers and immigrants in media and politics is to make the persecution permanent.
We need a fair approach, data-based journalism, real-life stories, and a unifying and integrating language to represent immigrants in the media. We can achieve this, and we must achieve it. As we have seen countless times throughout history, hate speech leaves behind pages of disgrace. We should in no way give credit to efforts to create a climate of fear. We wish and hope that no nation, no society, will be forced to flee the lands they were born and raised in, that no one will be deprived of peace and tranquillity. Humanity, which has endured similar issues for centuries, should keep its memory alive and set aside the discriminatory and marginalising policies for the next periods.”
Expressing his gratitude to all academics, journalists and speakers who contributed to the Immigrants and Media Workshop, Director of Communications Altun said that he believed the final declaration to be put forward at the end of the Workshop would also assume an extremely strategic function.
Aslan Değirmenci, President of the International Media Information Association, presented Director of Communications Altun with a hand-woven Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque tapestry after his speech.
Following Director of Communications Altun’s speech, the Workshop continued with a session in which academics and journalists discussed the topics of Immigrant News and Analysis in the Media, Targeting of Immigrants in the Media, and the Impact of the Media on Perception of Immigrants.
