On the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the signing of the German-Turkish labour agreement, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan delivered a video message to a program in Germany, organised by the Presidency for Turks Abroad and Related Communities (YTB) of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism.
President Erdoğan thanked those who helped organise the 60th Anniversary of Migration to Germany Program, saying, "I extend my greetings and love to our brothers and sisters all around Germany and Europe through you."
“The Turkish community in Germany has never given credit to hatred-based politics”
President Erdoğan emphasised that Turkish citizens, who arrived in Germany 60 years ago with suitcases in their hands and homesickness in their hearts, have now become an essential, inseparable, and indispensable part of Germany's population of 3.5 million, and that Turks, who endured difficult working conditions and struggled with the difficulties of living in a different culture in the early years of migration, played a principal role in Germany's recovery after World War II. President Erdoğan noted the following:
“Our brothers and sisters in Germany, who struggled for a while as guest workers, are now putting their stamp on works that make us proud in fields ranging from medicine to engineering, sports to art, music to literature. The Turkish community in Germany also contributes significantly to the German economy by employing 400 thousand people in the workplaces and factories it has established. Mr Uğur Şahin and Mrs Özlem Türeci are the most recent examples of this, having inspired hope for all humanity in the fight against COVID-19 with the vaccine they developed. These two esteemed figures are the best example of what the Turkish community in Germany can accomplish if given equal opportunity. Of course, we all know how difficult it has been to come at this point. The Turkish community in Germany has gone through some agonising times over the last 60 years, as it has evolved from being a guest worker to achieving permanent citizenship. The Solingen disaster and the NSU murders are etched on memories as the bloodiest racist attacks on our brothers and sisters living in Germany. Their mosques were set on fire, their workplaces were targeted, and many of our people faced discrimination based on their faith, ethnicity, or culture. However, despite all its agony, the Turkish community in Germany has kept its discretion and sagacity, and has never given credit to hatred-based politics.”
President Erdoğan expressed his delight at the Turkish community in Germany gaining a notch on their belt, indicating that he believed the Turkish community would contribute even more to Germany in the future based on equal citizenship. President Erdoğan made the following remarks:
“While Türkiye advocates for the rights and remedies of our citizens living abroad, we also encourage their integration into the societies in which they live. We provide all necessary assistance to Germany, our ally, in preventing threats such as cultural racism and animosity towards Islam, which have significantly increased in tandem with the pandemic. We recognize that the German authorities share our concerns about these evil trends, which endanger not only the peace of the Turkish community in Germany but also the peace of Europe and humanity as a whole. I believe that we will be able to overcome these challenges by working in solidarity with our German counterparts.”
Highlighting that while the Turkish community in Germany went through these stages during the last 60 years, Türkiye was achieving historical breakthroughs particularly in the last 20 years, President Erdoğan stated that they have enabled the Turkish diaspora to benefit from the development and democracy moves of Türkiye as well. President Erdoğan added, "We have further reinforced our entrepreneurial and humanitarian diplomacy, in addition to boosting the number of our foreign missions with the new organisations we have established. One of the most significant outcomes of this period was the founding of the Presidency for Turks Abroad and Related Communities (YTB) in 2010. Our Presidency, which works under the motto "Strong diaspora, strong Türkiye," fills an important vacuum. We will remain by your side in the next period, through both our Presidency for Turks Abroad and our diplomatic missions. I pray to Allah for a fruitful, healthy, and auspicious life for the members of the first generation who migrated and are still alive. May Allah have mercy on my brothers and sisters who died with a longing for their homeland, and I wish success to the young Turks in the diaspora in their endeavours.”