Following is the message President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan issued on World Refugee Day:
“More than 68.5 million forcibly displaced people, nearly 22 million refugees and some 3 million asylum-seekers in the world strive to hold on to life far away from the lands they were born and raised in.
It is a requirement of human dignity and conscience to extend a helping hand to these people who, most often risking their lives, flee hunger, conflicts, civil wars and poverty.
Nevertheless, we see that discrimination against refugees, xenophobia and racism increase, and refugees are marginalized and shown as hostile people by media and populist politicians, especially in Western countries.
Economic contributions refugees make to both their own countries and host societies are disregarded, richness they add to social and cultural lives is ignored, and these people are turned into hate figures by those who pursue political gains.
Allowing this racist mentality, which undermines social peace, tolerance and the culture of coexistence, poses a great threat to our future.
As was the case in the past, Turkey that hosts over 4 million refugees, 3.6 million of whom are Syrians, today as well, embrace all the oppressed and the wronged, regardless of their ethnic origin, religion, root or language.
No one has right to smear for the sake of their political ambitions and ideological obsessions this generosity of the Turkish people by fueling hostility towards refugees.
As Turkey, it is our expectation that the international community fairly share the burden and responsibility for refugees and fulfill their commitments made to our country, particularly concerning Syrian refugees.
We attach special importance to the successful and complete implementation of the Global Compact on Refugees, adopted last December with Turkey’s effective contributions.
I call on all stakeholders to take responsibility for refugees within the context of the understanding of fair burden and responsibility by participating at the highest level in the Global Refugee Forum to be held in December under Turkey’s co-chairmanship.
With these thoughts, I hope that World Refugee Day will lead to auspicious results, and greet on my country and nation’s behalf all refugees who struggle for their lives under harsh conditions in different parts of our region.”
https://www.tccb.gov.tr/en/speeches-statements/558/105745/world-refugee-day-message