Low turnout shows Turkish expats ‘reluctant to delve into Turkey’s politics’

When it comes to day-to-day politics, Turks abroad generally choose to be active in their countries of residence rather than in Turkey, says researcher Kerem Öktem, explaining why only 10 percent voted in the recent presidential elections Turks living abroad feel empowered by a strong leader like Recep Tayyip Erdoğan but when it comes to day to day matters they are reluctant to be active in Turkey’s internal politics, says researcher Kerem Öktem, discussing the low turnout among overseas Turks in the recent presidential elections.

Turks abroad are seen by the government as an asset in their own right, but there is also tendency to use them for internal politics, according to Öktem, whose policy report titled “Turkey’s New Diaspora Policy: The Challenge of Inclusivity, Outreach and Capacity” focuses on the work of the Presidency for Turks Abroad and Related Communities, which was established in 2010.

What distinguishes the Justice and Development Party (AKP) government’s approach to the Turkish diaspora from its precedents?

I was born in Germany. So I also had experience of the Turkish state’s perspective on the diaspora in the 1970s, 80s and 90s. Turks abroad, especially in Western Europe, were seen as people who you weren’t particularly proud of. They were guest workers, they were not very well educated, they were seen as tarnishing the image of Turkey abroad. The understanding of Turkey then was that Turkey is a modern country, it’s not an Islamic country, and these people somehow spoiled that kind of image of the modern Turkish nation.

But then I also saw how Kurds abroad were treated with extreme suspicion by the state, of course. And then when...