Migration: Which Way to Take, Who Should We Stand Against?

They are our neighbours, our workfellows. We live in the same neigbourhood, same street; work in the same work place. But nobody cares who they are, what their names are, and their past? They are refugees, they are immigrants… “Syrians”, “Afghans” in Turkey, “Mexicans” in America, “Turks” in Germany, “Muslims” in France, “Ukrainians” in Europe.

Why do these people migrate? Why do they leave their homeland?

Nobody would leave their homeland for no reason and go to another country to be a stranger in terms of language and culture. Sometimes it is hard to move out the neighbourhood we live in, even the house. Just imagine, millions of people leave their homes, countries and loved ones and take the risk of death and humiliation and go towards the unknown. Is such a decision an easy one to be taken overnight?

War, conflict, drought, unemployment, hunger, poverty… People are forced to migrate for reasons of vital importance. Today, more than 300 million people around the world live as immigrants outside their country of birth. In Ukraine, now a war zone, 6 million people left their country in just three months.

We are passing through a stormy and turbulent period, a period of crises. In today’s world, almost all problems go global. Migration has also become a global issue going beyond regional borders.

Latin American countries; Asian countries such as Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Pakistan and almost all African countries… Millions take the routes of migration by sea or land. One channel of migration flows from Latin America to the USA, while another channel flows from Asia to Australia and New Zealand. From Africa, four separate channels flow towards Europe and Asia. It is almost as if there is a modern migration of peoples.

Turkish society faced the immigration problem mostly in the last 10 years. The reason why millions of Syrian refugees come to Turkey is the Syrian war. So, do the Syrian workers make this country unlivable? Many people want Syrians to be sent back, but it is not questioned why they are here in millions.

Who is responsible for the war in Syria? Are not the Western imperialist powers? What about the current government in Turkey? Is not the AKP government, who says “we will make Turkey a great power, we will pray in the Ummayad mosque of Damascus!” responsible for the chaos in Syria? If there is a price paid due to the immigration problem, it is the government that makes the people pay this price.

It is the government that make the immigration problem even bigger and more complicated.

• The government did not take any measure to prevent the great migration wave from creating chaos in Turkey.
• It has not prepared any integration programme to eliminate the problems caused by language and cultural differences.
• It did not prevent the bosses from using refugees as informal and cheap labour, on the contrary, it paved the way.
• It has made an agreement with the EU in return for money and kept the refugees in the country as hostages.
• They used and still uses immigrants as a tool of blackmail in international politics.

Who is responsible for unemployment, cost of living and skyrocketing rents in the country? The capitalist class or immigrants? Is it not the bosses who exploit immigrants to the bones as cheap labour?

The bosses use unorganised and vulnerable immigrant to lower wages and extend working hours. They treat immigrants as slaves and even beasts of burden. To native workers who do not want to be treated as slaves, who want better working conditions and who do not accept low wages, they say “you disdain to take the job”

Let’s ask a few more questions: Is it not the bosses who treat the worker as slaves and beast of burden? So why don’t the workers, angry at joblessness and the cost of living, react to the bosses? Does not targeting immigrants and directing anger at immigrants mean falling into a trap?

So, will Syrian immigrants return to their countries? Let’s ask another question to answer this question. Is the war in Syria over? Are there conditions for living in a country that has been burned down and whose industry, infrastructure and agriculture have been destroyed?

It is not possible for millions of people to return until the war in Syria is completely over, democratic and better economic conditions are established in the country, and safety of life is ensured. Even then, only a small fraction of immigrants will return. Since emigrants rarely go back. Since it is not easy for people to undo their established order and set sail for a new uncertainty. Those who incite hostility towards immigrants despite knowing the truth are malicious and seek political profits.

Bearing hostility towards immigrants does no good to workers, on the contrary, it makes them lose! If we want to oppose bosses lowering wages and extending working hours, we have to choose our enemy right. Our enemy is not migrant workers, but the capitalist class, exploitative bosses. Tailing after those who incite hostility towards immigrants will not lead workers to salvation! Immigrants are now part of the Turkish working class. We have to realise this truth! So we have to overcome nationalist traps and join with migrant workers. Union organization in workplaces should be done in a way to include migrant workers. This is difficult but not impossible. This is the only right and just way to bring a solution.