 Turkish day at theGrand-Place (2006) | |
| Total population | |
|---|---|
| 250,000 to over 500,000[1][2][3][4] (latter including descendants) | |
| Regions with significant populations | |
| Widespread | |
| Languages | |
| someRumelian Turkish | |
| Religion | |
| PredominantlySunni Islam MinorityAlevism,Christianity, Other religions, andIrreligion |
Turks in Belgium (Turkish:Belçika'daki Türkler;Dutch:Turkse gemeenschap in België;French:Turcs en Belgique), also referred to asTurkish Belgians orBelgian Turks (Turkish:Belçika Türkleri;Dutch:Turkse Belgen;French:Belgo-Turcs) are people of full or partialTurkish ethnicity living inBelgium. The majority of Belgian Turks descend from theRepublic of Turkey; however, there has also been significant Turkish migration from other post-Ottoman countries including ethnicTurkish communities which have come to Belgium from theBalkans (especially fromBulgaria,Greece,Kosovo,North Macedonia andRomania), the island ofCyprus, and more recentlyIraq andSyria.
Turkish migration from theRepublic of Turkey toBelgium began in the 1960s when Belgium was actively encouraging immigration to meet its employment needs in an era of rapid economic expansion.[5] These immigrants were welcomed as "guest workers" when Belgium and Turkey signed a bilateral agreement in July 1964.[6][7] As mainly unskilled labourers, Turkish immigrants hoped to make a fortune in a short time and then return to their homeland. The majority of Turkish migrants arrived fromcentral Anatolian provinces ofAfyon (particularly fromEmirdağ),Eskisehir,Kayseri,Konya (particularly fromPiribeyli) andSivas.[8][9] Many settled in the industrialised areas of Belgium; thereafter, these migrants brought their families over when Belgium attempted to resolve the growing problem of low population by encouraging family reunification.[10]
By the 1970s the phenomenon of immigrants arriving in Belgium with atourist visa started; most came fromAfyon, especially from the town ofEmirdağ.[11][12] Upon arrival they looked for work and tried to legalise their status as labourers. The presence of these tourists created ablack market labour force so that on two occasions the government had to legalise their status. Once they obtained the status of "guest workers" they could bring in their family.[13]
By the 1980s, immigration to Belgium for economic reasons was forbidden by law. The only legal way to take up residence in Belgium was byfamily reunification, which was only applicable to members of thenuclear family of guest workers or by marrying someone who was aBelgian citizen. Another possible motive for coming to Belgium was to apply for the status ofasylum-seeker upon arrival. Turkish asylum seekers came from all over Turkey, with some belonging to minority groups.[13]
Mainland Turks have continued to migrate to Belgium in the twenty-first century in the hope of building a better future; many lured by social and economic security.[14]
In the modern era, due to the political instability andeconomic crisis, Turkish economic seekers moving to Belgium has doubled compared to the previous years while those for asking for asylum has tripled, from 660 to 1,243 and 673 to 1,721 respectively.[15]
Initially,Turkish Bulgarians first arrived in Belgium as refugees in the 1980s due to theBulgarisation policies of the so-called "Revival Process" under the communist rulerTodor Zivkov which sought to forcefully assimilate the Turkish minority. The next wave of Turkish Bulgarian migrants in the 1990s and early 2000s were mostly undocumented migrants. These early Turkish Bulgarian arrivals found work in areas where there was an established mainland Turkish community, especially inGhent, but also inMelle,Zele andHamme.[16]
More recently, after Bulgaria became a member of theEuropean Union during the2007 enlargement, the number of Turkish Bulgarian migrants to Belgium increased significantly due to theirfreedom of movement rights asEU citizens. Thus, Turkish Bulgarian emigration to Belgium in the twenty-first century has been dictated by the economic situation and the stagnation of the labour market in Bulgaria.[17]
As a result of the continuous Turkish Bulgarian migration, the majority of Bulgarian citizens living in Belgium are ethnically Turkish; moreover, Turkish Bulgarian children who were either born in Belgium, or who arrived at preschool age, hardly understand theBulgarian language.[16] Most Turkish Bulgarians tend to live in areas where there is a large mainland Turkish population, such asGenk.[18] Thus, "Genk Bulgarians" are mostly of Turkish origin;[18] in 2013, estimates on the population in Genk alone ranged between 10,000 and 20,000.[16]
There have been two main waves of migration from theTurkish minority of Western Thrace (located inGreece) to Western Europe, including to Belgium.[19] The first wave of Turkish Western Thracian migration started in the 1960s and intensified further between 1970-2010 due to political and economic reasons.[19][20]
Although many Western Thrace Turks living in Western Europe intended to return to Greece after working for a number of years, the Greek government used Article 19 of the 1955Greek Constitution to strip members of the Turkish minority living abroad of theirGreek citizenship.[21] According to Article 19 of the Greek Constitution:
A person of non-Greek ethnic origin leaving Greece without the intention of returning may be declared as having lost Greek nationality.[21]
A report published by theHuman Rights Watch in 1990 confirmed that:
Under Article 19, ethnic Turks can be stripped of their citizenship by an administrative decree, without a hearing. According to the U.S. State Department's 1989 Country Report, under Greek law there can be no judicial review and there is no effective right of appeal.[21]
Thus, many Western Thrace Turks were forced to remain in the countries they had settled in, which, in turn, also established the permanent Turkish Western Thracian community in Belgium.[19]
More recently, the second mass migration wave of ethnic Turks from Greece has been significantly larger in numbers, although it occurred only within eight years, between 2010-18, due to theGreek government-debt crisis.[20]
Migration from theTurkish Kosovar community to Belgium began when many were forced to flee theKosovo War (1998-99). Alongside theTurkish Macedonians in Belgium, they are active in theBelçika Rumeli Türkleri Derneği ("Belgian Rumelian Turkish Association").[22]
TheTurkish Macedonian minority have joined otherMacedonian citizens in migrating to Belgium. Together with theTurkish Kosovars in Belgium, the Turkish Macedonians are active in theBelçika Rumeli Türkleri Derneği ("Belgian Rumelian Turkish Association").[22]
Since the first decade of the twenty-first century, there has been a significant decrease in the population of theTurkish Romanian minority group due to the admission ofRomania into theEuropean Union in 2007 and the subsequent relaxation of the travelling and migration regulations. Hence, Turkish Romanians, especially from theDobruja region, have joined other Romanian citizens in migrating mostly to Western European countries, including Belgium.[23]
MostTurkish Cypriot migrants left the island ofCyprus due to economic and political reasons in the 20th century, especially after theCyprus crisis of 1963–64 and then the1974 Cypriot coup d'état carried out by theGreek military junta which was followed by theTurkish invasion of the island. More recently, with the2004 enlargement of the European Union, Turkish Cypriots have had theright to live and work across theEuropean Union, including in Belgium, asEU citizens. In 2012, hundreds of Turkish Cypriots gathered inBrussels to draw attention to the EU's failure to keep the promises made toNorthern Cyprus after having voted in favour of reunification during the2004 Annan Plan referendum.[24] TheTRNC provides assistance to its Turkish Cypriot residents living in Belgium via the TRNC Brussels Representative Office located inAvenue Louise; in addition,the office promotes friendly relations between the TRNC and Belgium, as well as economic and cultural relations.[25]
Turkish Iraqis have settled in Belgium due to various conflicts inIraq, including theIran–Iraq War (1980-88), theGulf War (1991), and theIraq War (2003-11). The majority of Iraqi Turks have arrived in Belgium during theEuropean migrant crisis (2014-19) alongside other Iraqi refugees.
Due to theSyrian civil war, manySyrian Turks have sought refuge inTurkey andWestern Europe. In particular, it was during theEuropean migrant crisis (2014-19) that Syrian citizens came to Belgium in larger numbers.
In addition to ethnic Turkish people that have migrated to Belgium from post-Ottoman modern nation-states, there has also been an increasing migration wave from the modernTurkish diaspora. For example, members of theTurkish Dutch community have also arrived in Belgium as Dutch citizens. According to a study by Petra Wieke de Jong, focusing on second-generation Turkish-Dutch people specifically born between the years 1983 and 1992 only, 1,208 people from this age group and generation reported Belgium as their country of emigration in 2001 to 2017. A further 1,761 people in this group did not report their emigration destination.[26]
Around half of Turkish Belgians live in theFlemish region, one-quarter inWallonia, and one-quarter inBrussels.[27] Turks from the same region in Turkey tend to congregate not only in the same cities but also in the same quarters.[28] The majority of Turks live in theSchaerbeek commune.[29] The Chaussee De Haecht street is heavily populated with Turkish immigrants,[30] with its pizzerias, pastry shops, cafes, and barbers, is reminiscent of a Turkish street.
Official Belgian data only collects statistics on foreign citizens rather than the ethnic affiliation of Belgian citizens. Consequently, the Turkish Belgian community cannot self-declare their ethnicity in censuses.
The majority of Turkish Belgians are mainland Turks and their Belgian-born descendants, however, there are growing Turkish communities from the Balkans (e.g.Balkan Turks,Bulgarian Turks,Macedonian Turks,Romanian Turks,Western Thrace Turks etc.) and the Levant (e.g.Cypriot Turks,Iraqi Turks andSyrian Turks) who are registered according to their citizenship (i.e. "Belgian", "Bulgarian", "Cypriot", "Greek", "Iraqi", "Syrian" etc.) rather than their Turkish ethnicity.
In 2012 ProfessorRaymond Taras said that the population of Turkish Belgians totalled over 200,000.[31] In 2021Thierry Debels pointed out that various sources stated that there was already 500,000 Turks in Belgium since the early 1990s, including Turkish-Belgian descendants.[4]
Belgian Turks and Turkish people have faced significant discrimination, prejudice, racism and xenophobia across Belgium.
In the past several years, many right and left wings Belgian political parties criticized domestic Turkish politics and called for banning or deporting Turkish immigrants.[32][33]
In 2015, a female employee shouted "Dirty Turk" (inDutch: 'Vuile Turk') at a Supervisor of Turkish origin in theVolvo car factory in Ghent, which led to aStrike action by Turkish workers at the factory.[34][35]
Filip Dewinter a right-wing Flemishnationalist party member said in May 2017 atTV-program De Zevende Dag,[36]
The solution is for Turkish minorities in Flemish region, another method should be applied not only integrate Turks into Flemish culture but assimilate Turks. Leave identity behind leaving culture behind and fully assimilate in our society, if not so return to the country of origin is the only solution.
The majority of Turks are SunniMuslims[37] Several Turkish Sunni groupings are active in Belgium, most notablyMilli Görüş (Fédération islamique belge), theSüleymancis (Union des Centres culturels islamiques de Belgique) and theNurcus . As in other countries, there is also an official SunniDiyanet (Fondation religieuse islamique turque de Belgique), which controls most mosques and a majority of the affiliations to the repatriation funerary insurance.
Another Turkish Muslim community present in Belgium is theAlevi one, with several associations in Brussels, theCentre culturel turc pour le respect de la personne humaine - Erenler (Turkish cultural centre for the respect of the human being - Erenler), officially registered in 1994, founded by Alevis from the village of Karacalar, near Emirdag, led by their traditional spirituel leader (dede) from the Şahbaz family, and the more progressiveCentre socioculturel alévi de Bruxelles, officially registered in 2003 by 14 founding members, 4 of whom were born inElbistan, 3 in Belgium, 2 inGücük (near Elbistan), the rest inAdıyaman, Inis,Tunceli,Soğucak andSünköy, Elâzığ),[38]Charleroi (Centre culturel alévi de Charleroi, officially registered in 1999 by 9 founding members, 6 of whom had the dual Turkish-Belgian citizenship),[39]Antwerp (Alevietische Kultureel Centrum Antwerpen),Liège (from 2002 till 2004Liège Alevi Kültür Derneği - Association culturelle Alévi de Liège,[40] since 2005Foyer culturel alévi de Liège)[41] and theLimburg province (Samenwerking Limburgse Alevieten, officially registered in 1990). There is also a Federation of the Belgian Alevi Associations,Belçika Alevi Birlikleri Federasyonu, since 2008Fédération unions des Alévis en Belgique - Belçika Alevi Birlikleri Federasyonu (FUAB-BABF),[42] created in 2003, based in Antwerp, then in Brussels in 2006,[43] and grouping theAlevietische Kultureel Centrum Antwerpen, theCentre culturel alévi de Charleroi and theSamenwerking Limburgse Alevieten.
There are dozens of Turkish associations in Belgium, most are grouped into federations, either linked to the Turkish government (Diyanet) and embassy or to various Turkish religious and political movements,Milli Görüş (Fédération islamique belge), theNurcus, theSüleymancis (Union des Centres islamiques de Belgique), theGrey Wolves (Belçika Ülkücü Türk Dernekleri Federasyon/Belçika Türk Federasyonu) etc. Apart from these, there are also civil society associations of fellow countryman such asBTDB (Federation of Turkish Associations in Belgium), Belgium Piribeyli Culture & Solidarity Association, Emirdag People Solidarity Association (EYAD), BETİAD (Belgian Turkish Businessmen Association) and charity organizations.[44]
At the federal level, several deputies and senators have been elected or coopted to theBelgian Chamber of Representatives andSenate. Among them, theFlemish SocialistsCemal Çavdarlı (deputy in 2003-2007) andFatma Pehlivan [nl] (senator in 2001-2007, and again in 2009-2010), theFlemish EcologistsMeryem Kaçar (senator in 1999-2003) andMeyrem Almacı (deputy since 2007, reelected in 2010), theFlemish Christian DemocratHilâl Yalçin [nl] (deputy in 2007-2010);Antwerp district mayor since January 2013) andFrench-speaking SocialistÖzlem Özen [fr] (deputy since June 2010).
There are also Turkish-Belgian members of the regional parliaments, one of them,Emir Kir (French-speaking Socialist Party), became an underminister in theBrussels regional government in2004, and again in2009, as Secretary for Public Sanitation and Monument Conservation.
Turks have also contributed to music in Belgium, recentlyHadise daughter of a family fromSivas was in the pop music world in Belgium. Hadise made a name for herself in 2003 in the “Idool” song contest sponsored by VTM, the largest Belgian broadcaster. Her songs “Stir Me Up” and her album “Milk Chocolate Girl” were on top of the charts for a long time.
![Nawal Ben Hamou [fr], politician](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=http%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aNawal_Ben_Hamou.jpg)
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![Özlem Özen [fr], politician](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=http%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3a%25C3%2596zlem_%25C3%2596zen%2c_jeune_femme_politique.jpg)
![Faroek Özgünes [tr], TV presenter and journalist](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=http%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aFaroek_%25C3%2596zg%25C3%25BCnes.JPG)
![Emin Özkara [nl], politician](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=http%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aEmin_%25C3%2596zkara.png)
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![Güler Turan [nl], politician and lawyer](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=http%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aG%25C3%25BCler_Turan_als_schepen_in_actie.jpg)
![Veli Yüksel [nl], politician and author](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=http%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aVeli_Y%25C3%25BCksel.jpg)
Belçika'da yaklaşık 300 bin civarında Türk kökenli vatandaşımız yaşıyor, Emirdağlı vatandaşlarımızın çoğunlukta olması Eskişehir ile Belçika arasındaki ilişkilerin kurulmasında daha kolaylık sağlayacaktır.
Belgium with its more than 300,000 citizens of Turkish descent...
Volgens diverse bronnen zouden eerst een half miljoen Turken die toen in Belgie verbleven – Belgen van Turkse afkomst en aanverwanten – gescreend zijn.
Wat de taal betreft, zoals boven vermeld, zijn de meeste migranten vanuit Bulgarije etnisch Turkse Bulgaren, die Turks en Bulgaars spreken. Turks is vooral de thuistaal, Bulgaars is de officiële taal, die op school wordt geleerd en meestal beter wordt beheerst dan Turks. Veel van de kinderen echter die hier worden geboren of in voorschoolse leeftijd naar België komen en geen onderwijs in het Bulgaars hebben gekregen, begrijpen nauwelijks Bulgaars.
'De Gentse Bulgaren komen vooral uit de Turks sprekende regio daar.
Avustralya ve Amerika Birleşik Devletleri, Kanada gibi uzak ülkelerin dışında aralarında Hollanda, İngiltere, İsveç, Fransa, Belçika ve Avusturya gibi ülkelerde de sayısı yadsınamayacak bir Batı Trakyalı Türk kitlesi yaşamaktadır.
Belçika'nın başkenti Brüksel'de bir araya gelen yüzlerce Kıbrıslı Türk, Avrupa Birliği'nin protesto etti.
It follows that large Muslim minorities like the Turks – who total over 200,000 in Belgium
