Turkish diaspora youth gather in Ankara to discuss issues

By Behlul Cetinkaya

ANKARA (AA) – Turkish diaspora youth on Monday gathered in capital Ankara to discuss the issues and needs of the young generation living abroad.

During the day-long Diaspora Youth Meeting, 30 young people from 14 various countries discussed the status of education and employment, the use of languages, the contribution to the Turkish diaspora, as well as concerns and demands of the younger generation.

Deputy Culture and Tourism Minister Serdar Cam said in a speech at the gathering that Turks living abroad can help improve Turkey's relations with their host countries by following the rules, paying their taxes, and being nice and just people.

In order to strengthen a cordial bond with their homelands, he stressed the Turkish diaspora to learn more about its literature and arts rather than simply making visits to their family.

On his part, Presidency for Turks Abroad and Related Communities (YTB) President Abdullah Eren said the meeting is an activity that focuses on certain issues and where the participants can develop networks.

Noting that there are five million Turks in Europe, and seven million in total in the world, Eren mentioned the unfavorable course of events in the world, including the coronavirus pandemic, racism, and discrimination.

He touched on the importance of confidence to fight against such crises worldwide and said "We have a lot of reason to have that confidence. Here we have a Turkish youth group, who speak multiple languages very well, live in a multi-cultural environment, developed multi-belonging, experienced socialization in multiple countries, has more opportunities to understand the world compared to the youth living in other countries."

*Writing by Dilan Pamuk in Ankara