 February 3, 2008 in German city Ludwigshafen was a fire in the apartment building; nine people died, mostly Turkish migrants. Almost all Turkish media reported that fire was an attack of German neo-Nazis. Turkish government made the political show out of death. Dead bodies were brought to Turkey by a special flight of Turkish Air Forces; state honors have been provided to all dead. Meanwhile, fire in Ludwigshafen claimed the lives of Alevis, religious minority severely disparaged in Turkey. Alevis community in Germany sharply opposed Erdogan's efforts to turn their tragedy in political advertisement, reminding Erdogan on the tragedy in Turkish city Sivas. July 2, 1993 raging mob of Turks set the hotel afire where Alevis tried to escape. That day, 35 people burned alive. They also reminded Erdogan, the fact that monument to died in the fire Alevis regularly profaned by Turks. November 2007 that monument was completely destroyed by "unknowns”. In twentieth of February 2008, 3 weeks after the fire R. Erdogan came with the visit to Germany. On the first day he visited Ludwigshafen, where he was met by the Turks with banners "Yesterday – the Jews, today - the Muslims”. Then, speaking in front of 20 thousand Turks in Cologne, on the stadium of Köln-Arena, Erdogan told to the audience: "Turkish - is your first language, you have to teach your children to know it. I perfectly understand, why you against the assimilation. Assimilation is a crime against humanity! You can’t be expected to assimilate”. Then, Erdogan warned Turks from the loss of national mentality and traditions, called for the preservation of Turkish culture; suggested to establish the network of Turkish schools, high schools and universities in Germany and expressed the readiness "to send” from Turkey the required number of teachers and instructors. That visit of Turkish Prime Minister caused a lot of indignant reactions among the German politicians, including Chancellor A. Merkel expressing the belief, that knowledge of German "is a prerequisite condition for the successful integration and participation in the public and economic life of Germany”. Lower rank politicians were the way more open. Thus, the speaker of CDU parliamentary fraction Volker Kauder stated "Turks living in Germany must be loyal to Germany. They are not tourists or transit voyagers. Let Mr. Erdogan do not forget it”, the Defense Minister of Germany and the chairman of Social Democratic Party’s parliamentary fraction Peter Struck called Erdogan’s speech "completely unacceptable”. Chairman of the Christian Social Union in Bavaria Erwin Huber was more candid in his expressions. He determined the offer about Turkish schools and high schools in Germany as "poison for integration”. Huber also said that the consequence of such development "will inevitably lead to the emergence of Turkish ghetto and "little Turkeys” in Germany. Nevertheless, Erdogan’s visit conceived the unfortunate consequences, and Turks of Germany encouraged by the support "went on the offensive”, reflected in… the discrimination against Germans, German press openly writes about it during several years. German Minister of Family Affairs Christina Schroeder expressing her concern told to the press that in Germany "German children humiliated for the fact that they are Germans”. Must be noted, it’s only beginning of the process whose consequences are difficult to overstate. Modern Germany faced natural, and, yet unknown phenomenon: huge mass of people in the country live under laws that have nothing to do with the laws of the state. Moreover, the worldview of these people not only meets but contradicts the worldview of Germans. We talk about Turks living in Germany and a lot of Arabs. After the Second World War, Germany, assigned to the need of restoring its war-ravaged economy felt huge disadvantage in the working hands, decided to open the doors of the state to the Turks: cheap labor was abate condition to implement the Marshall's plan. In turn, poverty-stricken Turkey was glad to get rid of excess labor, reduce social tension and ensure the flow of transfers from Europe. Thus, two countries desire matched. Then, an agreement on recruitment of the workforce for Germany was signed; since 1954, huge stream of Turkish guest workers poured into Germany. In the first years and even decades after the "Great Migration” relations between Germans and Turks evolved tolerance: performing work that doesn’t require special qualifications, Turks behaved peacefully, knowing, that the work in Germany is the only survival condition for their families back in Turkey. Then, however, they began to move their families and relatives into Germany, and Turks that were born there became full-fledged citizens of the country. Turkish community in Germany began to grow exponentially, today it has approximately 3 million people. However, over the past decade, the Turkish community of Germany failed to integrate into German society. Sociologists noted that Turks in Germany didn’t become an organic part of German society, and there is a "mental abyss” between them and indigenous inhabitants. Turks committed to their own culture, values and traditions. Turks are not willing to part it; they remain the isolated ethnic group. Notable that Turkey immigrants living in Germany even more than for 50 years still feel themselves alienated group. At the same time, Germany is making significant efforts to integrate Turks; however, all these desperate attempts met with Turkish resistance. In this case Turks themselves, as well as certain political forces and movements in Germany, in particular, "green”, accuse their government of inability and incompetence in Turks integration. The result of this incompetence, according to "green” is clear "not-integrated” Turks disparage the local population. Meanwhile, all of the Germany efforts in integrating Turks into the German society are doomed to failure. The point is not that Turks in Germany prefer to communicate in Turkish language, to trade in Turkish stores, to live in Turkish quarters and to look Turkish television. Problem has deep-seated nature and it’s in the civilizational contradictions of settled Germans and nomad Turks. There is an impassible gulf of mutually exclusive worldviews and ways of thinking between Germans and Turks. Turks - classical age-old nomads – don’t have a concept of Homeland; they are the people of organization. In contrast, sedentary people, such as Germans, always had been committed to the Motherland, which had the highest ethnic value for them. Settled person forcibly displaced or deprived of Homeland is in constant instinctive search; after finding it, he serves his adopted country with the same sincerity and devotion, as to land of his ancestors. On the contrary, the nomad person doesn’t feel special need in Homeland; his value and niche that facilitates to resist environment challenges is organization. The headquarter office of Turkish organizations is located in Ankara. The first wave of Turkish workers in Germany was mostly composed of the people from economical and cultural back warded villages of Anatolia. At that time many German stores hang signs, frequently in Turkish "Turk, don’t spit on the floor”. Today, outwardly civilized Turks probably, don’t spit on the floor in stores. Instead, they spit in food of their German peers.
Levon MELIK-SHAHNAZARYAN
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