They Are Our Fellow Citizens - Migration and Beyond

This book examines the multi-layered dynamics of international migration in Türkiye through a comprehensive analytical framework. It explores historical transformations, local governance practices, the normative and relational reconceptualisation of fellow citizenship, implementation gaps in combating discrimination, intercultural communication capacity, social cohesion in the case of Karaman, the loss of highly skilled human capital, and the risks of climate-induced displacement.

Arguing that migration is no longer a temporary phenomenon but a lasting reality requiring permanent institutional adaptation, the book proposes the fellow citizenship paradigm as an inclusive urban social contract. The cases of Antalya and Karaman illustrate how language barriers and spatial concentration shape integration processes, while the discussions of skilled migration and climate migration highlight emerging challenges and potential policy responses. They Are Our Fellow Citizens presents migrants not as passive recipients of assistance but as active co-bearers of rights and responsibilities within the urban commons.

Erol Esen, Ph.D., is a professor at Akdeniz University and Director of the Center for Applied Research on Social Policies and Migration Studies.

Veli Ercan Çetintürk, Ph.D., specialises in local governance and migration studies. He is currently a lecturer at Alanya Alaaddin Keykubat University.