The asylum issue and political mass education in Turkey: How the government imposed the acceptance of Syrian refugees on Turkish citizens?

Year 2018, Volume: 9 Issue: 1, 1 - 17, 29.12.2018

Kemal İnal , Arnd-michael Nohl

Abstract

When governments make far-reaching but unpopular decisions,
they may resort to political mass education, in which they impose
new political orientations on their constituency. This paper
enquires into a process of political mass education that unfolded
when Turkey accepted an ever-growing number of refugees from
civil-war-battered Syria after 2011. In spite of Turkish society’s
overall negative attitude toward Arabs, the Turkish government,
along with pro-government mass media outlets, succeeded in
preventing major acts of violence against Syrian refugees and in
persuading Turkish citizens to accept them. By drawing on a
discourse analysis, the paper sheds light on the devices and
strategies used throughout this educational process.

Keywords

Refugee, Turkey, Syria, political mass education, public discourse

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