Turkish media outlets change stances to match Erdogan schemes

Shaimaa Hefzy

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan deals with refugees in general, and Syrians in particular, in accordance with his personal aims and interests, gradually changing his stances to match the current stage of his schemes.

The Syrian refugees crisis in Turkey received wide international attention, due to Erdogan’s pressure on European countries to bless his military operations against the Kurds in the northern lands in Syria, and his decision to open borders for refugees to cross into Europe.

Turkish media outlets often sow their reports based on Erdogan’s interests, for example, the SETA Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research, changed the way it covered the Syrian refugees crisis twice, in 2018 and 2019.

In 2018, the center saw that the return of Syrians to Syria require a joint international effort, condemning political parties that “play with fire” through sowing hatred against Syrians.

SETA is mostly being operated by Muslim Brotherhood members and completely funded by Ankara to broadcast and prepare negative reports containing false and fabricated information on the political, economic, security and legal conditions in certain countries to serve Erdogan’s agenda in the region.

The center slammed statements that highlighted the necessity of bringing back around four million Syrian refugees in Turkey, as it argued to this would hinder future coexistence opportunities between different communities.

In July 2019, however, the center justified Turkey’s announcements that it cannot handle any more refugees.

SETA argues that Turkey has taken steps to establish safe areas across its southern border and has made diplomatic efforts to facilitate the return of refugees to their homes, and the country is now considering a new incursion into the area east of the Euphrates. In addition to removing YPG fighters from that area, the Turks aim to create conditions for the safe return of Syrians, according to the center.

All of these campaigns and military operations mainly aim at achieving Erdogan’s schemes and eliminating the Kurds.

The report also added that the United States and European Union must play a bigger role in the refugees crisis and thank Turkey for its hard work, not to mention demanding better equipment and boosting security at the safe zone in Syria, claiming it would facilitate the return of refugees.