Foreigners Beware!!

Interesting article explaining Turks' attitude against foreigners.

...The population exchanges in the early days of the Republic and the anti-Greek riots in Istanbul in 1955 that reduced the Greek population from over 150,000 to today's population of around 5,000, as well as the tensions with the Syrian Orthodox in the Southeast, were consistent with the prevailing mood and what became an unspoken “foreigner policy.” In fact, the state appears to have employed a consistent “homogenization” policy that seeks to coax the religious, ethnic and linguistic “wrinkles” out of the fabric of Turkish society.

Today’s diplomats and policymakers clearly consult the “rearview mirror” of recent history as they ply the waters of present-day policy and foreigners are consequently viewed with suspicion. The miniscule number of foreign workers allowed to operate businesses in the country over the last 25 years is further proof of the unspoken “foreigner policy.”

As someone who has experienced the incredible generosity and hospitality of Turks first-hand for over 11 years in many different parts of Anatolia, I do not make this statement lightly, but the fact remains and it has been described to me on numerous occasions how foreigners living and working in the country are almost always suspected of being foreign spies with a sinister agenda to undermine Turkish sovereignty. (more)