The Rights of Turkish Immigrants in the European Union

Abstract

AbstractThe main purpose of this article is to provide a framework of international legal conventions which may amount to an 'umbrella regime' for EU member states as regards their treatment of Turkish migrants, thus supplementing the protection already available in domestic law. To this end, the study pulls together analyses of relevant parts of international and supra-national law within the context of Turkish migrants in Europe which are applicable in protecting the rights of immigrants. In particular, the Ankara Association Agreement of 1963 and its components have put Turkish migrants in a more favourable position than most of the other non-EU migrants, hence creating a sort of 'intermediate' regime for them. The study has confirmed that the developments under the EU law have remained and will remain the main source of progress as far as the rights of Turkish migrants are concerned. Nevertheless, it also draws attention to a significant counter effect of such positive developments; that is, the danger of unwillingness on the part of the EU member states to enlarge the scope of the rights granted to Turkish immigrants under the above-mentioned legal frameworks.