The boat trip in this incident came to be referred to as the "voyage to hope," with migrants from Palestine, Somalia, Iraq, Nigeria and Mauritania. People from other countries, particularly of Africa and Asia, frequently are the victims of such tragedies.These incidents have recently gained more coverage in the media. According to information provided by the UN, about 2,000 migrants have died during their travels in the last 12 years. The number of migrants who have been caught as they were trying to pass through Turkey to Europe in the last five years is 310. After being caught, the migrants are kept in centers under poor conditions for months before being returned to their respective countries. This is not a deterrent for them. We will likely witness many more events like this in future.
About 30 years ago, some scientists had predicted today's tragedies. They noted that every year 75 million people will try to migrate from the south and the east to the west and the north for various reasons. Of course, they are not expected to be successful in their attempts. But they will continue to try, and we will see similar tragedies to the one in Seferihisar.
While immigration and seeking refuge are age-old phenomena, globalization has given them different forms. When this issue was first discussed, scientists would suggest that ecological disasters would be one important reason for the increase in immigration. This has been partially confirmed as big floods in Bangladesh caused the displacement of millions of people. However, it is obvious that the problem stems not only from ecological disasters. Regional wars, internal conflicts, military occupations, oppressive regimes, hunger and poverty can be added to this list.
Western countries are trying to protect themselves by imposing strict measures against refugees. They are quite ruthless and unyielding in this respect. One of the measures frequently requested from Turkey in its EU bid is to secure its borders from the influx of refugees. In a sense, Europe wants to use Turkey as a buffer zone.
Last year a tourist vessel traveling under the Bahamian flag saved 22 Somali and Mauritanian migrants from drowning. As no country accepts them under international conventions, they were abandoned at sea. Furthermore, the boat operator was faced with claims for compensation from passengers because saving the migrants caused the tour to be delayed. In the end, the captain of the ship was dismissed. The captain was found guilty of showing "excessive compassion" to 22 human beings who were about to drown (Leyla İpekçi, Zaman, Dec. 12, 2007).
This incident gives us an idea of where humanity is headed. The people who live on their isolated islands of comfort without feeling any responsibility toward other people are holding the people who are victims of this tragedy responsible. But they forget that the real reason forcing these peoples from Palestine, Iraq and Afghanistan to immigrate is that they were displaced when they were living peacefully in their respective countries. If their countries had not undergone wars, they would not be on the road seeking new countries. We may call them "the victims of occupation or war" in short. To this, eras of colonialism, the imperialist system of pillaging and the destructive ability of uncontrolled capitalism, seen currently in the form of globalization, should be added.
