Yiğit noted that the lack of foreign language skills among personnel working in state institutions with which foreigners are obliged to deal is a serious deficiency in a tourist city such as Alanya. Yiğit did say, however, that the situation was much easier for foreigners when dealing with private concerns, as there is generally at least one person on hand in private businesses who can speak a foreign language. The Hür-Türk head noted that there are currently around 15,000 foreigners living in Alanya and that for this reason, there is an urgent need for personnel with foreign language skills to staff certain public offices and bureaus.While Yiğit pointed out that most foreigners who have been living in Alanya for some time speak Turkish fairly fluently, he noted that real problems in this arena are faced by foreigners who moved to Turkey more recently. "We are getting some very serious complaints on this matter. Some foreigners are experiencing misunderstandings in certain situations they get into. Many foreign residents are forced to repeatedly go to the same bureaus to get official business done and still are unable to complete their business. So in the end, as a last resort, they come to us. The complaint we hear most often is that they are not able to get their messages across due to language differences. This in turn is hurting Alanya's image. All we want from officials is to see at least one person with foreign language skills appointed to each official bureau that deals with foreigners here."
Bernadette Brown (27) said she loves living in Alanya, but has to spend a great deal of time getting official business done due to the language barriers she encounters in certain public offices and bureaus. Brown said she has considered taking private Turkish lessons, especially if her problems continue. She is optimistic about the future, as her children are learning Turkish, she said, adding that she meets up with her Turkish friends often to expand her own Turkish skills.
German Waltraud Mlynek (35) has lived in Alanya for around three years. He said he feels completely at home here, with the notable exception of when he has to visit state offices to get official business done. Mlynek noted that everyone from waiters to shoe-shiners speaks a foreign language in the city. “I feel very lucky to be living in Alanya. However, I do wish I spoke Turkish when I go to official bureaus. Unfortunately, we have a very tough time trying to communicate. We would like the help of officials on this matter,” he said.
