The Migration of Highly Educated Turkish Citizens to Europe by Zeynep Yanasmayan

Author:Zeynep Yanasmayan [Yanasmayan, Zeynep]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780367583842
Barnesnoble:
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Published: 2020-06-30T00:00:00+00:00

4 To naturalize, or not to naturalize1

Naturalization is not a predictable step for third-country nationals who are long-term residents of EU Member States, even if they meet the citizenship requirements. Interviews with highly educated Turkish residents of the EU have shown that despite attaining full eligibility, a highly introspective process precedes the decision to naturalize, wherein costs are weighed against benefits. The previous chapter, which unravelled the mobility/citizenship nexus for this segment of Turkish migrants, began to highlight this process of internal deliberations, which I call ‘self-bargaining’. The question at hand for those considering naturalization in the self-bargaining process is not about whether or not to they would ‘settle’ in the EU; it is about weighing the personal costs and benefits of naturalization – about what they stand to personally gain and lose through this singular action.

Each negotiation is unique and contingent upon a myriad of personal, emotional and practical considerations. The academic literature has long characterized naturalization as a milestone that triggers a major change in immigrants’ self-perception. Epitomized in the formulation of ‘changing flags’ (Portes and Curtis 1987), naturalization is seen to entail a process of adopting a new identity and giving up another (Escobar 2004; Staton et al. 2007; Yang 1994). Moreover, even though the findings have been inconclusive, the literature suggests that naturalization is an outcome of immigrants’ successful socio-cultural integration into and a gesture of their commitment to the host society (Chiswick and Miller 2008; Diehl and Blohm 2003; Witte 2014; Yang 1994). However, assumptions of a direct correlation fail to capture the more sentient dimensions of naturalization decisions and behaviours. As this chapter shows, the decision to naturalize and the naturalization process itself can give rise to ambivalent feelings, notwithstanding the value immigrants attach to a positive outcome of their citizenship application. Moreover, it essentially disregards the experiences of official or non-official dual citizens whose sense of belonging spans more than one nation state.

In the discussion below on what migrants perceive as ‘costs of naturalization’, I principally focus on dual citizenship, as my interviews with the highly educated Turkish nationals in Europe have shown that the prospect of losing the Turkish citizenship represents the main impediment to naturalization. The source of the unease is predominantly the ‘identity-conferring’ aspect of citizenship. Particularly when the countries of residence do not offer the dual citizenship option and acquiring the citizenship of that country means forfeiting the citizenship of the country of origin, significant doubts and questions are processed in the course of self-bargaining, not only with respect to the naturalization decision but also to the citizenship attachment. Whereas other eligibility criteria for naturalization, such as language learning or integration, are more easily dismissed, the prospect of having to give up Turkish citizenship continues to be an important constraint.

Following the comparative research design, this chapter explores the differences between the legal environs in the three European Member States with dissimilar dual citizenship policies. The Dutch example shows that migrants cope with the ban on dual citizenship by downplaying

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