A parliamentary motion submitted by an opposition deputy to the Turkish Parliament that called for the establishment of a commission to investigate the reasons for the increasing number of Turks migrating abroad has been rejected by the Justice and Development Party (AKP), the Sözcü daily reported on Thursday.
The motion was submitted by Utku Çakırözer, a deputy from the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) who is also a former journalist.
In the motion Çakırözer said there has been a 63 percent rise in the number of Turks migrating abroad over the past year, with the number reaching 113,000 in 2018.
“Every brain leaving the country means regression in high technology. It means a standstill and fall in the production of science, research and development and advanced industry,” Çakırözer said, adding that Turkey needs to improve its democracy and restore an environment of freedom and confidence to stop its citizens from leaving the country.
The CHP deputy said the number of Turks leaving the country was 69,000 in 2017 but rose to 113,000 in 2018, noting that most of these people were aged between 25 and 35 and well educated.
According to Çakırözer, the most important reason behind the increasing number of Turks leaving is the regression in democracy and freedoms in Turkey.
According to the latest edition of The Economist Intelligence Unit’s Democracy Index, released by The Economist magazine on Tuesday, Turkey was ranked 110th among 167 countries, dropping 10 places over last year.
Turkey’s score showed the second sharpest decline compared to last year after Italy, which fell from 21st to 33rd place, and the report underlined that President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan swept aside most constraints on his power and subverted democratic institutions.
There have been serious human rights violations and a crackdown on the free speech in Turkey since a failed coup attempt on July 15, 2016 following which the Turkish government launched a massive witch-hunt against its critics under the pretext of an anti-coup fight.