https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5964-0131
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ABSTRACT
This article investigates the transformation of Ukrainian female marriage migrants in Türkiye into diasporic actors. This role as diasporic actors represents a unique aspect of female agency, and its impact on migrant women and the diaspora is discussed. The representatives of the hometown associations (HTAs) were interviewed, the activities of the HTAs were tracked, and their social media posts were examined. The findings reveal that when women became diasporic actors, they influenced community politics on a large scale and created multiple networks. It has also been found that migrants strengthened the institutional structures of the HTAs by using these networks. Moreover, through their approach of bringing different groups together, they created a diaspora composition where hierarchy in representation is not explicit.
ABSTRACT IN TURKISH
Bu makalede, Türkiye’deki Ukraynalı kadın evlilik göçmenlerinin diasporik aktör olma süreçleri ve kadın failliğinin özgün bir yönüne karşılık gelen bu rolün kadınlar ve diaspora üzerindeki etkisi tartışılmaktadır. Çalışma kapsamında Türkiye’deki Ukraynalı derneklerinin temsilcileriyle görüşüldü, derneklerin faaliyetleri takip edildi ve sosyal medya paylaşımları incelendi. Bulgular, kadınların diasporik aktörler haline geldiklerinde büyük ölçekte topluluk siyaseti yaptıklarını ve çoklu ağlar oluşturduklarını ortaya koymaktadır. Göçmenlerin bu ağları kullanarak hemşehri derneklerinin kurumsal yapılarını güçlendirdikleri tespit edildi. Üstelik farklı grupları bir araya getirme yaklaşımlarıyla temsil hiyerarşisinin belirgin olmadığı bir diaspora kompozisyonu oluşturdular.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Notes
1 “Transnationalism from below” is initiatives that concern migrants and civil society often shaped by the practices of their daily lives. “Transnationalism from above” is related to country policies and macro structures that affect the transnational activities of migrants (Smith & Guarnizo, Citation1998; Tedeschi et al., Citation2022). Based on this distinction, we have applied qualitative methodology to understand micro-level initiatives so that it will provide us with an opportunity to see and understand social phenomena more closely.
2 In November 2023, the number of Ukrainian associations in Türkiye has increased to 23 and they are active in 12 provinces. It has thus been noted that diaspora mobilization and the institutionalization trend of diaspora have increased as a result of the Russian-Ukrainian war.
3 Circular migration is periodic and short-term labor mobility between migrant sending and receiving countries.
4 In different sources, it has been claimed that even as early as the year 2002, the number of Ukrainian employees in Türkiye was approximately 35 thousand (Karpachova, Citation2005, p. 17). The Ukrainian Embassy shared the information with the associations that this number has not decreased in time; on the contrary, it has increased. In addition, after the Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, 58,000 Ukrainian asylum seekers came to Türkiye as of March 21, 2022 (BBC News, 22 March Citation2022). In addition, it is also known that some Ukrainians who owned capital benefited from the investment (CBI) program that was implemented in Türkiye in 2017 and were able to become Turkish citizens (Deniz & Çetinkaya, Citation2023, p. 13).
5 It has been observed that family and motherhood-centered policies were adopted in Ukraine until the beginning of the 2000s and this approach formed the main axis of bio policy (Tolstokorova, Citation2012, p. 33; Zhurzhenko, Citation2012, p. 144). Some steps, however, have been taken as of 2005 toward gender mainstreaming and attention has been paid to fatherhood and male issues (Tolstokorova, Citation2012, p. 33). Nevertheless, even though the level of women’s education and their participation in the workforce in the former USSR were high, they were not led to make their own decisions. This situation resulted in a weaker representation of women in political decision-making mechanisms (Salnykova, Citation2012, p. 75).
6 In this, the efforts of women's organizations that have strengthened over time play an important role.
Additional information
Notes on contributors
Ayla Deniz
Ayla DENIZ is an associate professor of geography at Ankara University, Türkiye. She is an expert in the areas of feminist population geography and urban geography and teaches classes in these areas. She was a visiting professor at various universities including the University of Oxford (UK) and the University of California, Davis (USA). She has several of papers/studies/publications in the most reputable venues such as Routledge, European Journal of Women’s Studies, Turkish Studies, Southeast European and Black Sea Studies, Nationalities and Sociology Compass. She also takes part as a researcher and trainer in projects aiming to strengthen civil society and support gender equality and understand family dynamics. E-Mail: [email protected]/[email protected]
Ertuğrul Murat Özgür
Ertuğrul Murat ÖZGÜR is a leading professor of population geography and urban geography in Türkiye. He teaches population, urban geography, and transnational migration at the Geography Department at Ankara University. He has published extensively on population changes such as migration and aging and urban geography such as neoliberal urbanization and urban refugees. His solo- and co-authored work has appeared in Turkish Studies, Southeast European and Black Sea Studies, and Nationalities among others. E.-mail: [email protected]