The UETD UK (Union of European Turkish Democrats) Youth Branch met with Dr. Ali Demirbag at the latest of their customary roundtable meetings last weekend. Dr Ali Demirbag was joined by ITSEB Secretary Hatice Baklan and Pinar Demir. Dr. Turhan Ozen, UETD Chair, and young people from the Turkish community were also in attendance. The topic of discussion was non-governmental organisations and strategies for campaigning for issues faced by the Turkish community in the UK. The event lasted for 2 hours, giving the young people a chance to both ask questions and put forward their own ideas.
Dr. Demirbag introduced the projects that were undertaken by ITSEB (the association of Turkish Speaking Health professionals in the UK) from health awareness programs aimed at the Turkish community to campaigning for child refugees awaiting entry into the UK from camps in France. Dr. Demirbag shared his experiences in building relationships with the wider Turkish speaking community of London and highlighted the importance of cooperation.
Dr. Turhan Ozen, president of UETD commented on the differing attitudes in the UK and Turkey to employees of public organisations being members of political parties. He disagreed with strict policies limiting political involvement, “provided there exists a mature attitude to politics” and non-partisan work ethic.
The event was well received and UETD UK announced plans to continue their programs in the coming months with a focus on education and political involvement of the Turkish commmunity.