A recent survey has found foreigners living in Turkey are not eager to seek the right to vote, and the majority of Turks surveyed also oppose the idea.

The findings of the survey were published in local weekly Voices, based in Altınkum in the Aegean resort town of Didim.

As part of a larger study aimed at understanding the social and economic effects of foreign retirees’ living in Turkey, Professor Zerrin Toprak, from Dokuz Eylül University’s department of administrative and political science, also examined foreign residents’ attitudes toward participation in local administration.

Professor Toprak and her team carried out the survey in Antalya, a popular place for foreign retirees looking to settle in Turkey, reported Voices.

When asked if they would like to be able to vote in local elections, foreign residents were hesitant. Only 26 percent said "yes," 66.8 percent said "no," and 7.2 percent did not provide an answer.

Their interest in general elections was lower. Only 19.8 percent liked the idea of voting in general elections in Turkey, 41.8 percent were against it and 30 percent were undecided.

Turks who live in Antalya are critical of the idea of foreign residents participating in local elections.

Only 30 percent said they would support the participation of foreigners, 19.8 percent said it was a bad idea and 41.4 percent simply said they would not support it.

Turkish citizens in Antalya are hesitant about foreign residents participating in public life in Turkey. Only 25.7 percent said such participation would be useful, 43 percent were against the idea and 24.4 percent were strongly opposed to it.

Stay out of economy
Antalya's Turks are also against the participation of foreign residents in the country's economy, with 65.1 percent saying employment of foreign residents led to unemployment among locals.

Only 10 percent of those surveyed take problems to municipality or local administrations. Foreign residents are also not particularly interested in being members of associations.

The survey indicates retired foreign residents are highly educated, 51 percent have university degrees and only 9 percent did not graduate.

Foreign residents spend most of their time in Turkey, except for the months of January, February and March, 44.8 percent chose to stay in the country on tourist visas, while only 51.6 percent have residence permits.

According to the survey, when they face problems, most foreign residents, 84.4 percent, prefer to solve them with the help of friends. Around 55 percent have sought the help of their home country’s consulate in the past.

For 46.9 percent of Turks surveyed, the settling of foreign residents in Antalya means the corruption of moral values. Similarly, 45.9 percent said the migration of foreigners to Antalya led to the disruption of cultural identity.

Professor Toprak told Voices the survey highlighted the low-level of trust toward foreign residents in Turkey, and this is an urgent problem that must be addressed.