Turkish Migrant Organisations after the 2011 Van Earthquake: Member Interests versus Humanitarian Principles

Abstract

This article applies organisational sociology to provide an empirical analysis of the roles that two different types of Turkish migrant organisations, headquartered in Germany, played after the 2011 Van earthquake in Turkey, and their different levels of commitment to the traditional humanitarian principles. It shows that the faith-based organisation, Islamic Community Millî Görüş, and the political organisation, Federation of Democratic Workers' Unions, engaged in various activities after the crisis in order to legitimise themselves to their members in Germany. It also demonstrates that their motivations, activities, roles, partners and, most importantly, their commitment to the traditional humanitarian principles diverged due to their different organisational characteristics. Finally, it discusses whether and to what extent humanitarian principles can promote coherence and coordination in the crowded and diverse world of humanitarian actors, especially at a time when the number of humanitarian actors, such as migrant organisations, is rapidly growing and their roles and impacts are becoming increasingly important.