Prejudice against German-Turks: The conqueror of the job center

Mr Federal President, I see you have had a busy week. You were in Berlin together with the President of Mongolia at the opening of the exhibition about Genghis Khan and the world of the Mongols. Genghis Khan and his descendants permanently changed the balance of power in Anatolia. Europe was also not spared from the Mongol conquests.

Be that as it may, Mr Federal President, I stopped writing at this point a fortnight ago. I actually wanted to tell you the story of another man who was probably as tall as Genghis Khan, who conquered Europe in his own way and about whom opinions are equally divided. Genghis Khan was never personally in Europe, and Genghis Khan was a title, not the man's name. That's why I changed this man's name too.

This short, plump man from Wedding was the embodiment of all the prejudices about the Almancıs that people in Turkey believe to be true. He came from a city on the Black Sea that is considered a stronghold of conservatism and supported the AKP. Today, however, he swears he never did that.

And another prejudice: Of course he is cheating the state here. Since the Köfte stall he took over years ago went bankrupt, he has been living off the job center. He swears it was the only way, and I believe him when he says that.

"This 'Çöp-Sentır', you know, it's the most beautiful company I've seen in my life," says Timuçin: "You can tell them: 'I gambled, my money's gone' and they'll still give you money. I swear to God."

In the restaurant where he works full-time, he kneads up to 50 kilos of kofta, depending on the day. Not an easy job. In this way, he puts an additional 2,000 euros into his pocket tax-free. He uses the money to buy houses in Turkey. He is also stingy: He is surprised when he hears that other people have high expenses. When he is criticized for this, he says: “Even the imam of our mosque does that.”

He is completely exhausted from work every day. And only alcohol lets him sleep. Because he doesn't dare drink alcohol openly, he fills small bottles of vodka into a 50cl plastic bottle of Fanta. When this mixture, whose alcohol content increases over time, is drunk, he goes, eats a roast chicken and sleeps. A rock 'n' roll life. But that life is now over.

Because Timuçin suffered a stroke some time ago and narrowly escaped death. He stayed in a nearby hospital for almost two months and lost quite a bit of weight. Now he smiles like a shy child and has stopped drinking but still smokes. He really can't work anymore. His arms and legs are weak.

Now, perhaps for the first time, he really needs the state. Sometimes I think that with all the planned cuts or tighter controls, he could lose his benefits. What would happen then?

Mr. Federal President, I know that you are not saying: “Serves him right.” I can't say that either; somehow I still like the man. And he is a good example for discussions. Whenever someone in Turkey speaks disparagingly about Almancıs, I can point to him and say: "Yes, there really is such a man, and here he is. I only know this one, though."