The second ever Bursa Fotofest held this year brought together photographers and editors from all over the world, and in every category, from young to old and from amateur to professional.
The project “Evden uzakta,” which I began five years ago, focuses on the residents of the İstanbul district of Eminönü Küçükpazar, which receives some of the heaviest flows of migrants from different parts of Turkey. Here, thousands of young migrants pursue hopes and dreams in the middle of some very difficult living conditions. This group, which we could call the “fourth generation” in the wake of waves of migration that took place in the ‘60s, ‘80s and the ‘90s, generally tends not to have any formal education and therefore tends to work in day labor type positions.
These migrants usually live in single room apartments with limited running water and electricity. Rooms that sleep around 10 people are rented on a monthly basis. Meals are made and showers are taken in these rooms. And these migrants, who often work selling goods from sidewalk stands, or perhaps spend their days collecting paper, make around TL 500 per month. Some TL 200 of this is spent on rent and food, while the rest is sent back to their families in the village. If these youths wind up being able to realize their dreams here, they often send for their families, who then wind up migrating to İstanbul along with them. The fact is, though, very few actually succeed in getting to this stage.
