National Assembly in February: Youth Issues Factsheet

This information note summarizes the prominent themes, discussions, and key data related to youth in the Turkish Grand National Assembly (TBMM) for the month of February, based on the officially published parliamentary transcripts. During February 2026, youth-related topics were discussed a total of 61 times in the TBMM.

A point of particular importance in this note is the two parliamentary motions for research and one draft law discussed in Parliament during February. The motion submitted by İYİ Party MP Turhan Çömez, calling for an investigation into youth involvement in crime and gang formation, brought this issue to the parliamentary agenda in the context of youth. In addition, the motion submitted by İYİ Party MP Mustafa Gürban on youth distancing from agriculture highlighted the problems faced by young farmers. Within the draft law on traffic rules and penalties, 4 MPs also addressed this issue in the context of youth.

Key Themes

Youth Vulnerability to Crime and the Issue of Gang Formation: A parliamentary motion for research on the rapid involvement of young people in crime circles due to poverty and the lack of preventive policies was submitted under the leadership of İYİ Party MP Turhan Çömez. This issue was brought to the parliamentary agenda a total of 6 times.

By party:

2 times CHP
2 times İYİ Party
2 times Felicity (Saadet) Party

Youth Migration to Metropolitan Cities: The migration of young people from relatively smaller cities to metropolitan areas due to lack of employment opportunities was discussed 5 times in the TBMM.

By party:

2 times İYİ Party
2 times DEM Party
1 time CHP

Problems of Young Farmers: The issue of young people distancing themselves from agriculture and its causes was one of the most frequently discussed topics in Parliament during February. It was raised a total of 6 times by MPs.

By party:

2 times DEM Party
2 times MHP
1 time İYİ Party
1 time Felicity (Saadet) Party

The issues of youth poverty/unemployment and drug/gambling problems, which are raised in Parliament every month continued to be on the agenda in February. Youth poverty/unemployment was discussed 7 times (4 CHP, 2 DEM Party, 1 Felicity Party), while the drug and gambling issue was also discussed 7 times (2 İYİ Party, 2 HÜDAPAR, 1 AKP, 1 Felicity Party, 1 CHP).

In addition, the issues of ÖSYM exam fees, housing problems and youth activism were each brought to the parliamentary agenda 2 times.

Notable Data

Youth-related topics were brought up 61 times in the Turkish Grand National Assembly during the month of February. By party, CHP MPs spoke 20 times, DEM Party MPs 14 times, Felicity (Saadet) Party MPs 12 times and İYİ Party MPs 9 times on this issue. MHP and HÜDAPAR MPs addressed youth issues 2 times each, while AKP and Future (Gelecek) Party MPs addressed them 1 time each.

The MPs who spoke most frequently on youth issues in February were Necmettin Çalışkan and Turhan Çömez.

Conclusion

In May, discussions on youth in the Turkish Grand National Assembly took place through parliamentary motions for research. The increase in youth crime rates and gang formation as well as the issue of young people distancing themselves from agriculture, were discussed in this context. As in almost every month, poverty and unemployment, along with the problem of drug use/gambling, were among the prominent youth-related topics in the TBMM. As Arayüz Campaign, we will examine laws and new processes in our future work in terms of their impact on young people.