The aim of the study, led by Dr Ibrahim Sirkeci in the Department of Sociology, was to outline the characteristics of the Iraqi Turkmen population and the patterns of their international migration. Researchers collected information from about one per cent of the Turkmen population through a questionnaire of nearly 1,500 randomly selected households in Iraqi cities and towns including Baghdad, Kirkuk, Musul and Erbil where there is a sizeable Turkmen community.
It was felt the report, commissioned by the Global Strategy Institute, Ankara, Turkey, was needed after the chaos and turbulence in Iraq following the intervention by USA and coalition forces in 2003.
The study provides a snapshot of a significant ethnic group's demography for policy makers and planners involved in Iraq's reconstruction.
The report's main findings are:
Dr Sirkeci, commenting on the findings, said: "Turkmen have been suffering from the Arabisation policies of the Saddam regime as they were forced to resign their ethnic identities in favour of Arab identity.
"The rebuilding of a democratic Iraq is a great opportunity for Turkmen to contribute to the country's economic, political and cultural life as equal partners as other ethnicities without giving up their own Turkmen identity."