SOCIOPOLITICAL STATUS AND VULNERABILITIES OF THE TURKISH MINORITY IN NORTH MACEDONIA: RIGHTS VIOLATIONS, MIGRATION AND IDENTITY EROSION

North Macedonia, where different ethnic, linguistic and religious communities live together, has a multi-layered structure. Within this framework, alongside the Macedonian and Albanian ethnic groups, which play a dominant role in the sociopolitical sphere, there is also a Turkish minority that has had a historical presence in the region for a long time. This community, which formed a fundamental element of the region during Ottoman rule, experienced a significant demographic and status decline following the withdrawal of the Empire and continues to struggle to maintain its existence within a system where ethnic equality is contested. This study analyses the rights, sociopolitical status and vulnerabilities of the Turkish minority in North Macedonia from a holistic perspective. Using a qualitative research methodology, the study analyses data obtained from document analysis, field observations and semi-structured interviews within an interdisciplinary theoretical framework. The findings reveal that the inadequate implementation of officially recognised rights creates a dual risk mechanism, manifested in migration and identity erosion. This process is further deepened by strategic sociopolitical alignment with the dominant Albanian bloc (locally perceived as “Albanization”) acting as a pragmatic adaptation to structural inequalities, posing a serious existential threat to the community's future. By examining the rights of the Turkish minority and the sociopolitical risks it faces within an interdisciplinary framework, this study contributes to the literature on minority politics and ethnopolitical dynamics in the Balkan context.