The Waste Trade as a Tool of Colonialism in Our Age: A Sociolegal Analysis for Türkiye

Colonial attitudes have somehow managed to persevere into this century even though colonialism is said to have died out in the last. It can be argued that the waste trade is one of the tools of colonialism in today’s world. States vulnerable to such colonial practices are unable to withstand them for economic reasons. Türkiye, which took a prominent role after China banned waste imports from the West in 2018, is one of those states. There is now a domestic legal waste trade regime in the country, but it can be questioned whether it is working effectively. The purpose of this chapter is to consider this and determine whether the waste trade which Türkiye is involved in as an importer is colonial in nature. The fact that waste-exporting states even send waste that cannot be recycled to Türkiye suggests this is the case.