Musician accepted to German school faces visa problem

ANTALYA

A 17-year-old musician who has won numerous awards in international competitions has encountered a visa issue that might prevent him from attending a prestigious music school in Germany for his future education.

It was reported that Güneş Tunçkıran, the promising pianist from the southern province of Antalya, has yet to even get an appointment to apply for a Schengen visa.

Becoming interested in music with the influence of his pianist grandfather Bora Şakarca at the age of 6, Tunçkıran was recently accepted for a summer training camp by a music school in Germany, whose name was undisclosed yet is known to begin its training program on July 25, and is currently facing the visa problem encountered by thousands of Turkish citizens.

“I want to give concerts in different countries worldwide. I was accepted to a summer school in Germany. The school sent me an invitation because they were familiar with the visa problem in Türkiye. My application was approved, the fees were paid, but this is my biggest problem right now.”

Previously, the EU Commission has stressed that consular staff shortages are to blame for Turkish individuals' difficulties obtaining Schengen visas rather than any negative attitudes toward Türkiye.

Nevertheless, Turkish citizens' applications for Schengen visas are being rejected at a rate of 50 percent, a sector representative says, seriously disrupting travel and business plans.