DARAA, Syria (North Press) – In the past two months, there has been a surge in forced deportations of Syrian refugees from Turkey to northern Syria, coinciding with the conclusion of the presidential and parliamentary elections in Turkey. According to experts, this suggests that Turkey is using Syrian refugees for economic struggles, and exploiting the refugee issue for political gains both domestically and internationally.
Muhammad al-Muhammad, a pseudonym of 37-year-old Syrian refugee living in Turkey, is considering leaving for Europe due to the ongoing deportation campaigns initiated by Turkish authorities against refugees.
Al-Muhammad, along with many other Syrian refugees, is contemplating leaving Turkey despite having legal residency. He stated that most Syrian refugees have resorted to selling their belongings, such as furniture and electronic devices, in order to obtain funds to pay smugglers to help them leave Turkey.
Political dimensions
Syrian activists told North Press about thousands of forced deportations, while the voluntary return of Syrian refugees does not exceed ten percent.
Ahmad Qatyeh, an activist in refugee issues who resides in Istanbul, told North Press that the deportations of the Syrian refugees from Turkey escalated due to the approaching municipal elections.”
He further explained that the ruling party is trying to win the municipal elections in Istanbul, Ankara, and Bursa, using the card of deporting the Syrian refugees as previously used by the Turkish opposition.
Qatyeh pointed out that the municipalities that are witnessing strong competition in the elections are the ones that are witnessing strict campaigns against illegal immigrants and the Syrian refugees.
He stressed that the Turkish government is continuing to fulfill its promises made by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and declared at the time that one million Syrian refugees would be returned.
Qatyeh has stated that a sense of fear and terror is prevalent among the Syrian refugees who have legal status in Turkey, as they face the threat of deportation by Turkish authorities for minor violations, as has occurred in the past.
All politicians in Turkey seek to please their people, whether the opposition or the government, and thus the Syrian refugee issue turns into a political card between the opposition and the government, while the Syrian refugee is always the one who pays the price, he noted.
Deportation
Though Syria is still unsafe for returns, Turkey tries to get rid of the refugees by forcibly deporting them, as the Turkish authorities have intensified the forced deportation of Syrians, as part of what they call voluntary return to safe areas in northwestern Syria, according to media and documentary reports.
Since the beginning of July, the Turkish authorities have launched a campaign against the Syrian refugees, especially in Istanbul, where activists say more than 800 people have been deported since the beginning of July.
According to Ghazwan Qoronfol, a Syrian human rights activist living in Turkey, who communicated with North Press via WhatsApp, “Some of the individuals who were deported were illegal immigrants, whether they were Syrians or not, and did not have the legal right to remain in Turkey.”
Additionally, the Turkish authorities also target the Syrians who have changed their place of residing, the province from which they obtained their protection card, without reviewing the concerned authorities, the activist noted.
He added that the Turkish authorities “have the right to return them to their states, but they should not be deported to Syria.”
Qoronfol stated that the primary reason for Syrian refugees to relocate from their initial provinces is to search for employment opportunities in major cities such as Istanbul, Ankara, Izmir, Bursa, and others. This is especially true for refugees who are registered in provinces like Mersin and Hatay, where they do not receive government aid, forcing them to seek work in other provinces.
The activist stressed that the deportation of Syrians in particular is linked to the policy decided by Turkish institutions, which is that the number of refugees must be gradually reduced.
According to the human rights activist, there is a systematic policy in Turkey that aims to eliminate the presence of at least three million Syrian refugees within the next four years.