"When I Picture My Future, I See Nothing" is the titel of a 2015 Human Rights Watch report on barriers to education for Syrian refugees children in Turkey. After the outbreak of the war in Syria in 2011, over 5 Million Syrian refugees have been registered in diverse countries such as Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, Egypt and Turkey. If one adds those refugees considered to be illegal, the real number is far higher. Officially, Turkey has registered 3 Million people (April 27, 2017). It is assumed, however, that more than 4 Million Syrian refugees are located in the country. Only 10 percent of refugees live in refugee camps spread over 10 cities. Turkey has made an enormous effort of receiving refugees, despite rapidly growing criticism. The initial willingness to receive refugees and to financially support the creation of an infrastructure is remarkable. However, the duration and massive scale of the flow of people came unexpectedly, at first.

Calls for concepts that would enable the integration of Syrian refugees have gotten louder. The reason for this can be found in the longer stays of Syrian refugees, together with the fact that millions of people don't want to just literally “sit around” for years but would rather have independent control over their economic and social life once more. Questions of work permits, the attendance of educational institutions, the right to adequate healthcare but also of naturalization are at the top of the list of challenges that need to be met with regulation and swift implementation. The need for action is urgent, yet decisions are delayed and even, according to reports, blocked.

Refugees' Legal Status

In 1951, Turkey signed the Geneva Convention relating to the Status of Refugees. However, the ratification contains a geographical restriction and only pertains to refugees from Europe. Refugees from other regions are given a “guest” status.

In the Turkish language, refugees are commonly referred to as “guests”. In general, the authorities as well as the wider public were and are seen as being extremely ready to help people in emergency situations.

Every (Syrian) refugee is able to register as a “guest” at the local police station, which puts them under “temporary protection” according to the Law on Foreigners and International Protection (April 2014).

This “guest status”, however, causes enormous problems in terms of renting a living space, registering children at educational institutions, using state-run health institutions, accessing civil service, finding formal work or opening a bank account.

Work Permits – A Rare Good

The 80.000 Syrians who have legally crossed the Turkish border with their passport since 2011 can apply for a residential and a work permit, according to the Law on Working Permits for Foreigners. There are no accurate statistics on how many Syrians have taken advantage of this opportunity. However, a Foreign Office document shows that between January and November 2016, 10.227 work permits were issued.

Legally, those people with a guest status can only legally work if their employer applies for an official work permit at the Ministry for Labor in Ankara. As this process costs time and money, very few employers choose this route. Only about 6000 work permits are said to have been granted by the Ministry of Labor until now. Because of high unemployment, often work permit applications for Syrian refugees are not granted, thus keeping the vacancies free for Turkish job seekers. So, in order to avoid this bureaucratic hurdle and to be able to pay lower wages, many employers decide to hire Syrian refugees illegally. Estimates put the number of informally employed Syrians at 500.000.

In addition, about half of Syrian refugees of employable age have had no formal job training, thus making them fit only for unskilled work on the Turkish job market (formal and informal). 

Child Labor is a Widespread Problem

Turkish Labor Law prohibits the employment of children under 15. But because most Syrian children have to contribute to their families' income, many take up illegal employment in different sectors, such as agriculture or the manufacturing industry. In many cases, children help their parents with their own illegal work. According to Human Rights organizations, a high number of children is forced into prostitution for money or begging.

As per official UNHCR statistics, 44,7 percent of Syrian refugees are under 18. Of these officially registered 1,4 million children, only about 500.000 visit an educational institution in Turkey. By now, UNICEF is warning of the danger of a “lost generation” if the opportunity to send children to school does not become an area-wide soon. But even if this were the case, education is not compulsory for the children of refugees. Therefore, the parents' desire that their children receive an education, instead of being sent to work out of desperation, is decisive.

Limited Access to the Health Care System

Registered Syrian Refugees have the right to basic health care, according to the Turkish Government. State-run hospitals near the Syrian border in particular dedicate around 30 to 40 percent of their monthly capacities to the needs of Syrian refugees. This, in turn, disadvantages the local population, as the state-run hospitals' overall capacities were not increased even as the number of refugees rose.

Aid organizations and local NGOs state that discrimination at public institutions, including state-run hospitals, is reported as being on the rise. This includes long waiting periods for Syrian refugees, verbal abuse and occasionally threats. Also, the language barrier is a far-reaching problem at many public institutions.

Unregistered refugees can only fall back on care supplied by private hospitals, if they can manage to raise the needed funds.

Increase of Child Marriages

In the last few years, the number of polygamous marriages has been on the rise, particularly in the border regions near Syria. An increasing trend of religious marriages between, in part, older men and Syrian girls and women is being reported. As these religious marriages are not registered by the state, precise statistics do not exist.

At the same time, divorce rates between Turkish couples have gone up. NGO surveys show that many Turkish women are afraid of losing their husbands to Syrian women and girls and therefore feel under enormous pressure.

Another known fact is that the number of child marriages has increased. Many under-age Syrian girls are being married to younger or older Turkish men, which is partly consensually, partly under duress.

Most times, the Turkish men pay a middle man for arranging the marriage. They also, usually, pay a bridal dowry to the girl's or woman's parents.

Child marriages can have several reasons. One the one hand, the much mentioned protection of minors in a foreign country or during the further journey to Europe plays a part. On the other hand, marrying daughters off in order to lessen the cost of living and the responsibilities for the Syrian family is another aspect.

The Desire to go to Europe Remains Unbroken

A Syrian refugee can only submit a legal application for asylum for a European country if he/she was officially registered with UNHCR as a refugee. Also, applicants go through a selection process and an allocation key before being allowed to come to Europe.

As this process is time-consuming and full of bureaucratic obstacles, many refugees try to acquire the means to come to Europe illegally. The closure of the Eastern European route has not diminished the wish of many Syrians to come to Europe in any significant way. Especially those Syrians in precarious living or work situations dream of Europe as a place of prosperity.

Syrian refugees with a very high level of education, or those from wealthy families, have fewer problems with integration in Turkey. It has been reported that many people from this group of refugees have settled in Turkey by founding businesses. Further, the reports also say that applications for Turkish citizenship is less hard in these cases.

In this context, the selection of Syrian refugees who may receive asylum in Canada or different European states is noteworthy. The various countries supply the Turkish authorities with a list of names via UNHCR. This list must then be authorized by these authorities before the people are allowed to leave the country. There are continuous reports, however, that Syrians with higher education levels (university etc.) are being struck from these lists and thus forced to stay in Turkey, or that they are simply stopped at the border and denied emigration.

Searching for solutions

Meanwhile, Turkey has recognized the need for driving the integration process regarding Syrian refugees forward, as it is currently still impossible to predict when the people who had to flee can return to their homes.

The Turkish government has asked Germany, amongst other states, to initiate a dialogue on the experiences made with German integration policy.

With regards to Turkey's domestic and foreign challenges, the refugee topic often fades into the background, while Turkey is nearing its financial limits, as well.

In order to avoid future conflict hot spots – the result of failed integration policies – it is necessary to find solutions that offer Syrian refugees a perspective and that also dispels the Turkish locals' fears of growing unemployment and cultural differences. For this, it is crucial to open a public discussion, which must include diverse national and international interests. Further, the legal framework must be put in place so that decisions can be implemented quickly.

Contact:Daniela Kuzu, FES Turkey

Short Film Program: “People in Motion” – Why do People leave their Homes? What Paths do they Take?

In cooperation with local partners, the FES international offices produced a short film program that deals with these questions. The films are available on our TOPIC pages “Flight, Migration, Integration”. Please feel free to use them for your own events.

Releases:

The Route was never the Destination. “We have become migrants....but one day we will arrive.” Short film about a Cuban family that had to flee their country.

Return. In the 90s Lana Mayer fled Croatia for Germany. Now she has returned to Vukovar. This film tells her story.

Move. Three people leave their homes and end up in Namibia. In the short movie “Move”, they reflect upon migration, European double standards and imbalances of power.

The Rainbow-Center of Gaziantep. “Exile offers the chance of overcoming the shadow of violence”. A short film on Syrian dissidents caring for traumatized children.

Caught in the Middle – Migration in Ethiopia. “I do not want my children to live in fear, like I did”. A short film about Ethiopian refugees in Sudan.

Chaught in the Middle, Part 2. Elsa's husband, Yosef, has arrived in Sweden. He has not yet been able to bring his family. Part 2 of the short film “ Between Two Stools”.

Jaminton and Yannia are Leaving. Displaced in one's own country. A short film about a family in Colombia who have become internally displaced due to civil war and violence.

Unseen Shadows - Those who are left behind. A short film on the challenges of women and families in India, whose men have migrated in search of work.

Cyber-Mom. A short film about three children from Central American El Salvador who are raised by their grandparents because their parents have migrated to the USA for work.

Nowhere Man - Pakistani Refugees in South Korea are fighting for Recognition. The A. Family has fled from Pakistan to South Korea, 6000 miles away. A story that also deals with South Korean asylum policy.

Behind the Sea. The film deals with the story of four Algerians who left their homeland for various reasons and returned to Algeria after a certain time. [only available in german]