Our daily sense of what it means to be a refugee is dominated by images of attempted movement – people undertaking difficult journeys, being stuck at borders and camps, or being victimised by border controls. Yet not all displaced people want to move. Some wish to stay put and grow roots where they currently are.
For most displaced people this is surprisingly difficult to do. Countries like Turkey, which hosts a large number of refugees, are far from providing protection to displaced people, let alone a life where one can realise their aspirations for the future. Most also do not officially recognise the refugees within their borders. Turkey accomplishes this through a geographical limitation it placed on the 1951 Refugee Convention, which allows it to refuse refugee status to people originating from non-European countries.
Displaced Syrians are mostly registered under temporary protection, which allows them to stay in Turkey without specifying for how long. Afghans in the country are, generally speaking, even more precarious. Most are unregistered and deprived of any legal status, while a minority are given conditional refugee status for as long as it takes them to be resettled to third countries. They are often made to wait years for an opportunity to do so.
Refugees’ unclear legal status in Turkey makes them vulnerable, and within this context it is interesting to ask why some aspire to move on while others do not. Focusing on aspirations helps us debunk two of the narratives currently dominating migration policy-making: first, that all migrants are on their way to Europe, and second, that strict border policies will convince migrants not to attempt the journey.
“Their life is different from us, and here is safe.”
Many Syrian refugees say they would rather stay in Turkey, as it is a Muslim country. They do not see themselves as fitting into a European country. “Europe is hard for us because of the tradition and cultural differences, especially since we have five daughters” said Amal, a mother of six living in Istanbul. “Europe would be difficult for the girls to adapt in. But here, Turkey is an Islamic country, so it is much better for them.” Amal and her family came to Turkey in 2014. For the first eighteen months they lived together with other family members in a camp near the border – fifteen people in a single room.
Her husband went to Istanbul to work in a factory in Istanbul, and after 1.5 years he had saved enough for his family to be able to join him. They rely on social assistance to pay their rent and make a living. They barely make ends meet. Amal said that her feelings of safety and familiarity in Istanbul would keep her in Turkey even if the borders to Europe were to open.
“I do not want to start from zero.”
For others leaving Turkey without documents was out of the question. This wasn’t because they feared a high-risk border crossing or because they lacked the necessary social and financial capital. It was because they did not want to go through the stigma of being a refugee all over again. They often said, “I do not want to start from zero.” By this, they meant that they had already invested considerable time and resources into bettering their current circumstances. They did not want to go to a new country where they will be treated like new refugees – put into camps, told to learn the language, and be forced to re-start their education. Especially among Syrian youth, those who had found room for self-improvement were more likely to aspire to stay in Turkey. They had achieved stability to a certain extent and developed a sense of belonging in Turkey – either through work or education or Turkish citizenship – and saw no need to jeopardise that.
While these young people do not want to become a refugee again, they were content to keep other mobility options – such as for tourism, employment, or study – on the table. They were open to secondary movement in general, but not as refugees. For example, many Syrian university students, like their Turkish peers, dreamt of spending a semester abroad through the Erasmus programme. Their aspirations are built upon what they have already accumulated rather than a fresh start. In the process, they began to aspire to mobility rather than migration. This insight highlights the need to look beyond the actual physical movement when seeking to make sense of refugees’ aspirations. We need take into account that other critical transitions in life, like continuing education or starting a family or new business, play a role in their decision-making as well.
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Aysen Ustubici Eda Kiriscioglu | Radio Free (2020-07-06T22:11:10+00:00) Once displaced, always on the move? Life aspirations of refugees in Turkey. Retrieved from https://www.radiofree.org/2020/07/06/once-displaced-always-on-the-move-life-aspirations-of-refugees-in-turkey/
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