Human Rights Association (İHD) stated that there are 2 million Syrian refugees in Turkey and emphasized that legal arrangements on the problems of refugees are inadequate.

Human Rights Association (İHD) Refugee Rights Commission and Working Group issued a written statement on June 20, the global day of refugees. IHD stated that there are 2 million Syrian refugees in Turkey and emphasized that legal arrangements on the problems of refugees are inadequate. IHD said that many refugees leave their countries due to war, oppression and conflict, and legal arrangements in Turkey narrow down ‘the refugee problem’ to barbed wire security fences and tragedies of sinking boats.

REFUGEES IN NUMBERS

In its statement, IHD provided extensive information on statistics regarding refugees, and said that there are officially 1,800,000 Syrian refugees in Turkey. IHD stated that the unofficial number of Syrian refugees is 2 millions, the majority of whom dispersed to almost every city across Turkey. IHD added that only 260,000 Syrian refugees were directed to the 25 refugee camps that are located in 10 cities (Hatay, Kilis, Urfa, Antep, Maraş, Osmaniye, Adıyaman, Adana, Mardin, Malatya).

IHD stated that tens of thousands of Êzidîs, Turkmens, Assyrians, Kurds and Arabs who fled ISIS massacres in Iraq also sought refuge in Turkey, and said that the number of refugees from Afghanistan, Iran and several states in Africa has exceeded 100,000.

'GOVERNMENT DOES NOTHING TO PREVENT DISASTERS '

IHD also highlighted the disasters where boats carrying refugees to Europe through Turkish territorial waters sink, and criticized the Turkish government for its lack of effort to prevent such disasters.

IHD described the prevention of NGO and political party representatives from entering the 25 AFAD refugee camps where Syrian refugees are held as a serious human rights violation. IHD stated that many asylum seekers are kept under custody for months before the Ministry of Internal Affairs deports them. IHD highlighted that the deportation centers, which are located in 13 cities and run by police officers, have a capacity of 1,740 and fail to meet basic human needs and standards.

PROPOSALS

IHD called on NGOs to develop joint projects on this issue and emphasized the need for deportation centers to meet human rights standards. IHD stated that these centers and the AFAD refugee camps where Syrian refugees are held should be transparently administered by the Department of Migration instead of police forces.

IHD called on Turkey to learn how to live with refugees and ban hate crime targeting this group of people, which is prevalent among Turkish society. IHD called on Turkey to reconsider the visa exemption and readmission agreements it made with the EU, and stated that the EU was avoiding its responsibilities by using Turkey as storage warehouse for incoming refugees.