Now many live on the streets of Istanbul's ghettos, part of the approximately 366,000 Syrian refugees seeking a new life in the Turkish city. You can see the impact at all levels of society.. Meanwhile, Turkish citizens of Kurdish origin in Sultangazi told Crisis Group they find it unjust that public institutions employ translators for Arabic-speaking Syrians. Divergent Perceptions Crisis Group interview, Istanbul, October 2017.Hide Footnote, Both the Ministry of Labour and Social Security through its employment agency, KUR and the Ministry of National Education through the Directorate General for Lifelong Learning have vocational centres around the country that offer training for various skill levels. [fn]Crisis Group Europe Report N241, Turkeys Refugee Crisis: The Politics of Permanence, 30 November 2016.Hide Footnote It urged decision-makers working with Syrian refugees to acknowledge they were likely to remain in Turkey permanently and engage with constituencies across ethnic, economic and political divides to mitigate domestic tensions. By ignoring or downplaying tensions, the government has allowed hostilities to reach a boiling point in some refugee-dense communities. At present, the Syrian refugee presence is exacerbating social problems in Turkey and driving a wedge deeper and deeper between the state and the political opposition. CCTE Conditional Cash Transfer for Education: A program funded under the EU Facility for Refugees in Turkey that aims to incentivise the schooling of Syrian refugee children. Scenes of women and children asking for alms in the center of Istanbul have become a familiar site for millions of the city's residents. cit.Hide Footnote Most of the direct aid to Syrians, however, comes not from the government but from the EUs European Social Safety Net (ESSN), which provides unconditional cash support dispensed through a debit card. Italy on Sunday took in families with babies and vulnerable migrants rescued in the Mediterranean as charities slammed Romes decision to order the others back into international waters. Find research, data tools, and other content on these topics all in one place. I went to Fatih, an old historic district. Those who remain in Turkey, instead of moving onto Europe, tend to have little education and few skills. We did not know who they were operated by. Since the outbreak of Syrias war in 2011, Turkey has welcomed more than three million Syrian refugees, but their coexistence with the local population is not always easy, as tensions fester over the ensuing demographic and socioeconomic pressures. All live in Istanbul and speak Turkish fluently, and all are Syrian refugees. Refugees tendency to cluster with fellow nationals, sometimes resulting in ghetto-like segregation, can intensify hostility on both sides. Crisis Group interview, UNICEF representative, Ankara, September 2017. Maintaining the highly fragile social acceptance for these newcomers among the native population will be crucial, as concerns over refugees use of public services, safety threats, and job competition could create public-relations rifts that undermine the delicate balance if not handled carefully. This is all building up a frustration [that] can be channelled against the Syrians, many of whom announce Erdoan as their saviour. In neighbourhoods with large numbers of refugees, headmen should be able to hire Syrian assistants to help them smooth frictions and flag potentially dangerous situations. The differences in subculture are more distinct in cities farther from the border, said an international agency official. In another case, KUR paid Syrian women in Gaziantep cash incentives over six months to complete textile crafts training. While municipalities have been working to combat the stereotype, it is important to fight the actual problem as well as the perception, for instance by getting children off the streets and into schools. Locals complain about long lines at hospitals, crowded classrooms, skyrocketing rents, packed busses and piled-up trash. 19 Aug 2014. [fn]Crisis Group interview, representative of an Alevi cemevi, Istanbul, July 2017. Data on Syrian refugee enrolment available from the Ministry of National Education at. AFAD [the Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency] and the Ministry of Development have told us to talk to them even when we are only thinking of a certain project and the areas covered are reduced to those that are palatable politically, said a high-level representative. Figure 1. Figure 3. "People prefer not to hire . Thousands of the HDPs members and nine of its 53 MPs including party co-chair Selahattin Demirta were arrested and remain in prison. Pro-government demonstrators had been summoned into the streets across Istanbul by state-employed imams using the loudspeakers of mosques. Crisis Group telephone interview, October 2017. Except religion, they have nothing in common with the Turks. Living conditions for Syrian refugees are often difficult, but many have overcome these challenges to push for a brighter future. Crisis Group interviews, migration expert, Istanbul, September 2017; migration expert, Ankara, July 2017. The participants who consider Syrians as the most critical issue of Istanbul occupies the third place in the list of most critical issues (10,5 percent). Available online. [fn]Crisis Group interview, TEC director, Istanbuls Sultangazi district, July 2017.Hide Footnote, The problem is even worse in Ankaras Altnda district, where Syrians make up 20 per cent of the population in some neighbourhoods. This concept of faith-based solidarity has been at the centre of its efforts to contain and counter negative sentiments toward refugees. In addition to these, city councils and voluntary service agencies also address foreigner issues from time to time. The CCTE provides refugee families with bi-monthly cash transfers amounting to about 35-60 Turkish lira ($10-$16) based on age and gender. Since 2015, Istanbul has become the province with the largest number of refugees: as of December 2017, the metropole hosted about 538,000 registered Syrians. All photos: Moawia Atrash for The National. [fn][3] AFAD (Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency) study, Syrian Refugees in Turkey, 2013, http://bit.ly/2BVMPri; DGMM figures (as of 7 April 2016) provided in response to a parliamentary inquiry by the main opposition party, CHP, available at http://bit.ly/2C82nt2.Hide Footnote, On-the-job apprenticeship programs, designed by the labour ministry in consultation with employers, are another way to plug both Syrians and local youth into the formal economy. However, according to Mr Corabatir, the initiative showed there is real frustration in Turkey and a desire to go to the West., Beta V.1.0 - Powered by automated translation, UN to cut food aid for Syrian refugees in Jordan amid huge funding shortfall, Syrian refugees in Lebanon can start to return home, says minister, Opinion: Turkey's ruling party, Syrian refugees and the return of Kemalism. Civil society is in survival mode, an activist said. [fn]Suriyeli Mltecilere Ynelik Alg ve Tutumlar almas [Study on Perceptions and Attitudes Toward Syrian Refugees], December 2016. Refugees and their host communities generally do not interact much, which can generate misunderstandings that lead to violent brawls. Yeni pasaportlar kart eklinde retilecek [New passports will be produced as cards], Hrriyet, 30 October 2017.Hide Footnote But both the domestic opposition and Syrians seeking citizenship complain that the process for obtaining citizenship is not transparent. Many Syrians received a warm welcome in Turkey. [fn]NGO representative reflections shared at event attended by Crisis Group titled Migration and the Integration into the Education System organised by Friedrich Naumann Foundations Turkey Office, 13 October 2017.Hide Footnote For example, cash assistance under the ESSN could be offered only to those who enrol in Turkish language courses and/or vocational training, with Syrians deemed especially vulnerable (such as the disabled, sick or elderly) exempt from these conditions. Turkey has taken important steps to integrate 3.4 million Syrians, accommodating this massive influx of refugees with less backlash than might have been expected or feared. Kurds usually behave in an unmannerly way . While the notion of refugees typically brings to mind forced migrants living in camps or certain neighborhoods designated by the receiving government, the situation in Turkey is quite different in that urban refugees predominate. Gentrification over the past few years has already reduced the availability of affordable housing. . More than a third of the refugees are hosted in . Receive the best source of field research and practical policy recommendations right in your inbox. I know people whove been stopped in the street [in Istanbul] by police and put on buses to other parts of Turkey. Compassion and solidarity are curdling into hostility. Reflecting a common view among authorities, a deputy mayor in Sultangazi said the far-left elements living in Sultangazi systematically try to sabotage the states effectiveness and to rally opposition: It is no coincidence that there were protests every day in the Gazi neighbourhood before the coup attempt, and then it stopped suddenly afterward. Opposition parties also have a role to play: they need to be careful not to spread misinformation or exploit the growing angst about Syrians among their constituents. While the Syrian refugees initially concentrated in the border cities, they later turned towards the big cities. Within Syria, 6.5 million are internally displaced. Left-wing and/or Alevi youth there clashed frequently with the nationalist police in the 1990s. Riva's words have been translated from Turkish and lightly edited for clarity. [fn]This measure was partly funded by the EU. There is police impunity for any action against the Kurdish youth here. [fn]NGO representative views shared at event attended by Crisis Group titled Migration and the Integration into the Education System organised by Friedrich Naumann Foundations Turkey Office, Istanbul, 13 October 2017.Hide Footnote. [fn]Crisis Group interview, economist, Ankara, July 2017.Hide Footnote Many Kurds living in western metropolitan cities were themselves displaced from conflict in south-eastern Turkey and harbour longstanding grievances against authorities. Budgetary limitations are among the most pressing, and more refugees might be adequately served if national funds were provided to municipalities based on the number of refugees hosted. Suriyeli barndran ehre Hazine teviki [Treasury incentive for cities hosting refugees]. If you ask me whether I prefer a Syrian or a local Kurd, I would say Syrian, because they are really respectful, said the manager of a shoemaking workshop. Following the coup attempt, nearly 25,000 police officers were removed from office for alleged ties to FET (an abbreviation for Fethullahist Terrorist Organisation, a term coined by the government). Surveys conducted in Istanbul and Ankara in 2009 and 2015 found that negative perceptions of foreigners had increased. Threatening to send them back to a risky country of origin also leads to physical threats and harassment, even killings. Host community and Syrian concerns about coexistence in Turkish public schools need to be addressed through better public communication and by focusing on the message that refugee-related capacity-building also benefits locals. What should be done? Available online (in Turkish). [fn]Crisis Group interviews, representatives of international organisations, Ankara, September 2017. [fn]Crisis Group interviews, business owners, Istanbuls Sultangazi, Ankaras Altnda and Izmirs Bornova districts, July-August 2017.Hide Footnote These informal enterprises operate without supervision by tax officers, municipal controllers or health inspectors, giving them an unfair advantage, according to Turkish shopkeepers. "I used to work as a cleaner but now I can't find anything," said Fatma, 47, who declined to give her surname. Crisis Group interview, official of a local branch of the Ministry of National Education, Istanbul, June 2017. Meanwhile, it is estimated that at least 500,000 Syrians work informally in Turkey. This number is expected to reach 650,000 (65 percent) in the 2017-18 academic year. The longer children remain out of school, the higher the risk that they will feel marginalised. Turkish authorities should also remove the bureaucratic barriers that discourage Syrian entrepreneurs from establishing formal enterprises. Crisis Group interview, migration expert, Ankara, July 2017. Sultangazi is home to a mix of religious and ethnic groups as well as 50,000 Syrian refugees. An expert and an NGO worker estimated in December 2017 that 25,000-30,000 Syrians had received Turkish citizenship. The district received the refugees warmly. The challenge of integrating over 3.4 million Syrians is compounding tensions in a country already struggling with socio-economic strains and political tensions. In a place like the Gazi neighbourhood that locals say is over 50 per cent Alevi, there is a threat perception from the past anyway, and now they think Syrians will be settled here to reduce the Alevis to a minority. Refugees can qualify for this aid based on criteria including income, number of children, and factors such as being a single parent, having a disability or illness, caring for elderly dependants etc. 2015. Turks in these districts perceive refugees more positively. These are agitations from abroad, ill-intended incitements. The Turkish government cannot continue operating without clear policy goals for the sustainable integration of Syrian refugees. Since 2011, all Syrians, Palestinian refugees, and stateless persons living in Syria are eligible, as a group, for temporary protection in Turkey and an open door policy was enacted for those fleeing. 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