Repatriation Of Refugees: Paradoxes Of Türkiye On The Repatriation Of Syrian Refugees

Abstract

Being a refugee is meant to be a temporary event, and when the crisis ends, the individuals concerned return to their country of origin. The regulation of repatriation remains a vital component of contemporary migration management governance. But the international politics of returning refugees are poorly understood. This study employs a case-study methodology to examine the paradoxes inherent in the repatriation of Syrian refugees who arrived in Türkiye  in mid-2011 due to the civil war in Syria. The Turkish government expected them to be repatriated in the years ahead, so it passed the 2013 National Asylum Law and the 2014 Temporary Protection Regulation, which granted them temporary protection rather than permanent status but did not specify the conditions under which they could be repatriated. Focusing on the repatriation of Syrian refugees, the study finds key paradoxes in areas where policies and actions not only fail to reach their targets but also show poor migration governance in Türkiye. This has a significant impact on the social, political, and economic structure of Türkiye and on the human rights of a large number of vulnerable people who need a lot of help. The study concludes with recommendations for changes in Türkiye’s approach to migration management and garners global support to begin a safe and dignified return and permanently end the crisis.