Refugee camps: The Syrian diaspora

Written on January 1st, 2016 in politics Comments Off

Published on Al-Ahram weekly online, by Bassel Oudat, Dec 17, 2015.

Millions of Syrian refugees face harsh conditions in makeshift camps inside the borders of neighbouring states.

The Syrian refugee crisis, the worst such displacement in generations, is far from over. Nearly five million people have crossed the borders into nearby countries. Left to the tender mercies of the local authorities and international relief efforts, they huddle in makeshift camps.  

The longer their ordeal continues, the worse their living conditions become as one country after another grows wary of the social and political consequences of their stay. According to UN sources, 4.7 million Syrian refugees now live in neighbouring countries, including two million in Turkey, 1.2 million in Lebanon and 630,000 in Jordan.

But whether they are in Turkey, Jordan or Lebanon, the refugees tell a similar story. They are accommodated in tents or pre-fabs with inadequate water for washing and drinking, primitive sewage, and too few schools and hospitals. Except in Turkey, the refugees have no or little access to work, and they don’t feel safe or welcome.

One million children have dropped out of school as a result of the lack of schooling in the camps. Poor and vulnerable to disease, the refugees face discrimination, claim that they are mistreated by the security services, and say that the inhabitants of nearby villages and towns view them with suspicion.

A main concern in the countries hosting the refugees is that the Syrians may end up staying for years, straining budgets and potentially upsetting the delicate balance among local ethnicities and factions … //

… TURKEY:

At the beginning of the refugee crisis, Turkey flung its doors wide open to the Syrian refugees, a decision that has cost its government $7 billion in funds so far. Turkey created camps for the refugees and provided them with housing, healthcare and education. It even allowed those who entered legally to work … //

… LEBANON:

Backed by Hizbullah and Iranian forces, the Lebanese army is said to be conducting searches and arresting Syrians in refugee camps in Lebanon. Some of those arrested have apparently been handed over to the Syrian authoritie … //

… JORDAN:

According to the available reports, one family out of three in the Syrian refugee camps in Jordan have now pulled their children out from school so that they may be employed in odd jobs to help their parents … //

… (full text).

Links:

RT talks to Syrians rescued from Al-Nusra-besieged Shiite villages after UN swap (EXCLUSIVE), on RT, Dec 30, 2015;

Les Suisses voteront pour ôter aux banques leur pouvoir de création monétaire, dans La Tribune.fr, par Romaric Godin, le 30 déc 2015;

L’emploi est mort, Vive le travail, dans Mediapart.fr, par Jejeberbi, le 28 déc;

The uncontrollable Turkish watchdog of the United States, on Current Concerns.ch, by Prof Dr Albert A. Stahel, Institut für Strategische Studien, Wädenswil (Switzerland), Dec 19, 2015;

Setting the course for the sovereignty of the European nation states, on Current Concerns.ch, Dec 19, 2015 … Interview with Ruedi Lustenberger, former President of the (Swiss) National Council: No overthrow of national law by the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR);

The UN’s unruly dominion, on Al-Ahram weekly online, by Gamal Nkrumah, Dec 17, 2015: The five permanent UN Security Council members ended 2015 as divided as ever, and yet dominant. Emerging powers are hedging their bets on Security Council reform amid a changing world;

SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES ON ADVERTISING, on Realsociology, by blog owner, Dec 12, 2015: a brief summary of pages of 27-32 of Joel Stillerman’s ‘Sociology of Consumption’: The Effects of Advertising and Branding on Consumers;

New Book: Methodical Illusion, by Rebekah Roth … Rebekah Roth set out to write her first novel. In searching online for a name to give a character, she discovered several of the accused hijackers from 9/11 were and still are alive. Several of them had had their identities stolen, a fact she found confirmed by the director of the FBI. Upon that discovery, Rebekah dedicated thousands of hours to research the details and discovered what really happened to the planes, passengers and crew members that day. The results of her research formed the basis for her first book. Her website Methodical Deception;

Bernie Sanders Portland Rally with Crowd of 20,000, 58.46 min, uploaded by The Daily Conversation, August 9, 2015 … in Portland … Bernie Sanders drew a record crowd of 28,000 people in Portland, Oregon for a campaign rally. The Moda Center sports arena was filled to capacity (19,980). Nearly another 10,000 watched in overflow areas outside the arena. Support Bernie’s campaign. His website (works only with an US zip code);

… and this:

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