Why is Europe pausing Syrian asylum claims later al-Assad’s fall? | Syria’s Conflict Information


“Wir schaffen das!” or “We can do it!” mentioned former German Chancellor Angela Merkel 9 years in the past, when she proclaimed that Germany and Europe had the capability to handover asylum to family searching for shelter.

Again after, her phrases presented hope to masses of 1000’s of Syrian family who have been absconding the rustic’s now-13-year-long civil battle, on the lookout for shelter in Europe.

However as of late, Merkel’s open-door coverage for asylum seekers, particularly for family from Syria, has modified in Europe.

Simply days later the autumn of Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad, international locations around the continent – together with Germany, Austria, Belgium, Greece, Italy, Sweden, Denmark and the UK – have all introduced plans to relaxation asylum packages for Syrian family searching for asylum. This contains each brandnew packages and those who are nonetheless being processed.

On Monday, Filippo Grandi, the pinnacle of the United International locations Prime Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), known as for “patience and vigilance”. In a commentary, he mentioned the company is “hoping that developments on the ground will evolve in a positive manner, allowing voluntary, safe and sustainable returns to finally occur – with refugees able to make informed decisions.”

So what’s the rationale in the back of Eu international locations frigid asylum packages from Syria?

Non-public pieces retrieved from probably the most rooms on the Presidential Palace, referred to as Qasr al-Shaab or the ‘People’s Palace’, in Damascus later the town used to be seized via opposition opponents and President Bashar al-Assad used to be ousted [Amr Abdallah Dalsh/Reuters]

What number of Syrians have claimed asylum in Europe?

For the reason that onset of the Syrian civil battle in 2011, the United International locations reviews, no less than 7.4 million Syrians stay internally displaced, with roughly 4.9 million searching for shelter in neighbouring international locations. An extra 1.3 million have resettled in other places, most commonly in Europe.

In step with a midyear evaluate discharged via the Eu Union Company for Asylum (EUAA) in September, of a complete 513,000 asylum packages won via EU international locations in 2024, “Syrians continued to lodge by far the most applications in the first half of the year”. Their asylum claims constitute 14 % of the entire collection of packages – a be on one?s feet of 7 proportion issues in comparison to the similar length in 2023.

The EUAA record additionally highlighted that round 101,000 Syrian asylum packages are nonetheless pending in EU international locations.

In the meantime in the United Kingdom, in step with the rustic’s House Administrative center, greater than 27,000 family from Syria have claimed asylum for the reason that onset of the civil battle, with 90 % of claims being licensed. On the other hand, 6,502 Syrian asylum claims are nonetheless pending as of September 2024.

What does ‘pausing’ asylum claims heartless?

Following the autumn of al-Assad, some EU international locations have introduced a “pause” within the processing of asylum packages date they become familiar with the condition within Syria, they are saying.

The 27-member bloc’s overseas leaders will meet then this pace to talk about a joint reaction.

In the United Kingdom, which left the EU following the 2016 Brexit referendum, House Secretary Yvette Cooper famous that the condition in Syria is transferring very rapid. “And that is why, like Germany, like France, and like other countries, we have paused asylum decisions on cases from Syria while the Home Office reviews and monitors the current situation,” she mentioned.

Bram Frouws, director of Geneva-based assume tank Blended Migration Centre, advised Al Jazeera that pausing asylum claims “basically means Syrians who are still in an asylum process and awaiting a decision will be in limbo for much longer”.

“Knowing there are long asylum backlogs in many [European] countries, this adds to the uncertainty for many. It also means that those who arrive from now on, while still possible to file an asylum claim, will have to wait long for a decision,” he added.

For now, there’s no alternate in situation for individuals who have already been granted asylum in Eu international locations.

Italy
A bunch of 60 Syrian refugees absconding war-torn Lebanon is welcomed on the Leonardo Da Vinci Airport in Rome, Italy on Tuesday, October 15, 2024, sooner than the autumn of Syria’s al-Assad regime. Now, Italy says it is going to droop asylum packages [Gregorio Borgia/AP]

Which EU international locations are doing what?

Germany

Lately in Germany, which has permitted greater than one million Syrian refugees, the freeze at the processing of asylum packages for Syrian family will have an effect on 47,770 packages which are already within the machine. The rustic has no longer introduced any plans to start out deportations of Syrians.

On Monday, later Germany’s Federal Administrative center for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) introduced the verdict to relaxation the method, the chief of Bavaria’s conservative Christian Social Union celebration, Markus Soder, mentioned it used to be “the right decision”.

Austria

In Austria, Inner Minister Gerhard Karner mentioned that population reunification visa schemes for Syrians – each brandnew packages and the ones nonetheless being processed – would even be halted.

Austria has additionally introduced plans to deport Syrian migrants. “I have instructed the ministry to prepare an orderly return and deportation programme to Syria,” Karner advised Austrian media, despite the fact that he didn’t specify which family, exactly, could be despatched again. About 100,000 Syrians reside in Austria, in step with knowledge from the Austrian executive.

Denmark

Denmark, which has mentioned it considers Syria to be “safe” since 2019, has been searching for tactics to discourage Syrian asylum seekers for once in a while. Following the autumn of the regime, it additionally mentioned it’s postponing 69 asylum circumstances these days being processed. It added that it’s now additionally making plans to begin deporting Syrians, without reference to whether or not they’ve won asylum or no longer.

Norway, Italy and Belgium

Norway, Italy and Belgium have additionally all made bulletins that they are going to droop brandnew claims and relaxation current claims nonetheless below procedure.

Frouws famous that cases have hugely modified with al-Assad’s downfall. His regime used to be the principle reason why to lend coverage to Syrians who had fled their nation.

“We have seen celebrations by Syrians abroad, many expressing an intention to return, and we have actually seen some small-scale return movements from neighbouring Lebanon and Turkey. In that sense, it is understandable countries are re-assessing the situation,” Frouws mentioned.

On the other hand, the selections being taken to droop asylum claims are “premature” he mentioned. “It is way too early to see how the situation will evolve … the way European states tumble over each other to all suspend processing asylum claims, or even start talks about returns of those who have already received protection is embarrassing,” Frouws mentioned.

He mentioned the selections pointed to a choice via Eu international locations to go back Syrian refugees to Syria.

“It shows a certain hypocrisy,” he mentioned. “Only days ago, some states thought it would be OK to return people to Syria while Assad’s regime was still there. And now that he’s gone, they also think it’s okay to return people, which seems to indicate that no matter the circumstances, the goal is returns.”

Does Europe believe Syria ‘safe’, after?

In relation to claiming asylum, the EUAA determines international locations are barricade if they don’t generate “protection needs for their people” or are international locations by which “asylum seekers are protected and are not in danger”.

On the other hand, the EU these days maintains that Syria isn’t barricade for family to go back to.

“For the time being, we maintain, in line with the UNHCR, the conditions are not met for safe, voluntary, dignified returns to Syria,” a Eu Fee spokesperson advised journalists in Brussels on Monday.

The spokesperson added, on the other hand, that “most Syrians in the diaspora have been dreaming of going back to their country” and possibly later to go back must be the verdict of every population and person.

UK Overseas Secretary David Lammy mentioned a dozen depends upon what occurs upcoming within the nation and a go back of family to Syria may additionally “quickly become a flow back out and potentially increase the numbers using dangerous illegal migration routes to continental Europe and the United Kingdom”.

“At this time of turbulence and change, countries should avoid plunging Syrian refugees and people seeking asylum into situations of further uncertainty and precarity,” Eve Geddie, Europe director at Amnesty World, advised Al Jazeera.

“In line with international law and standards on refugee protection, asylum claims must be processed promptly and effectively,” she mentioned. “European countries must also continue to consider the individual circumstances of each asylum seeker on a case-by-case basis. They must immediately reverse decisions to suspend Syrians’ asylum applications and reject calls to return Syrians or restrict family reunification.”

What do Syrian refugees assume Europe must be doing now?

Ahmad Helmi, who hails from Damascus and these days is living within the Netherlands, advised Al Jazeera that he used to be dissatisfied via some EU international locations’ resolution to droop asylum claims.

“Their first reaction should have been, ‘How can we support a democratic transition in Syria and establish peace in the country?’ rather than announce stopping asylum claims,” mentioned Helmi, who has been granted asylum within the Netherlands.

Helmi was probably the most many sufferers of “enforced disappearance” in Syria and now runs Ta’afi, an initiative to help and give protection to sufferers of enforced disappearance in Syria.

“It has some hypocrisy in it, you know, because Europe and the entire West have for the past few decades been lecturing the rest of the world about democracy, prosperity and the rule of law,” he mentioned. “And now when we brought down a regime in our country. We had several supporters and several partners from around the world, of course. Europe only thinks about stopping migration and asylum instead of seeking democracy.”

“I want the international community to currently focus on having contingencies to support Syria based on an actual and meaningful transitional justice process,” Helmi mentioned. “Without a transitional justice process, peace will not be sustainable.”

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