Mayors in Turkiye municipalities launch campaigns to facilitate return of Syria refugees

Mayors in some Turkish municipalities are launching campaigns to assist Syrian refugees in returning to Syria after the fall of the Assad regime, in a trend which has been criticised by some as “racist”.

Following the collapse of former Syrian President, Bashar Al-Assad’s regime on Sunday, brought on by a rapid rebel offensive which saw the opposition capture the country’s major cities and its capital, Damascus, a new possibility has opened for the safe and voluntary return of the millions of Syrian refugees who fled the country since the start of the civil war in 2011.

That includes over three million of the refugees who gained shelter in Turkiye over the years, with the situation especially offering the Turkish government fresh opportunities to encourage such a return of the Syrians to their recaptured home cities and areas, now absent the severe dangers posed by the collapsed regime’s security forces.

Local authorities throughout Turkiye have seemingly taken the lead in that regard, with municipalities primarily run by the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) having launched campaigns to return the Syrian refugees, offering to purchase transport tickets and cover the costs of relocation.

On X, for example, the Mayor of the capital Ankara’s Kecioren district, Mesut Ozarslan, called on “Syrian brothers” to return to their homeland, claiming that his office would arrange to cover transport and moving expenses.

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Beypazari municipality also said in a statement on social media that “due to the end of the Assad regime in Syria, we, as Beypazari municipality, will be providing transportation services to help our Syrian friends, whom we have hosted for a long time, return to their homeland.” It called on Syrian refugees to fill out application forms in the municipal building.

Some organisations, newspapers, and users in Turkiye have criticised the campaigns for their apparent mocking of the situation, however, accusing them of acting discriminatory and racist in their language and tone.

Examples of such statements include that of Kilis’s Mayor, Hakan Bilecen, who shared a video of a municipal cleaning vehicle operating near the Oncupinar Border Gate with Syria, and writing that the municipality “watched with great excitement the celebrations of our Syrian brothers and sisters! We couldn’t remain indifferent to this enthusiasm and would like to express that we are ready to provide every service necessary to bid farewell to our esteemed guests under better conditions on the Turkish side of the Oncupinar Border Gate.”

In Izmir, Torbali district Mayor, Ovunc Demir, also posted a video showing Syrians celebrating in the district, leading her to announce a campaign to facilitate their return for the upcoming New Year. “As Torbali municipality, we want to surprise you, especially families with children, for the New Year. Starting tomorrow, you can apply to our public relations office for one-way bus tickets.”

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