Fundamental Human Rights DeniedThe difficulties faced by stateless Kurds in Syria are numerous, despite Syria’s obligations as a signatory to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination. Individuals have irregular access to education, health care, livelihoods, travel, property ownership, judicial and political systems, and registration of businesses, marriages, and children. They cannot vote or run for public office. Statelessness affects every part of daily life.“Our condition is worse than that of a criminal,” a man from Qamishli said. “They can own a car or house. We can’t.” A young woman told RI , “When I was young, I was not sensitive to my status. Now I know it will affect my education, my job, and my marriage.” The births and deaths of some Maktoumeen (individuals lacking identity documents; the term is defined as “hidden” by some and “unregistered” by others) go unrecorded and their murders are reportedly not investigated or prosecuted as a result of their status. They are people who never existed. One young stateless man summed up this treatment in a single statement: “The Syrian government wants to erase us.”
The Right to a Nationality & an IdentityMost denationalized Kurds and their descendents are labeled Ajanib (“foreigners”) and issued red identity cards by the Ministry of Interior, stating they are not Syrian nationals and are not entitled to travel. Even some children listed on red cards are listed under the statement, “His name was not in the survey of 1962,” an irony given that they were born long after the date of the census. Replacing such documents or obtaining them for the first time poses particular problems, as they often involve paying large bribes of up to SY P 3,000-5,000 (US $60-100) and approaching several branches of security for authorization over the course of months or even years. A significant number of stateless Kurds in Syria do not possess even this identity document and are effectively invisible. Maktoumeen now number between 75,000 and 100,000. At one time, they were able to obtain certified “white papers” recognizing their identity from their local mayor’s office (a Mukhtar or traditional village head), although these papers were not recognized legally by the government. However, this practice has now ended under special orders from the Syrian government. One man reported being arrested for possessing no legal documentation and was in prison for three months. Another reported being harassed by the police who called him names and tore up his white paper in front of him. “The Maktoumeen have the worst situation you can imagine,” one person told RI . “We want humanity. We want respect as human beings,” one man said. “Syria is a country of Kurds and Arabs.” “Even with these conditions, we live for this change,” agreed another. The Right to EducationThe Syrian government recognizes the right of Kurdish children to primary education, but not to primary education in their native Kurdish. Stateless Kurds face difficulties enrolling in secondary schools and universities, and Ajanib were reportedly not permitted to enroll in universities until after 1978. Enrolling in university proves nonetheless to be an arduous task, as Ajanib are required to obtain a report from state security in order to attend university and again upon graduation. This report contains information about the student’s parents, travels, friends, and political involvements. Maktoumeen sometimes use the name of a national or foreigner so they can study, albeit illegally. Kurdish students study with Syrian Arab textbooks and are compelled to recite versions of history that contribute to their invisibility in the country. Stateless university students generally do not have the right to participate in school activities such as athletics teams, social clubs, or competitions or to pursue their professions after graduation. Even those Ajanib who do manage to enroll, find it impossible to obtain employment in many of their fields of expertise. Ajanib are restricted from government jobs and the practice of law, pharmacy, or medicine and practice other professions such as teaching or engineering in severely restricted ways. It is next to impossible for Maktoumeen to access higher education. Not only must the children go through considerable administrative processes and delays in registering for primary education, but they must also obtain permission from state security to attend secondary school. Maktoumeen children do not receive a diploma from secondary school, preventing their university enrollment. Some parents even report listing their children under the names of relatives who have nationality in order to facilitate their access to school. No stateless Kurds, even those at the top of their class, can access government scholarships for post-graduate education abroad, and unlike Syrian nationals, they cannot receive government loans or stipends for their undergraduate university education. In addition, stateless Kurds with a disability cannot obtain state-funded special education. One young Kurdish girl was prevented from going to a school for disabled children because she is Maktoumeen. A young Maktoumeen man was reported as having the highest marks in his high school class, but upon graduation was not provided with a diploma and unable to apply for college. He is now working selling tea in front of the University of Damascus, where he had dreams of one day attending. Another Ajnabia woman remembers how her Arab primary school teacher would humiliate her in front of her class by asking, “Where is your father really from?” The Right to EmploymentWith limited access to employment, a majority of stateless Kurds in Syria works two to three jobs at any given time in the informal sector or practices professions without a license or in an extremely limited capacity. They cannot practice agriculture on the land which was taken from them. Moreover, most stateless Kurds are not permitted to become members of professional labor unions, with the exception of the Engineers’ union on a limited basis. “I work night and day, but still have nothing,” a Maktoumeen man told RI . “Because our life is hard, we think only of how to eat.” In rare cases in which the state is facing a shortage in a particular profession, the government makes arbitrary exceptions. For example, a shortage of teachers in Qamishli led the government to permit hiring stateless Kurds as teachers on a part-time or day laborer basis, meaning that they had no contract and benefits and could be terminated at any time. In another case, the need for more engineers led the government to permit stateless Kurds to work as engineers on government projects, but this program was terminated after two years when it was deemed they were no longer needed. One man reported actually obtaining government employment, but after one year, they discovered that he was Maktoumeen, fined him, and fired him from his job. Private hotels and restaurants are required now by law to consult state security before hiring any Kurds. As a consequence, it is not uncommon to find a doctor who sells tea on the street, a lawyer who works as a barber, a man who was educated as a teacher transporting flour sacks, and another who left his family in the northeast region to work in a Damascus hotelrestaurant. Earnings for such work average around SY P 6,000 (US $120) per month, nearly half of which must go to pay rent for housing and barely supports a family of four for more than two weeks. One man stated, “If I work night and day, I will gain nothing, just survive.” Due to the inability to find employment, one Syrian Kurdish man explained how he lost his citizenship in the 1962 census, but then in 1975 agreed to sign a statement that he was a Syrian Arab in order to retain rights associated with Syrian citizenship. This was an option offered by the Syrian government in the late 1970s to some of the Ajanib who lost their nationality in 1962; however, most Ajanib refused as a matter of principle, and the practice was effectively ended by 1980. Unlike the Maktoumeen, Ajanib can obtain drivers licenses and cash checks, but neither are permitted to open bank accounts or obtain commercial drivers licenses. One Maktoumeen man reported receiving paychecks or entering into contracts for work under the name of a friend who has nationality in order to be able to receive and cash paychecks at banks. Another Maktoumeen man described how companies often exploit Maktoumeen labor due to lack of documentation. He stated, “I had contracted with a government-owned company to do a construction job laying telephone lines with a crew of men that I hired. The company agreed to pay me SYP 85,000 (US $1,700), but after we finished the work, the company refused to pay me. They said that I do not possess an identity card and therefore cannot receive a paycheck. Now I have to find some other way to pay the men who I hired for this project.” Economic consequences of limited access to the labor market and lack of trust in the education system compel many Maktoumeen children to work picking cotton, selling cigarettes or lottery tickets, cleaning windows, shining shoes, working as porters, and helping in mechanic shops. Many child laborers are exploited in the market and forced to pay the police bribes in order to continue their work. A number of these children suffer from ailments connected with poor nutrition, such as anemia and rickets. Many stateless Kurds residing in the northeast have also been compelled to move into larger urban centers such as Damascus, Homs, Hama, or Latakia to find work in the informal sector. In the neighborhood of Wad El Mashariya Zor Ava, on the outskirts of Damascus, for example, nearly 2,000 stateless Kurdish families, many of whom work in construction, are living in settlements constructed without legal building permits. Most of these families have relatives and close family members still living in the northeastern region of Syria. Unemployment in this neighborhood has been associated with increasing levels of petty crime, poor academic performance, isolation, and depression amongst Kurdish youth. The Right to HealthStateless Kurds are prohibited from accessing Syrian public health services or hospitals as either employees or patients, although in some rare emergency cases, they may be granted limited admission. They are instead forced to seek the services of private doctors and health clinics, where costs can be prohibitive and the numbers of which are limited. Many stateless Kurds report how it is common for them to use the identity cards of friends or relatives who are nationals in order to obtain public health care. In Kurdish areas there are no specialized hospitals, so patients must travel outside the northeast for care. A young man, who was shot during the days of unrest that followed a March 12, 2004 incident in a Qamishli stadium in which live ammunition was used against unarmed Kurdish civilians after clashes between Arab and Kurdish fans erupted, said he would not be alive except for Kurdish doctors who helped him in a private clinic. Another stateless Kurdish man reported having a life-threatening injury, which cannot be treated in Syria. He stated, “The Syrian government refused to issue me with a travel document that would enable me to seek treatment abroad, even though my disease cannot be treated in Syria. Once, when I was unable to walk due to my illness, I sent my wife to obtain a bus ticket for me to travel to a hospital in Damascus to receive care. When she approached the bus station, they refused to sell her a ticket for me because our marriage is not officially registered, and she thus has no legal relation to me.” There is also concern about psychological problems developing amongst stateless Kurdish youth. One parent said, “The youth see the Arabs and see themselves. They don’t have money. There is no place for the children to play. They stay at home. Their study is not good.” A 25-year-old man who works in food service told how he witnessed a birthday party in the restaurant with cake and much jubilation. He cried to himself that he had never had and would never have the opportunity to celebrate his own birthday that way. At the heart of the culture of frustration that has developed among the Kurdish youth lies several concerning elements that could breed future instability, including intellectual repression, cultural resentment, and economic disparity. The Right to MarryOfficial marriage registration is a particularly painful point for many stateless Kurds. Male nationals who marry women who are Ajanib may register their marriages and pass their status to their children. All other marriages, such as those between Ajanib and Maktoumeen or a marriage between a stateless man and a woman who is a Syrian national, cannot be registered officially, even if a court decree is obtained recognizing the marriage.One man reported that he was only able to legalize his marriage after twelve years of approaching different branches of security and obtaining a court decree recognizing the marriage. Married couples in such families are listed on their identity cards as “single,” which poses problems for the registration of children on family identity cards and even prevents husband and wife from sharing a room in a hotel. It is sometimes difficult to obtain birth certificates for children when the parents do not have a marriage certificate. Many Kurdish families who have Syrian nationality refuse to allow their children to marry Ajanib or Maktoumeen for these reasons. Other Kurds feel that status should not be an issue when it comes to marriage, as the Kurds as a group must demonstrate solidarity. One Syrian Kurdish national stated, “I sympathize with them; I must persuade all Kurdish citizens not to refuse this kind of marriage. We see this as the whole community’s problem, even though only about 10 percent of us are stateless.” A father of seven said, “My first daughter who has nationality married a stateless man as a way to solve his problem because he could then register their property in her name. A stateless woman reported leaving the country illegally to marry and register under a different family name. “When she comes here [Syria], she isn’t our sister,” her blood brother said. The Right to Own PropertyOwnership and registration of businesses and property is also difficult. With no nationality, Kurds cannot obtain property deeds or register cars or businesses. Ironically, they are still required to pay property taxes to the government on the land they do not legally own. Some register their property under the names of friends or relatives who are nationals to circumvent these issues. Yet this arrangement forces them to rely upon the good faith of such persons, and the problem still remains that they cannot pass on ownership of property to their children. One man described how he sold his house, but the new owner is unable to move in because the current tenants who are renting the house refuse to leave, and he has no legal recourse to evict them due to his Lack of registered legal ownership of the property. Individuals who marry Syrian nationals often register property under the names of their spouses. Passing the property title on to their children is dependent upon how closely the spouse’s family adheres to custom. In some instances of divorce, the spouse with nationality will retain the house, even if the stateless spouse purchased it. In other cases, many stateless Kurds are living in houses registered to the names of previous Arab owners, even though they paid money to purchase them because they cannot register the title under their names. Hence, their security is subject to the good graces of the sellers and the government to whom they often pay large bribes.
The Right to Freedom of MovementStateless Kurds are unable to obtain travel documents for purposes of travel outside of Syria, regardless of whether it is for study, travel, attending funerals or family gatherings, or obtaining urgent medical treatment. One example cited was that of two Kurdish musicians who were prevented from traveling with their troupe to attend a music festival outside of Syria. The International Committee of the Red Cross has agreed that it might be possible to issue travel documents with an invitation from abroad and Syrian government approval. Many stateless Kurds report difficulties in traveling within Syria’s borders as well. In the past, they were required to obtain permission from state security for internal travel, but recently have been permitted to travel internally with more freedom. However, they still report being stopped and interrogated by police, forced to obtain permission if they are students, and prevented from staying in hotels without permission from state security. As noted above, married couples are not allowed to sleep in the same room in hotels because they are listed as “single” on their red cards. Many Maktoumeen are prevented from staying in hotels at all due to lack of an identity document. Those without any documentation often face trouble in obtaining bus tickets and are questioned by the police, even after producing a birth certificate verifying their birth in Syria. There are additional problems for Ajanib who wish to change their residence. Unlike Syrian nationals, they must obtain permission from state security in order to change their place of residence. One young university student in Aleppo was required to do this when he wished to move out of the student dormitory. The restrictions on movement are a grave disadvantage, preventing possible economic, academic, cultural, and civil society projects within the Kurdish community and in Syria as a whole. Furthermore it contributes to the culture of frustration that has characterized a large portion of the Kurdish population in Syria. The obstacles to free movement have enhanced the risk of regional discontent and instability. |
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Buried Alive: Fundamental Human Rights Denied
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