Syrian refugees have said they see their children’s futures here in Scotland after they met with the First Minister to fallout from the collapse of the Assad regime.
Eight people from Syria, who have settled in Glasgow, Perth, Aberdeen and Dundee, sat down with John Swinney to discuss their hopes and fears for the future.
They were joined by Scottish Refugee Council chief executive Sabir Zazai and regional community integration coordinator Marwa Bushnaq, as well a UK representative for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
‘My country is not ready to return to’
Khloud Ereksousi, a storyteller and educator who lives in Aberdeen with her two daughters, told how her home in Damascus was lost in the war.
She said: “I am not ready to go back home. My country is not ready to return to. It is not ready for schools and universities, particularly for my children who were born here in Scotland.
“My oldest daughter, who is 13, has just started second year of high school. She is building her future here. She is studying and starting to think about her future at university.”
‘If I go back to Syria, I will destroy my children’s future’
Meanwhile Adnan Shamdin, who lives in Glasgow, is chairperson of the Kurdish House Community, an organisation which supports Kurds in Scotland.
He said the future is “very unclear” and he doesn’t know if it will ever be possible for him to return to Syria.
He said: “The problem with Syria now is the organisation who came and destroyed the Assad regime. Syrian people, particularly Kurdish people, have a really bad experience with that organisation – so we don’t know what will happen in the future.
“Even if Syria becomes a democracy with benefits and social security for people, we can’t go back. My children go to school here, they go to university here. If I go back to Syria, I will destroy my children’s future.”
Adnan has five children, the youngest of which was born in Glasgow. They named him Iain, which he says is a Scottish and a Kurdish name. He feels a great affinity with the city.
He added: “When we came to Scotland, we built a new life. I didn’t speak any English. I learned it all here. I started my own business, like many other Syrians have done.
“I am also a musician and recently, while playing a gig, someone described me as a Kurdish-Glaswegian musician. That brought me so much joy.”
‘They feel they are Dundonian more than they are Arabic’
Hannan Najar, who lives in Dundee and works as a service manager for Scottish Refugee Council, fled Syria in 2017 because of the war. She fears for her family if they were ever forced to return.
She said: “We initially sought asylum because it was not safe to go back. My husband was wanted by the regime. Returning now would destroy my children’s futures.
“My 15-year-old daughter is thinking about her exams. She wants to study medicine.
“A few days before the regime fell, I was talking to her about Syria. She knows almost nothing about it. She only remembers bombing, dead bodies and explosions, bombings.
“She was two years old when the war started and she was seven when we left. Even mentally, thinking about taking her back … she hears fireworks and she says it reminds her of bombing. Many children will be feeling the same. They don’t want to go back by force.
“They have friends, they have lives here. It will mentally destroy them. They won’t be able to accept that. They feel they are Dundonian more than they are Arabic.”
Meeting the First Minister
During Monday’s meeting, Mr Swinney was asked if he would challenge the UK Government after it ‘paused’ decision-making for people currently seeking asylum from Syria.
He also reaffirmed his government’s support to the Syrian community based across Scotland.
The meeting also addressed mental health resources to support Syrians during this time of uncertainty, and the possibly of safe routes into Damascus when the situation stabilises.
Since 2011, more than 14 million Syrians have been forced to flee their homes in search of safety. It is the world’s biggest forced displacement crisis.
In that time, thousands of people from Syria been granted refugee protection and began to rebuild their lives across the length and breadth of Scotland.
In recent days, Syrians seeking protection in Scotland have reported feeling “scared and in limbo” after the move to suspend the processing of their claims. An estimated 650 people from Syria currently have outstanding asylum applications in Scotland.
However, it has also raised fears from Syrian refugees without indefinite leave to remain status, meaning they do not have the right to stay in the UK indefinitely.
While, the evolving situation offers hope for people to eventually return home, there is still a great deal of uncertainty. The UNHCR described the country as being at a “crossroads between peace and war, stability and lawlessness, reconstruction or further ruin”. The UK Foreign Office still advises against all travel to Syria.
First Minister John Swinney said: “I have been deeply troubled by events across the Middle East and know that many Syrians in Scotland and around the world will be feeling uncertain about what the future holds.
“I join the international community in calling for a peaceful and inclusive political solution that puts the Syrian people first and for humanitarian aid to reach those most in need.
“Scotland has a long history of welcoming people of all nationalities and faiths, including those seeking refuge and asylum from war and persecution. This approach will continue through the New Scots refugee integration strategy which guides our support for refugees, people seeking asylum and communities.”
Scottish Refugee Council CEO Sabir Zazai said: “It’s clearly a hugely uncertain and chaotic time in Syria. It is particularly uncertain for those Syrians in the UK who have been told that their asylum applications are now suspended. Each asylum application must be considered on its own merit and on its own evidence. Any suspension on decision making should only be for a strictly limited time.
“The UK Government must prioritise this and it can’t be used as an excuse to leave even more people in limbo, especially those who have fled the horrors and suffering of the pervious Syrian regime.
“This is a time to show solidarity with people from Syria, to support the individuals and families here in the UK as they come to terms with a new transition, and to stand alongside them in hope for a peaceful and stable future.”
