REFUGEE INTEGRATION, MIGRATION POLICIES AND SOCIAL CLASS: THE CASE OF SYRIAN REFUGEES IN TURKEY

This paper examines refugee integration in the case of Syrian refugees in Turkey within the context of migration policies and social class, by drawing upon semi-structured in-depth interviews conducted with 80 Syrian refugees in Istanbul, Izmir, Gaziantep and Hatay from January to December 2016. The mass migration from Syria to neighbouring countries and then to Europe is the greatest immigration movement since the Second World War. Turkey has been hosting the largest share of Syrian refugees- more than 3.5 million- in the world. 94% of the population lives outside of the refugee camps established near the border. When Syrian refugees first arrived in Turkey, they were referred as guest, then in April 2014, Turkey adopted a new Law on Foreigners and International Protection that clarified the status of Syrians in Turkey, focusing on subsidiary protection, temporary protection status and humanitarian assistance. The rights of Syrian nationals in Turkey include a lawful stay in Turkey until the conflict ends in Syria, and access to health, education, social assistance, the labour market. The officials’ announcement, on July 2016, on granting citizenship to Syrians has been a positive development for their integration processes. I argue that although integration policies on access to labour markets, education, and health service, and citizenship are gradually improving not all Syrians access these rights equally, and such inequality is related to the social class of Syrians