Thread by @Syria_Irl

Open letter to Danish Statsminister Frederiksen @Statsmin

Irish Syria Solidarity protest decision by Danish govt to cancel residencies & issue deportation notices to Syrian refugees

No part of Assad controlled Syria is safe for returned refugees

This action is illegal

2. Danish decision is in conflict with stated policy of EU

'Conditions inside Syria at do not lend themselves to voluntary return, in conditions of safety and dignity in line with international law. Many obstacles & threats still faced by returning refugees'
#SyriaNotSafe

3. These obstacles & threats include

'in particular forced conscription, indiscriminate detention, forced disappearances, torture, physical and sexual violence, discrimination in access to housing, land and property as well as poor or inexistent basic services'
#SyriaNotSafe

4. Danish actions also conflict with Resolution of European Parliament of 11th March 2021, which unequivocally 

'Reminds all Member States Syria is not a safe country to return to & calls on all to refrain depriving certain categories of Syrians of their protected status'

5. It remains highly unsafe for refugees to return to Syria. In August 2019 the Syrian Network for Human Rights @snhr documented the disappearance of 638 forcibly returned refugees sn4hr.org/blog/2019/08/1… Such disappearances continue on a daily basis in regime-controlled Syria

6. In last 6 months of 2020, despite there being 6.7 million displaced persons in Syria, there was no inward movement to the Rif Dimashq region. In fact over 1,000 people left the governate for other, often conflict ridden areas, confirming the unsafe conditions in Rif Dimashq

7. Report relied upon by the Danish Immigration Service when making these decisions is deeply flawed. Human Rights Watch @hrw issued a statement signed by five experts consulted for the report rejecting its conclusion.

hrw.org/news/2021/04/1…

 #SyriaNotSafe

8. 'We strongly condemn the Danish government’s decision to remove “temporary protection” for Syrian refugees from Damascus. This decision used our testimonies to for a COI report on Damascus, but we do not recognize our views in subsequent government conclusions or policies'

9. 'Neither do we consider that Denmark’s Syrian refugee policy fully reflects real conditions on the ground. We are urging the Danish government to revise its conclusions on Damascus to better reflect ongoing risks posed to potential returnees & to amend its refugee policies'

10. Syrian journalist Ammar Hamou says the report omits his account of the dangers for refugees sent back to Damascus and surrounding areas

‘I emphasized, and am now emphasizing, that neither Damascus nor rural areas are safe to return to'

#SyriaNotSafe

11. 'People are still being arrested. The regime regards most refugees, especially those who have reached Europe, as part of the opposition. Everyone is in danger of being detained & interrogated. It is extremely dangerous.’

eaworldview.com/2021/04/denmar…

12. On return, refugees will be subjected to arbitrary extra judicial power of brutal Syrian security services, whose record has been detailed by the UN’s International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic in their report Disappearance & detention to suppress dissent

13. @UNCoISyria report
“After a decade of conflict, tens of thousands of civilians arbitrarily detained in Syria remain forcibly disappeared, while thousands more have been subject to torture, sexual violence or death in detention'

ohchr.org/EN/HRBodies/HR…

14. In the past refugees subjected to refoulement by Denmark have paid with their lives. You will recall Vahid & Abolfazl Vaziri, two vulnerable refugees forcibly returned to Afghanistan which led to the violent death of the child Abolfazl.

theguardian.com/global-develop….

15. That tragic refoulement took place in June 2015 when the Social Democrats led the government and there was a general election in Denmark. It would not be unreasonable to consider that the current actions against Syrian refugees are politically driven.

16. Far right elements in Denmark have welcomed these decisions, so much so that they mounted an advertising campaign telling Syrian refugees to ‘Return home to sunny Syria’, a campaign that was picked up and used as propaganda by the Syrian government state news agency SANA.

17. The actions of Denmark are supporting the hate campaigns of the Far Right and the campaign of Extermination against Syrians (a term used by the UN) of Assad. This is far from what is usually considered Social Democracy sana.sy/en/?p=230158

18. We in ISSM know that in regime controlled areas arrests & disappearances by the Mukhabarat occur on a daily basis. We believe that there is a very strong likelihood of harm & death as a consequence of forced return to Syria of refugees from Denmark.

19. Syrians all over Europe are watching in fear & need reassurance they will not be forced to return to the murderous tyranny they fled

This action by Denmark reflects very badly on Social Democrat party, government & the country & brings all of these into serious disrepute

20. We respectfully ask you @Statsmin, to reflect, inform yourself, reverse these decisions, show compassion humanity & mercy. Some of these Syrians will be killed upon return to Syria. You, your government, party & Denmark cannot have that stain on your conscience & reputation