Between 2011-2015, more than three million Syrians relocated to neighboring countries, fleeing human rights abuses perpetrated by government and armed opposition forces. Having survived the atrocities of war, the refugees continue to struggle to secure basic necessities, including food, shelter, and medical treatment. While some live in refugee camps, the majority were scattered among the urban populations in Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Turkey. Their displacement created a myriad of legal issues and makes them vulnerable to further exploitation. The displaced need resources to help them navigate legal systems in their host countries, including information on how the law applies to them and, in many cases, legal counsel.
From 2014-2016, the American Bar Association Rule of Law Initiative (ABA ROLI) implemented the Promoting Legal Awareness and Services for Syrian Refugees program. ABA ROLI’s program provided Syrian refugees in Turkey’s urban areas with the knowledge they need to navigate the legal system and assert their rights. Working in tandem with local bar associations, ABA ROLI trained more than 200 Turkish lawyers and equipped them with the special techniques they need to help Syrian refugees in Turkey. ABA ROLI conducted more than 500 in-person legal awareness sessions for more than 19,800 Syrians and connected refugees with lawyers through the first-ever cell phone-based legal information service for Syrian refugees. ABA ROLI reached more than 250,000 Syrians through a robust media campaign delivered via Facebook, mobile app, popular websites, YouTube, and radio. The program was funded by the US Department of State Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration.
By the end of 2014, there were more than 1.6 million Syrian refugees living in Turkey, and the number of displaced Syrians expected to grow. At that time, the legal service needs of Syrian refugees were routinely unmet. This was true for those residing outside of the established camps, where there was a dire lack of protective infrastructure and support systems. In Turkey, an estimated 650,000 to 700,000 Syrians reside outside the refugee camps.
The Turkish legal system is complicated, and it is difficult for displaced Syrians to navigate. The majority of those residing outside of the camps are not registered with the government and are unaware of services and protections afforded to them, such as education, medical care and access to the police.
ABA ROLI’s legal assistance program helped to protect refugees by enabling them to exercise their rights. ABA ROLI partnered with Turkish bar associations to train Turkish lawyers to deliver legal awareness sessions and individual legal consultations directly to the urban Syrian populations across the country. This included a separate, targeted approach to dealing with legal issues facing women and young girls. Additionally, ABA ROLI will implement activities in collaboration with international non-governmental organizations, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, and local organizations serving Syrians living in Turkey, leveraging each organization’s areas of expertise. These activities will be complemented by a national media campaign that will utilize SMS text and a hotline to triage refugees’ legal needs and refer services.
While the Turkish government introduced the Temporary Protection Regime (TPR) in spring 2014 to clarify Syrians’ legal status, associated regulations were constantly evolving and had many gaps that made the TPR’s implementation challenging. Moreover, lack of information—along with language and cultural barriers—kept many Syrians from taking advantage of important rights and protections the law affords, such as healthcare and education. Others were denied critical services because providers are misinformed about the rights of Syrians in Turkey.
Working with local bar associations and individual legal professionals, we trained 106 lawyers on the TPR. Our sessions equipped participants with special interviewing and counseling techniques and fostered sensitivities when working with clients who escaped violent conflict, including those who were injured or tortured, suffered sexual abuse, or lost family members and property.
The ABA ROLI-trained lawyers conducted multiple legal awareness sessions each month to urban Syrian populations—primarily in Southeast Turkey and Istanbul. Held at community centers and partners’ offices, these sessions focused on the rights of Syrians under Turkish law and addressed legal documentation, housing, healthcare, employment, and family law. Additionally, ABA ROLI distributed informational brochures written in Arabic to complement the awareness sessions.
Immediately after the awareness sessions, the lawyers provided private one-on-one legal consultations to interested Syrians. Between April 2015 and March 2016, ABA ROLI conducted 221 general awareness sessions, reaching more than 4,700 Syrians and providing private legal counseling to more than 735.
ABA ROLI organized separate sessions for more vulnerable members of the Syrian refugee population, including women and children, on issues that disproportionately affect them, such as early and forced marriage and sexual and gender-based violence. Between April 2015 and March 2016, ABA ROLI conducted 82 sessions for youth, women, and girls.
To complement the in-person sessions, we provided cell phone-based legal information and advice services to Syrian refugees. Our SMS-based system received questions 24 hours a day. The questions were sorted and tagged by topic, translated into Turkish, and sent to Turkish lawyers, who provided real-time advice. The answer is then translated back into Arabic and securely sent back to the appropriate refugee. Arabic-speaking translators were also on-hand to arrange for in-person consultations when needed. In addition, ABA ROLI sent out blast SMS messages with quick tips on basic rights. The program began in April 2015, and as of March 2016, more than 2,500 Syrians signed up to receive tips. ABA ROLI sent out 31 blast SMS messages on different legal topics, providing legal advice via SMS to more than 370 individuals.