Human Rights Report on the Forced Return of Migrants from Turkey to Afghanistan and Syria Funded by the European Union
- Tamim Attaiy
- Dec 5, 2024
- 3 min read
Recent human rights reports have raised serious concerns over the forced return policies of migrants from Turkey to unsafe countries such as Afghanistan and Syria. These reports particularly highlight the European Union’s financial support to Turkey, amounting to more than 11 billion euros, provided as part of migration management and crisis response agreements. This approach by the European Union to control migration flows comes amid consistent warnings from human rights organisations about the deteriorating security and humanitarian conditions in those countries.
EU Financial Support and Turkey’s Role:
According to the report, the European Union has provided substantial financial assistance to Turkey to enable the country to play a more active role in managing the migration and refugee crisis. These funds, allocated through financial agreements and joint border management programmes, were primarily intended to improve migration infrastructure and help meet the basic needs of refugees. However, evidence indicates that part of this funding has been used to implement forced return policies, which are inconsistent with international human rights standards.
Situation in Afghanistan and Syria:
The forced return of migrants to Afghanistan and Syria is highly sensitive and alarming from a human rights perspective. Security conditions in Afghanistan have severely deteriorated since the Taliban’s return to power in 2021, with serious threats to life and fundamental freedoms. Reports from multiple human rights organisations indicate that Afghan returnees face significant risks, including arrest, torture, and even death.
In Syria, after more than a decade of civil war, the security and humanitarian situation remains critical. Large parts of the country are still controlled by armed groups and authorities with a record of human rights violations. The return of migrants to Syria could expose them to grave human rights abuses, including threats to life, torture, and enforced disappearances.
Violation of International Law:
According to the principles of the 1951 Geneva Convention and its related refugee protocols, the forced return of individuals to countries where their life or freedom may be at risk due to insecurity is strictly prohibited. The principle of non-refoulement, a fundamental cornerstone of international humanitarian law, states that no person should be returned to a place where they face serious threats to their life or safety.
Turkey’s actions in forcibly returning migrants to unsafe countries clearly constitute a violation of these principles. Moreover, the European Union, as a financial partner supporting these migration programmes, may also be considered complicit in breaching international law if it is aware of such forced returns and fails to take appropriate action.
Recommendations:
Turkey: Must immediately halt all forced returns and align its migration policies with international human rights standards.
European Union: As one of Turkey’s main financial supporters in migration management, it must ensure that its funds are not used to violate human rights and establish effective monitoring mechanisms for return procedures.
United Nations: Should strengthen its oversight of migrants returned to Afghanistan and Syria and provide greater protection and support to prevent further human rights violations.
Human Rights Organisations: Must intensify efforts to document and report these violations while increasing international pressure to end the policy of forced returns.
Although the European Union’s financial assistance to Turkey has been provided with the stated aim of managing the migration crisis, if such support results in human rights violations, it not only contravenes the principles of international law but also undermines confidence in humanitarian approaches and the protection of refugee rights.
