Published : 24-04-2021
Human Rights Watch (HRW) strongly condemned the Danish government’s decision to remove “temporary protection” for Syrian refugees from Damascus.
In a joint letter, analysts, researchers, and other experts on the Syrian context, said the Danish decision “used our testimonies to the Danish Immigration Service for a country of origin (COI) report on Damascus, but we do not recognize our views in subsequent government conclusions or policies, and neither do we consider that Denmark’s Syrian refugee policy fully reflects the real conditions on the ground”.
The letter urged the Danish government to revise its conclusions on Damascus to better reflect the ongoing risks posed to potential returnees, and to amend its current refugee policies accordingly.
“We believe that conditions do not presently exist anywhere in Syria for safe returns and any return must be voluntary, safe, and dignified, as the EU and UNHCR have clearly stated”, it said. “We call on Danish authorities to abide by the position outlined in last month’s European Parliament resolution, which: ‘Reminds all Member States that Syria is not a safe country to return to; believes that any return should be safe, voluntary, dignified and informed, in line with the EU’s stated position; calls on all EU Member States to refrain from shifting national policies towards depriving certain categories of Syrians of their protected status, and to reverse this trend if they have already applied such policies.”
In 2019, Danish authorities officially reclassified Damascus as “safe” in its COI report concerning conditions in Damascus and Rural Damascus.
By reclassifying Damascus as safe, Danish authorities ultimately ruled that refugees originating from the Syrian capital who had sought asylum and received subsidiary protection in Denmark could, in the future, have their temporary residency permits discontinued. As a result, last month (March 2021), the Danish government informed 94 Syrian refugees in the country that they would not have their residency permits renewed.
HRW added that Damascus may not have seen active conflict hostilities since May 2018 – but that does not mean that it has become safe for refugees to return to the Syrian capital. Many of the key drivers of displacement from Syria remain, as the majority of refugees fled, and continue to fear, the government’s security apparatus, arbitrary arrest and detention, torture, military conscription, and harassment and discrimination.
“The Syrian government, and its security apparatus, have consistently persecuted those who have expressed dissent or shown opposition, including through arbitrary detention, torture, and harassment of critics and their relatives. Despite amnesties and declarations to the contrary, the Syrian government has yet to demonstrate any change in its conduct”, added the researchers.
“Even where inpiduals have obtained guarantees of safety from the government, abuses have followed. There is a risk to anyone who fled the country or spoke out against the government, actions perceived as disloyalty, which may result in their being treated with suspicion, punishment, or arbitrary detention”, the letter further read.
It further referred to the deteriorating socio-economic and humanitarian conditions in and around Damascus, which are such that they have produced new and worsening protection risks which do not correspond with a safe, dignified, and voluntary return.
Human Rights Watch (HRW) strongly condemned the Danish government’s decision to remove “temporary protection” for Syrian refugees from Damascus.
In a joint letter, analysts, researchers, and other experts on the Syrian context, said the Danish decision “used our testimonies to the Danish Immigration Service for a country of origin (COI) report on Damascus, but we do not recognize our views in subsequent government conclusions or policies, and neither do we consider that Denmark’s Syrian refugee policy fully reflects the real conditions on the ground”.
The letter urged the Danish government to revise its conclusions on Damascus to better reflect the ongoing risks posed to potential returnees, and to amend its current refugee policies accordingly.
“We believe that conditions do not presently exist anywhere in Syria for safe returns and any return must be voluntary, safe, and dignified, as the EU and UNHCR have clearly stated”, it said. “We call on Danish authorities to abide by the position outlined in last month’s European Parliament resolution, which: ‘Reminds all Member States that Syria is not a safe country to return to; believes that any return should be safe, voluntary, dignified and informed, in line with the EU’s stated position; calls on all EU Member States to refrain from shifting national policies towards depriving certain categories of Syrians of their protected status, and to reverse this trend if they have already applied such policies.”
In 2019, Danish authorities officially reclassified Damascus as “safe” in its COI report concerning conditions in Damascus and Rural Damascus.
By reclassifying Damascus as safe, Danish authorities ultimately ruled that refugees originating from the Syrian capital who had sought asylum and received subsidiary protection in Denmark could, in the future, have their temporary residency permits discontinued. As a result, last month (March 2021), the Danish government informed 94 Syrian refugees in the country that they would not have their residency permits renewed.
HRW added that Damascus may not have seen active conflict hostilities since May 2018 – but that does not mean that it has become safe for refugees to return to the Syrian capital. Many of the key drivers of displacement from Syria remain, as the majority of refugees fled, and continue to fear, the government’s security apparatus, arbitrary arrest and detention, torture, military conscription, and harassment and discrimination.
“The Syrian government, and its security apparatus, have consistently persecuted those who have expressed dissent or shown opposition, including through arbitrary detention, torture, and harassment of critics and their relatives. Despite amnesties and declarations to the contrary, the Syrian government has yet to demonstrate any change in its conduct”, added the researchers.
“Even where inpiduals have obtained guarantees of safety from the government, abuses have followed. There is a risk to anyone who fled the country or spoke out against the government, actions perceived as disloyalty, which may result in their being treated with suspicion, punishment, or arbitrary detention”, the letter further read.
It further referred to the deteriorating socio-economic and humanitarian conditions in and around Damascus, which are such that they have produced new and worsening protection risks which do not correspond with a safe, dignified, and voluntary return.
