Syrians in Jordan: guests, not refugees
In an article on Syrian army defectors who crossed into Jordan, the Jordan Times cited an official who ‘stressed that the government does not consider Syrians residing in the Kingdom as refugees, but rather guests who left their country temporarily because of the current unrest there’. Khair Smadi, a Jordanian pro bono legal representative for refugees and refugee rights activist, submitted the following comments on this policy.
This reminds me of the Government of Jordan (GoJ)’s position towards Iraqi refugees: ‘Guests, not refugees’. Guest is a cultural status that has to do with tradition; being a guest means you have no legal status, your relation with the government is not legal, but rather is based on traditions, and so you have no legal rights. Therefore, insisting on guest status, and denying refugee status, even for those who legally qualify, should be considered a legal mistake and in itself a violation to refugee rights. Furthermore, it is a strategy that makes no sense on political or economic scales, because it will not help the GoJ in asking for international aid based on the principle of burden sharing/international solidarity in solving the ‘refugee problem’, as legally, these individuals are not refugees. This means that Jordan, with its limited resources, will have to bear the burden alone.
Hopefully, when dealing with the Syrian refugee issue, UNHCR Amman will benefit from its past experience with Iraqi refugees and the GoJ, and will try to institutionalise its relation with the GoJ instead of keeping it based on personal diplomatic approaches.
