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Iraqis have rough ride, but reluctant to return

[Syria] Iraqis registering to vote in Damascus for 30 January election. IRIN
These Iraqi women are part of the 13,000 refugees were able to register to vote in Damascus, Syria for the 2005 election in Iraq.
It is almost two years since Iraqis began flowing across the border into Syria, searching for security in the face of war. Many are genuine refugees, others are members or supporters of the old regime, looking to flee possible retribution. International organisations investigating the situation of Iraqis in Syria face serious challenges in developing a true picture of how many Iraqis are currently in the country, where they are, and often, exactly who they are. Dr Abdulhamid El Ouali is the resident representative of the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Syria. According to him, "there are no official statistics about the number of Iraqis in Syria." However, in his last meeting with Syrian authorities, Ouali was told that the number was "approximately 400,000." But only some 13,000 Iraqis are now registered with the UNHCR office in Damascus. El Ouali explained that UNHCR grants temporary protection to Iraqis who approach his office for assistance. The document is not in itself recognition of refugee status, but assures that the bearer will not immediately be sent back to Iraq. UNHCR regularly monitors humanitarian and security concerns in Iraq and will renew the temporary protection document as long as it is deemed that the bearer could potentially be at risk if he or she were to return home. El Ouali stressed that "not all Iraqis in Syria are registered with UNHCR. Many are financially self-sufficient or have family connections in Syria, and consequently have never approached the UN". However, the temporary protection document is made available to those who request it, so that "they have some official proof of their status in Syria". Iraqi influx brings change It appears that the presence of an estimated 400,000 Iraqis into Syria has begun to contribute visibly to demographic and cultural changes in areas where they have settled, often on the margins of towns and cities. Around Damascus, it is now well known that Iraqi Shi'ites are mainly found in Sitt Zeinab, the suburb that has grown around one of the world's most important Shi'ite pilgrimage sites. Shi'ite Kazem Mobarak, who works trading goods between Damascus and Baghdad, lives with his family in the suburb and said they encountered few problems in their daily lives. "We are satisfied in Syria. We do all our religious duties in mosques without difficulties. We have complete freedom in such things," he told IRIN, adding that they received nothing from any foreign or local organisation. Ali Taleb, who came with his family from Baghdad only three months ago and is now living in the town of Hajera near Damascus, also said they were comfortable in Syria. "I am working in trading." Ali told IRIN. "We rely on the small income coming from my work and on the rest of the money which my father brought with him when we left Baghdad. We feel safe in Syria and we have very good social relations with the Syrians."
Country Map - Syria.
Meanwhile, Assyrian and Chaldean Christians, and Bahais from Iraq, live predominantly in Jaramana, another suburb that has traditionally attracted a mixed group of residents - Druze, Christians, Muslims, young families and students in search of affordable housing. Here, Father Georges Jbeil, a Catholic priest who works with his congregation to provide moral support and limited financial assistance to a number of Iraqi families, said that Jaramana residents were beginning to resent the arrival of the 300 Iraqi families now living there. They blame the Iraqis for increases in petty crime, sex workers, overcrowding and a steep increase in the coast of rent and food. According to some estimates, rents in Jaramana have gone up by as much as 40 percent since Iraqis first started to move into the area. Similar increases are reported by real estate agents in other parts of Damascus and throughout the country. Despite the negative stereotypes associated with Iraqis, Father Georges continually reminds his mainly Syrian congregation that: "Most of the Iraqis who moved to Jaramana, did so because they are poor, not because they intended to create problems for others. Many of them left their money and valuables and assets in Iraq as they fled war, searching for safety and security." Gynecologist Nizar Awad, who has a clinic in Hajera, 11 km from Damascus, said that it was "very rare that any Iraqi who came for medical treatment could afford to pay for medicine." Iraqis face tough conditions Father Jbeil noted that for the majority of Iraqis, employment was difficult to find. "They are prohibited from working in government jobs and must resort to informal labour, often in bad conditions and for little pay". Even skilled workers routinely earn less than half of what their Syrian counterparts make. "Sadly, prostitution is becoming the most attractive option for many women," Father Jbeil added. Iraqi prostitutes are attracting a growing clientele because they charge so much less than Syrians or women from the CIS or eastern Europe. Families who cannot afford to keep their children in school send them to work long hours in bakeries. "Hundreds of school-age Iraqi children are now working in Syria for a pittance, each day falling further behind in their education" he said. The priest recently held a service at Mar Yusef Church to pray for children in Palestine, Iraq and Sudan. He said that, before the war, Syria started preparing for a possible influx of Iraqi immigrants by constructing camps. At the same time, the church began to collect food, clothes and medicines. When the Iraqis started to flee across the border, the church established a volunteer committee to coordinate relief efforts.
[Syria] Iraqis registering to vote in Damascus for 30 January election.
If the results of the election in Iraq does not bring security and stability, it is likely most Iraqi refugees in Syria will stay on.
Credit: IRIN
Some of the newly arrived Iraqi say they fled religious persecution and others suffered oppression. Some even faced threats of kidnapping, and finally fled to Syria in search of safety. Shaza Dawood, an Iraqi Christian woman, arrived in Syria two days before the war began. She and her family are registered with UNHCR, but she cannot afford to send her children to school. "The church in Syria doesn't give me any support. I go to the church only for prayer," she told IRIN. Her mother, who arrived only 10 days ago from Mosul in northern Iraq, said that the situation had become very frightening for Christians in Iraq. "A terrorist group recently murdered a Christian family in Mosul, slitting their throats and destroying all their religious icons." Many Iraqi families face difficulties in making sure that even their most basic needs are met. And some Syrian workers say they have begun to suffer due to the influx of cheap Iraqi labour. Saleh Sarakby, a Syrian who used to work in a restaurant in Kasaa, was recently fired from his job because his employer found Iraqis who would work for less. As the Iraqi elections approach and the security situation remains unstable, it is likely that these Iraqi families will remain in Syria for some time. Many Damascus districts, like Sitt Zeinab, Hajera and Barzeh, have become "Iraqi" and even the Yarmuk Palestinian camp has become home to hundreds of Iraqi families. Nonetheless, while many Iraqis are slowly giving up hope of ever returning to Iraq, Syria is far from feeling like home. For most, the most important connection they have is the local Internet café, which brings them news of Iraq and of those they have left behind.

This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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