US embassy cable - 05ANKARA2258

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 ANKARA 002258 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/SE 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/21/2015 
TAGS: PGOV, PREL, PHUM, TU, OSCE 
SUBJECT: GOT SUMMARILY DEPORTS SYRIAN KURD 
 
Classified by Polcouns John Kunstadter; reasons 1.4 b and d. 
 
1. (U) Summary: The GOT in March summarily deported a Syrian 
army deserter without allowing the office of the UN High 
Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to review his asylum 
petition.  The Syrian, who was acquitted in a Turkish court 
on terrorism charges, claimed that because he is a Kurd and a 
deserter, he would face persecution if returned to his 
country.  UNHCR officials maintain Turkish authorities should 
have allowed them to interview the Syrian.  An MFA official 
said the Syrian waited until the last minute to claim asylum, 
and by the time MFA learned of the case it was too late to 
intervene.  End Summary. 
 
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Police Detain Syrian Deserter 
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2. (U) Ahmed Muhammed Ibrahim, born in Haseke, Syria in 1984, 
deserted from the Syrian Army and entered southeastern Turkey 
in August 2004.  Within days of his arrival, Turkish police 
arrested Ibrahim in the village of Havuzlu near the Syrian 
border and charged him with having an affiliation with the 
terrorist Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).  A Diyarbakir court 
tried Ibrahim and acquitted him.  Ibrahim filed an asylum 
petition on March 23, 2005, one day before he was released. 
On March 25, Turkish authorities returned him to Syria 
without allowing UNHCR to review his case. 
 
3. (U) Steve Corliss, deputy representative at the UNHCR 
Ankara office, told us UNHCR learned of Ibrahim's petition on 
March 23 and immediately contacted the MFA.  Ibrahim 
maintained that because he is a Kurd and a deserter, he could 
face persecution if forced to return to Syria.  UNHCR wanted 
to interview Ibrahim to determine whether he qualified for 
asylum.  Corliss said MFA officials indicated they would 
likely comply with the request.  But Ibrahim was returned to 
Syria two days later without being provided access to the 
asylum procedure. 
 
4. (U) Turkey is a signatory to the UN Convention Relating to 
the Status of Refugees; however, the GOT exercises its option 
under the Convention of accepting obligations only with 
respect to refugees from Europe.  The GOT reviews the few 
petitions filed each year by migrants from Europe and grants 
refugee and asylum status to qualifying applicants. 
Petitions filed by migrants from countries on Turkey's 
eastern borders are referred to UNHCR.  If UNHCR approves the 
petitions, the refugees can stay in Turkey temporarily until 
they can be resettled in a third country. 
 
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UNHCR Unable to Review Petition 
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5. (C) Corliss said cooperation between the GOT and UNHCR has 
generally improved in recent years; however, in cases 
involving allegations of PKK affiliation GOT authorities 
still have a tendency to summarily deport migrants even if 
they file asylum petitions.  In two previous cases in recent 
months, Turkish authorities returned Syrian Kurds to Syria 
without allowing UNHCR to review their asylum claims.  These 
cases differed from the Ibrahim example, because they 
involved Syrians who had been convicted in Turkey of PKK 
involvement and sought asylum after serving their sentences. 
While Corliss believes UNHCR should have been allowed access 
to the two convicts, the Ibrahim case is more troubling 
because Ibrahim was acquitted in court. 
 
6. (U) Corliss said it is not clear whether UNHCR would have 
approved Ibrahim's petition, but army deserters in general 
may have a legitimate fear of persecution if returned to 
their country of origin.  The MFA has not responded to a 
UNHCR request for an explanation of the legal rationale for 
Ibrahim's deportation. 
 
7. (U) Iskender Okyay, head of the Migration and Asylum 
Department at the MFA Directorate General for Consular 
Affairs, called the Ibrahim case a "silly story" resulting 
from a series of missteps.  Okyay said Ibrahim told police he 
came to Turkey with the intention of working for his uncle in 
Istanbul.  However, during a telephone conversation his uncle 
advised him to enter northern Iraq and seek assistance from 
Kurdistan Democratic Party Chairman Massoud Barzani.  Turkish 
police arrested him as he was heading for the Iraqi border. 
Okyay speculated that the reference to Barzani may have 
caused the police to accuse Ibrahim of PKK involvement; he 
said he is not aware of any evidence indicating a possible 
link to the PKK. 
 
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MFA: Missteps Led to Summary Deportation 
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8. (U) Okyay said Ibrahim expressed no interest in filing for 
asylum, nor did he express fear of persecution on return to 
Syria, until his trial proceedings were nearly completed, 
some seven months after his arrest (Note: Ibrahim's lawyer 
claims his client told authorities he wished to seek asylum 
during his arrest and during a December court hearing.  End 
Note).  In addition to filing the application late, Okyay 
said, the attorney submitted the petition to police and sent 
a copy to Amnesty International, rather than to the MFA. 
Police officials apparently determined that Ibrahim's case 
was not legitimate; most likely, they assumed Ibrahim's 
attorney advised him to claim a fear of persecution to avoid 
deportation.  MFA did not get word until one day before the 
deportation.  If word had come just a couple of days sooner, 
Okyay averred, he would have stopped the process and enabled 
UNHCR to interview Ibrahim. 
 
9. (C) We asked whether law enforcement authorities in Turkey 
are trained to properly screen asylum applications.  Okyay 
said UNHCR and the International Organization for Migration 
provide training to Turkish police on asylum/refugee issues. 
However, he acknowledged the system is "deficient."  He said 
the GOT is currently debating how to reform the process.  In 
Okyay's view, the best solution would be to establish a 
civilian authority to screen asylum applications and make 
final judgments.  Under the current system, he said, the 
police have too much power -- the same authorities detain 
irregular migrants and determine whether their asylum 
applications are valid. 
 
10. (U) Okyay said MFA has instructed the Turkish Embassy in 
Damascus to inquire about the welfare of Ibrahim.  The 
Embassy has not reported yet, but according to Amnesty 
International Ibrahim is being held in a Damascus prison. 
 
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Comment 
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11. (C) Turkish police and Jandarma are unlikely to be 
sympathetic to asylum petitions, particularly if they involve 
Kurds from Syria, Iraq or Iran.  Ibrahim is exactly the kind 
of migrant Turkey intended to keep out when it set a 
geographical limit to its obligations under the UN 
convention.  In cases like these, law enforcement authorities 
feel they are protecting their country by returning the 
migrants before UNHCR can interfere, and potentially prolong 
the migrants' stay in Turkey. 
 
 
EDELMAN