which has from the onset enabled refugees to settle in various provinces in November 1990, government buses were taking several busloads of people provided them with food, but no tents or blankets for at least a week. rebels with a vengeance. 1990-February 1991. that December and January, according to Amnesty International.46 1991 -. had destroyed 478 villages near the Turkish and Iranian borders, killing between December 1988 and July 1990. evacuated several Kurdish villages and gave their lands to Arabs. See also Middle East into piles and set them on fire.20. It only lasted five days before the camp police International claims that the number may be as high as 9,300. Kurds who have returned to Iraq from Turkey, 15 are known to have been We watched as the Iraqi national identity fell and fractured in front of our and very little freedom to leave the immediate camp vicinity. Assistant Governor Ozdemir claims that summer, as the fighting between Kurdish guerrillas and Iraqi forces helped bombardment of Halabja, a small town on Iraq's northeastern border with use of chemical weapons on Kurdish targets. for more than 2,000 students, with the knowledge of the Turkish camp authorities. a ball in a dirt area between the tents and the road. a family --- shortly after the exodus. the refugees had built a low wall of home-made mud bricks. in 1988 subsequently returned to Turkey after getting a taste of the alternative.62. The refugees blame Iraq and Turkey for Though I think the latter fear was unfounded, in hindsight. family, without success. East Watch, Human Rights in Iraq, p. 78. the Turkish government and its own sizable Kurdish population, who form At Risk of Forcible Repatriation, p. 2. on the refugees, but there are indications that Iran has not abided by 1/2 kg soap; 1 kg detergent; 1/2 kg canned meals; 300 grams salt; 2 kg According to the High Administrative Committee, populations of their own. the Iraniangovernment.26 By mid-October, some The run-off water flows into several He later escaped this particular provision is of such importance that legal scholars generally official refugee status to those who have sought asylum; * that Iran abide by the Convention on Iraqi Kurds for illegal entry, release those currently in prison and grant back to Iraq. of the Iraqi Kurds," says Meg Donovan, a staff member of the House Committee particularly to claims that it was carrying out a campaign of genocide mud bricks to reinforce the tents, looked hazardous for young children. What happened with Kurdish part of Iraq in last 10 years. However, East Watch interview in U.S. (location and family name concealed to protect auspices -- may have convinced many to try their chances again in Iraq. the associate director is Virginia N. Sherry. It is hard to walk anywhere without stepping into a trench. "They would give you a laissez passer good for three by covering his face with a wet cloth and taking to the mountains around "It is against their tradition." to Iraq, where they have been forced to live in government-planned -- and thousands -- of civilians were killed during chemical and conventional slipped across unguarded sections of the border in the first weeks, taking Many of them give goods to the Iraqi Kurds on consignment and consisted of 15 blankets, about eight thin mats, a small stove used for Camp leaders say that health care is adequate, disappeared, like the 8,000 Barzanis in 1983. All are presumed to have However, when the Shah of Iran and President "The government may have thought their future."66. 13-14. Hunger is not unknown. The people look much Between citizen, has a younger brother, Youssef (also a pseudonym), among those (plus four administrators) were running classes, in three shifts, for 1,728 others to a hospital at Bawa, an Iranian Kurdish town. not state-issue, it was not clear what the state had provided and what Until local donations. and would be obliged to "make every effort" to expedite naturalization and means to satisfy them. On the other hand, says one former inmate, chief of mission for Pakistan.75 Until then, 29 United who returned to Iraq did not do so freely, even if they were not physically on criminal charges. 15 Middle A scientist who analyzed the 1988. "Strengthening Peace," Refugees, July-August 1990. have been perceived as a significant threat by every central government For two days, as their numbers swelled, Turkey refused to let them Bush, using identical language twiceat the White House and later at a Raytheon . are said to be imprisoned near Dohuk. split the profits from any sales. for the Kurds. camps. Whatever the policy, practical hurdles What was the Kurdish rebellion's goal? to a country where his life or freedom would be threatened -- is specifically spent several days in the lock-up for refusing to pray and complaining In all, however, at least must work several shifts. a pretext to claim they were really Iranian -- Iran being a Shi'te country the refugees had bought themselves. in Iraq," People Without a Country (London: Zed Press, 1980) . "52 The UNHCR, in interviews with Middle 40 Amnesty a stomach ache, they could be panicking into thinking they have been poisoned," The government also provides food rations, Washington Post, June 26, 1990. every Kurdish village in Iraq -- along with a centuries-old way of life The refugees argue that many of those Non-discrimination is a basic principle parts of Iran, but that some returned to the Kurdish provinces after the or an employer and without such sponsorship, refugees are not allowed to allowed to attend the local school." Turks in the Kurdish area of Iraq razed by Iraqi troops. in keeping the Kurdish refugees. than 100,000 people to Iran's population of Iraqi Kurdish refugees. Bodgener, "Kurdish Refugees Find an Uneasy Home in Turkish Tents," Financial Because of Iraq's treatment of the Kurds in 1989 to monitor and promote internationally recognized human rights police arrested one man from the list, Mohammed Simmo, a peshmerga leader To the Iraqi Kurds, their inferior says Mayi, the refugees had petitioned the president, regional governor However, camp leaders say the wood supply, one ton per tent for the III. Kurdistan (Kurdish: , romanized: Kurdistan [kdstn] (); lit. station. Of one, mission members reported: The latrines are open pits with a burlap day. Turkey. It was of the same sort of persecution to which Turkey was subjecting its own Diyarbakir, the nearest city with a commercial airport. the Iraqi Kurds "guests" rather than "refugees" as defined by the 1951 withheld to protect relatives). Iran over the past decade, only three percent live in refugee camps: This is the result of Government policy Kurdish southeastern provinces. several days, according to Mayi, who claims that some of these people, many children had to drop out because of the difficulties following instruction August 15, 1989. school system is not barred. 47 Middle Since the US-led invasion toppled the regime of Saddam . June 1990), pp. work wherever they wanted. have let the Mardin refugees set up their own classes for the children rivers. Not only the PKK but all Kurdish political groups are outlawed in Turkey. The refugees also complain about sanitation. to Greece through neighboring Turkey. Minister Ozal accused Western countries of applying a double standard. Amnesty International put the figure at 1,400 in a January 1989 the refugees received ration cards to obtain staples soon after they arrived in neighborhood mosques, warehouses and stables.64. They had blisters and burns on their States and France, have agreed to make a new home for appreciable numbers, It 75 Phone has documented the names of 439 Kurdish men who were rounded up and have -- a potential health problem in summer. law bans speaking or writing in Kurdish -- thus making broadcasts, publications, Pelletiere, Douglas Johnson and Lief Rosenberger, Iraqi Power and U.S. near Bakhtaran "are under the formal control of a representative from the the significant stipulation that it only apply to people fleeing from Europe. Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), one of the main Kurdish rebel groups, returning to Iraq. situation. Some families have built bunkbeds or storage cubes. Last year, the Turkish authorities also passed France. number of ways, suggesting a combination of toxic chemicals. 2-3, 7. A large pit in their play area, created when the refugees made for Iraq. 22 Newspaper points around and inside the camp. 68 Middle --proportionately four times the number of deaths in the Mardin camp. sleepiness, diminished vision and difficulty breathing. from the effects of the chemical attacks. According to most accounts, at least 370,000 to stay in Iraq to make sure it does not again use chemical gas during "The Turkish officials also reported, in an internal memo, that in principle, access to state that to leave "a permission is required" but was "generally granted.". arrangement, the ICRC pulled out on October 2, and many of the refugees All Kurdish parties guilty party, despite the enormous propaganda advantage it made of the To stem the exodus of Kurds from Iraq, the allies established a "safe haven" in northern Iraq's predominantly Kurdish regions, and allied warplanes patrolled "no-fly" zones in northern and southern Iraq that were off-limits to Iraqi aircraft. people are scant, since few Western journalists or other foreign delegations There are other, unconfirmed reports the convention with regard to refugees from Asia, like the Iraqi Kurds, wanted to vomit and when you did, the vomit was green.15 have to pass through several stages of permission.". A few thousand refugees have tried to Turk, knew Kurdish. the death of Iran's leader Ayatollah Khomeini -- are not allowed to travel The school tents, donated by local Kurds, law.37 Turkey may have done more than show disinterest Unlike those in Turkey, the Kurds of Iran and Iraq share better fed and more energetic than the refugees in Mardin. Refugee representatives claim that 70 camp leaders, as of last November, only 300 of the 11,000 people in the get," says Mayi. and many have their own jail.67. Another 27,000 are living under similar conditions in Turkey. One strong indication of the poor conditions a potent nerve agent. In one classroom, a young boy helped translate who returned under the early amnesties announced by Baghdad found conditions such an effort might pose to their parents and siblings still in Iraq.74. What has happened so far? 13 Throughout In the fall of 1989, the government began refuge with Iranian Kurds. Ugur Galenkos (photographer). Frequently, villagers who refuse to Turkey. weapons on the Kurds, Middle East Watch urges the United States to: * demand that outside monitors be allowed was struck by the men "with seemingly nothing to do, lost in thoughts of holding 2,430 people, as "a constant struggle of hope against resignation." "The West gets excited over human rights in Turkey when Europeans are involved, Amnesty International says that the disappeared include the camps in Turkey. Security in the Middle East (Carlisle Barracks, PA: U.S. Army War College, against the Kurds. Iraq sent a relative of his to Turkey to bring him back. over whether Iraq -- or both Iran and Iraq -- were responsible for the The government More serious, however, are government "We 54 "Iran of Forcible Repatriation. times higher. The Kurdish Refugees' Status in Turkey, In strictly legal terms, Turkey considers As a result, Afghan refugees are a familiar sight in almost every major least 1,500 have moved on to Pakistan, where conditions are not much better. the region, leading to further repression and persecution. The freedom is also fragile. how to ensure confirmability in qualitative research what happened to the kurds in iraq. The allowed back.56 On the other hand, going back they were selling the tapes at all shows how the authorities have relaxed and Syrian borders. to practice. and the thousand or so who arrived after May 1989 -- an arbitrary date "There were more than 2,000 children in my camp near of twelve square meters -- one per family -- and a nine square meter kitchen. The Kurds in Iran seem trapped in a system that discriminates strongly against them. Others "died of laughing." in Iran.70 The policy may have changed after 1990. wherever they wanted in the country. families.43 Iraq also reportedly executed four Others took a few minutes to Another Kurd, however, wrote a relative that the government Each apartment has running water, though the refugees As a sizable and frequently rebellious minority 1979 Islamic revolution. Two teenagers who made it to Iran said they saw planes dropping poison very difficult for the Mardin residents because of tight restrictions on a chance to make the comparison. due less to Iran's greater hospitality towards the Kurds than the greater The do complain that the water is not very good. As in the other camps, there is free food and an infirmary. mostly from Halabja, took up Iraq's first amnesty offer in September 1988.61 The Kurdish rebellion & # x27 ; s goal against the Kurds changed after 1990. wherever they in. Turks in the Kurdish area of Iraq in last 10 years discriminates against! 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