Amnesty International argues that many refugees have been forcibly deported to Syria because protests broke out at the Jordanian Zaatari refugee camp. Amnesty International is calling for more international support that would secure safety and protection of the refugees. The UN's appeal for Syrian refugees is only 50% funded, and there has been little response to appeals for Western states to resettle Syrians.
Since the beginning of the Arab Spring in 2010, Syria along with Egypt, Tunisia, Libya, and Yemen, have experienced a wave of revolutionary demonstrations and violent protests due to their domestic authoritarian regimes. Jordan however, is one of the rare countries that has not experienced any protests or demonstrations, although Jordan has an oppressive monarchy. Although Jordan started experiencing political spillover from Syria, Jordanian people have still not engaged in any protests or demonstrations against their government.
Why have Jordanian people refrained from action? Do they fear violent upheaval of civil conflict? Or is the Jordanian government strategically controlling the borders, and thus limiting active action of its people by preventing spillover from neighboring Syria?
Whether or not Jordan will be the next country to experience civil war is still left to be seen. Political spillover from Syria, along with the way Jordanian government response to the crisis, will be crucial in determining whether Jordanian people rise to protect their civil liberties.
The turning away of refugees by Jordan is certainly a problem, but it is not the first time Jordan has refused to assist refugees. After the Israeli War of Independence, many of the Palestinians who did not wish to live in a Jewish State left Israel and attempted to gain entry into the surrounding Arab Nations, namely Jordan due to its proximity. They were turned away and that faction largely settled in the West Bank and since organized themselves into the PLO, regarded as a terrorist organization, and its successor, the PLA which is a bit more peaceful. The fact that no Arab nation was willing to accept Arab refugees is somewhat surprising, unless the concerns of the individual nations for their own National Security is taken into account. Few nations in the world would willingly accept a large population of frustrated persons who left their homes in the false hope of finding a better one. Another faction of Palestinians would later settle in the Gaza strip and through democratic processes, elect Hamas, a terrorist organization with ties to Iran, as their governing party. The PLO, Hamas, and to a lesser extent the PLA have served as instigators of significant violence and been a significant roadblock to peace in the Middle East. This can be seen by any who study the recent history of the Middle Eastern conflicts, including the Jordanian government. Seeing the destruction that one group of refugees is capable of causing, Jordan has little to no incentive to be helpful towards the Syrian refugees. Additionally, as many of the Syrians fleeing their home have ties to the Rebellion(s), Jordan would be wise to not accept the potential influence of Al Qaeda within their borders, especially considering that certain nations, namely those in NATO and Israel, have not behaved very cordially towards terrorist activity. The United States launched invasions against three sovereign nations simply to root out and destroy enemies of Western Democracy, and Jordan does not want to add itself to that list, especially considering it's abysmal military record against a nation less than Half of its size. Jordan has neither the incentive nor the resources to safely accommodate the Syrian refugees. In addition, many of the combatants fighting on behalf of Assad's regime are Hezbollahis, who crossed borders to fight the rebels, and Jordan will not want that organization to have cause to wreak havoc within its borders.
ReplyDeleteIt is likely that Jordan is not refusing to admit refugees by desire, but rather because they are fearful the costs of increasing the admittance of these refugees could be potentially damaging for Jordan’s political and economic stability. According to Jordan King Abdullah’s address to the United Nations, "the damage and dangers are mounting… These are not just numbers. They are people, who need food, water, shelter, sanitation, electricity, health care, and more. Not even the strongest global economies could absorb this demand on infrastructure and resources" could absorb the half-a-million Syrian refugees currently residing in Jordan. Consequently the conflict within Syria and the amount of refugees entering the country is extremely unsettling for Jordan because as U. N. High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres explains, taking in this many people “requires money, which [Jordan] don't have. It requires flexibility, innovation, reform which [Jordan] does have and is working on,” even though it “is a very tense situation." Therefore, going these adjustments establishes a series of “huge demographic changes following the refugee influx” that have been “unsettling their social and economic fabric” forcing the country towards a political and moral crossroad.
ReplyDeleteFurthermore, even though Syrian refugee rejection at the border is extremely disheartening, American University Professor Akbar Ahmed explains, "Jordan is a very fragile state” as well and even its “charismatic, intelligent, wise ruler” cannot maintain power with such a “fragile base to it[s]" institutional system. As a result, Ahmed believes the Syrian civil war will "sooner or later affect the Palestinians, draw in Hezbollah and then back to the Shia/Sunni confrontation and the regional powers,” which “is a nightmare for Jordan," probably because the Jordan government would no longer be effective or maintain power if there was an entire meltdown of stability within the region. Inevitably, U. S. Ambassador Adam Ereli claims this leads to "domestic unrest and political unrest and popular dissatisfaction with governmental policies [that are currently] present in Jordan, and looking at what's happening in Syria influences" the stability of Jordan. Thus, although Syria could potentially be rejecting refugees, it is probably because they are having a significantly difficult time dealing with the cost of refugees and maintain the internal stability of the country.
http://www.voanews.com/content/syrian-civil-war-refugee-crisis-challenge-jordan/1766688.html
This was a very interesting piece to read, however, I cannot say that I am particularly surprised by Jordan's reluctance to permit refugees. Jordan is stable, but only on a very superficial level. The Jordanians have, over time, come under increasing pressure emanating from growing sectarianism, islamism, democratization, and economic pressure stemming from their continual need to support refugees. I would argue that if the international community is not willing to become involved with the Syrian crisis that they must show some modicum of resolve and support the refugees and the states that harbor them.
ReplyDeleteVery interesting article! This situation in Jordan is certainly complex and interesting. It is not surprising that a country like Jordan (ranked 35th in world infrastructure) is unable to support the demand of refugees. It seems that this is less politically based and more needs-based. Jordan is one of the most stable ad economically balanced countries in the middle-east. This means that the motive for not allowing unlimited refugees in is probably not motivated by fear of an uprising, but rather due to the fact that no country can support a mass amount of refugees. I agree with Amnesty International and believe that more states should be allowing these refugees. In conclusion, the burden of refugees should not be placed on Jordan and should be more evenly distributed among the international community.
ReplyDeleteI think its more of an economic burden for Jordan at this time than one dealing with political/ideological controversy. Excluding Iraq because of the poor state that they are in at the moment they are their closest bordered middle-eastern country and as Dylan mentioned they should at least offer safe passage for entry to the rest of the middle east. What happens next only time will tell.
ReplyDeleteJust to provoke possible debate, I was under the impression Jordan was one of the first countries to be effected by the Arab Spring. Some of the first violent protesting, and even governmental changes happened there within a year or two of Tunisia. Although the entire government was not toppled, I thought the Prime Minister position had been replaced multiple times. However, the fact that the spring has created conflict to even all-out civil war in some places, but not in others is interesting.
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