The second session of the Migration and Displacement Forum, entitled “Solutions, Suggestions
The second session of the Migration and Displacement Forum, entitled “Solutions, Suggestions, and Effective Measures to Reduce Migration and Contribute to Reverse Migration” was moderated by Mr. Malik Al-Asmar. He introduced the session’s topics and began by posing several questions related to migration from the region, and introduced the session’s participants:
– Mr. Walid Al-Sheikh, member of the Rojava Center for Strategic Studies
– Mr. Celeng Omar, academic, writer, and economic researcher
– Mr. Abdulwahab Berani, writer and field researcher
Mr. Walid delivered a lecture entitled “The Importance of Cultural, Social, Intellectual, and Educational Awareness in Reducing Migration and Displacement.” He talked about the importance of cultural and social awareness in facing this phenomenon, and discussed the suffering of the Kurds in the past due to policies targeting their existence. He mentioned examples of targeting Kurdish culture, such as the prohibition of activities by the Kurdish band Botan by the Syrian regime. He also discussed the targeting and destruction of the statue of Kawa the Blacksmith by the Turkish occupation and its mercenaries as an attack on Kurdish culture and identity. There are many Kurdish features that have been changed by the Turkish occupation and other regimes.
Mr. Walid also highlighted the Syrian regime’s attempts to create divisions in Syrian society, citing the events of March 12, 2004 as a prime example. He spoke about intellectual awareness and referenced the horrors experienced in Shingal by the terrorist ISIS, which falls under the category of intellectual terror. Mr. Walid presented some proposals to preserve cultural identity and raise social and intellectual awareness. As for educational awareness, targeting children by the Turkish occupation is considered a challenge to education.
Meanwhile, Mr. Abdulwahab Berani delivered a lecture entitled “Political, Social, Security, and Legal Institutions and Their Role in the Growth of Migration and Displacement in Northern and Eastern Syria.” Mr. Abdulwahab affirmed that migration is an age-old social problem. He explained the historical factors that encouraged migration, highlighting the impact of divisions and military coups. He emphasized that wealth, poverty, and culture are not sole indicators, as lawyers and doctors were the first to migrate.
Migration has negative implications such as geographical and historical detachment, tension between migrants and the original inhabitants, and other direct repercussions on the regions left behind. It also creates gender imbalances, with a higher male-to-female ratio leading to social problems and imbalances.
He also mentioned some positives of migration and criticized the inadequate role played by political parties in curbing migration. Mr. Abdulwahab addressed several other points as well.
During his lecture titled “Economic Measures to Address Migration,” Mr. Celeng discussed the issue of migration since the beginning of the Syrian crisis and the Turkish policies aimed at emptying the region. He called on the Autonomous Administration to confront these plans and consider economic, social, and security factors. In terms of the economic factor, he addressed it from two perspectives: economic development and economic reform. Mr. Celeng presented several suggestions or solutions to develop the economy in the northern and eastern regions of Syria, achieve self-sufficiency, provide job opportunities, and grow the economy in those areas.
The session concluded with listening to the audience’s interventions, which focused on the session’s topic, addressing the issue of migration, and understanding the main goal behind pushing citizens to migrate, as well as listening to their suggestions and recommendations.
