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ABSTRACT
By examining how Turkey has strategically leveraged its immigration detention practices in its relationship to the EU, this article draws scholarly attention to the neglected international dimensions of detention policy-making. While narratives of national security bolster the justification for detention of asylum seekers and other migrants, this article focuses on additional roles that Turkey calls on detention to play in its relationship with the European Union. In particular, the article discusses ‘transit migration’ as a policy discourse Turkey has strategically adopted and leveraged to its advantage when dealing with the EU. As form of ‘premature labelling’, this discourse undermines the claims of belonging that foreign nationals labelled as transit migrants have in Turkey. Thus, it provides a narrative for justifying detention expansion. This international dimension of detention policy-making must be taken into account for future discussions around how to curb or abolish the practice at the borders of Europe and elsewhere.
Acknowledgement
I would like to thank the Special Issue guest editors Dr Stephanie Silverman and Prof Sharry Aiken for the opportunity to contribute to this Special Issue and for their feedback. I would also like to thank the two anonymous reviewers for their comments. All errors are my own.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.
Notes
1. Turkey is signatory to the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol but it has maintained the ‘geographical limitation’ clause of 1967 Protocol, which restricts its protection obligations only to individuals who become refugees ‘as a result of events occurring in Europe’. Thus, asylum seekers from non-European countries are admitted to the temporary asylum procedure in Turkey but cannot get refugee status under Turkish law.
2. According to figures provided by Turkish Ministry of Interior available at: https://www.goc.gov.tr/ikamet-izinleri
3. Regulation on Refugee Guesthouses Regulation No.: 18,032, 29 April 1983.
4. Global Detention Project. 2010. ‘Turkey Detention Profile: 2010”. Available at: http://english.madde14.org/index.php?title=Global_Detention_Project_-_Turkey_Detention_Profile_(2010)http://english.madde14.org/index.php?title=Global_Detention_Project_-_Turkey_Detention_Profile_(2010)
5. The Circular on Combatting Irregular Migration (Article 2(b1)) renamed ‘Foreigners’ Guesthouses’ as ’Removal Centres’.
6. For a discussion of the legal framework on detention prior to the LFIP, see: Helsinki Citizens Assembly (2007), Kaytaz (Citation2014; Citation2015).
7. Council of Europe (2009) Abdolkhani and Karimnia v. Turkey, Appl. No. 30,471/08, European Court of Human Rights, 22 September 2009
8. Information on the location and capacity of Removal Centres is available at: https://www.goc.gov.tr/geri-gonderme-merkezleri33
9. The European Commission’s Twinning System’ aided EU candidate states such as Turkey as a ‘Pre-Acquisition Instrument’ to restructure their public institutions and to implement and enforce EU laws.
10. Statistics provided by the Ministry of Interior are available at: https://www.goc.gov.tr/duzensiz-goc-istatistikler
11. The official justification of the law is available at: https://www.goc.gov.tr/genel-gerekce18
12. Article 103
13. Article 68 (2)
14. Article 57 (2)
15. Article 57/A
16. Article 57(4)
17. Article 57(3)
18. Article 68 (5)
19. Article 57(4)
20. Article 57(6)
21. Article 57(7)
22. Article 57/A
23. See also Joint Assessment: Proposed Amendments in the Law on Foreigners and International Protection of Turkey. 4 December 2019. signed by multiple human rights organisations working with refugees available at: http://www.multeci.org.tr/en/haberler/english-joint-assessment-proposed-amendments-in-the-law-on-foreigners-and-international-protection-of-turkey/
24. Article 59 (1)f
25. Izmir Bar Association press statement on this incident is available at: https://www.izmirbarosu.org.tr/HaberDetay/1598/meslektaslarimizin-ugradigi-kotu-muamele-nedeniyle-harmandali-geri-gonderme-merkezinde-basin-aciklamasi-yapildi
26. Evrim Kepenek. 2019. ‘Harmandalı Removal Center Told from Inside: Battery, Attempted Suicide, Illness, Death.’ BIA News Desk. 23 July 2019. BiaAvailable at: https://bianet.org/english/women/210765-harmandali-removal-center-told-from-inside-battery-attempted-suicide-illness-death
27. This practice of assigning applicants for international protection to a city of residence can be traced back to 1950 Law on the Residence and Travel of Foreigners (Article 17). Satellite cities are defined in the 2016 Regulation on the Implementation of the Law on Foreigners and International Protection (Regulation No: No 29,656) (Article 3(hh)) as provinces where applicants for international protection reside.
28. The LFIP (Article 71(1)) states that applicants for international protection may be required to reside in a reception centre or a particular province where they may be under reporting obligations. Article 71(2) requires that applicants for international protection provide their address to the Governorate.
29. DGMM Circular 2017/10 on Principles and Procedures for Foreigners under Temporary Protection, 29 November 2017
30. See below for the discussion on the satellite cities system in the context of transit migration.
31. Article 7 (3)
32. Joint Assessment: Proposed Amendments in the Law on Foreigners and International Protection of Turkey. 4 December 2019. signed by multiple human rights organisations working with refugees available at: http://www.multeci.org.tr/en/haberler/english-joint-assessment-proposed-amendments-in-the-law-on-foreigners-and-international-protection-of-turkey/
33. Amnesty International UK. ‘Press Release: Turkey: Illegal Mass Returns of Syrian Refugees Expose Fatal Flaws in EU-Turkey Deal’, 31 March 2016, https://www.amnesty.org.uk/press-releases/turkey-illegal-mass-returns-syrian-refugees-expose-fatal-flaws-eu-turkey-dealOffice of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. ‘UNHCR Urges Immediate Safeguards to Be in Place before Any Returns Begin under EU-Turkey Deal.’ News Release, 1 April 2016, http://www.unhcr.org/uk/news/briefing/2016/4/56fe31ca9/unhcr-urges-immediate-safeguards-place-returns-begin-under-eu-turkey-deal.html.
34. The DGMM disputes these claims and maintains that it has been upholding its obligations under international law in accordance with the principle of non-refoulement (Amnesty International Citation2019, 7).
35. For voluntary return forms see also: Gerry Simpson. 2019. ‘ “Repatriation” of Syrian in Turkey Needs EU Action’. 7 November 2019. Human Rights Watch News. Available at: https://www.hrw.org/news/2019/11/07/repatriation-syrians-turkey-needs-eu-action
36. Tehrani and Others v. Turkey, Applications nos. 32,940/08, 41,626/08, 43,616/08, Council of Europe: European Court of Human Rights, 13 April 2010; Charahili v. Turkey, Application no. 46,605/07, Council of Europe: European Court of Human Rights, 13 April 2010; Kurkaev v. Turkey, Application no. 10,424/05, Council of Europe: European Court of Human Rights, 19 October 2010; Asalya v. Turkey, Application no. 43,875/09, Council of Europe: European Court of Human Rights, 15 April 2014; Yarashonen v. Turkey, Application no. 72,710/11, Council of Europe: European Court of Human Rights, 24 June 2014; Musaev v. Turkey, Application no. 72,754/11, Council of Europe: European Court of Human Rights, October, 21 2014; S.A. v. Turkey, Application no. 74,535/10, Council of Europe: European Court of Human Rights, 15 December 2015.
37. Turkey is signatory to the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol but it has maintained the ‘geographical limitation’ clause, which restricts its protection obligations only to individuals who become refugees ‘as a result of events occurring in Europe’. Thus, asylum seekers in Turkey coming from non-European countries are admitted to the temporary asylum procedure in Turkey but cannot get refugee status under Turkish law.
38. ‘The readmission agreement with EU no longer functional Ankara says’. Daily Sabah. 23 July 2019. Available at: https://www.dailysabah.com/eu-affairs/2019/07/23/readmission-agreement-with-eu-no-longer-functional-ankara-says
40. I use the term asylum seeker here to refer to anyone who has sought or attempted to seek asylum in Turkey in order to avoid the confusion between the different protection categories offered by the Turkish state.
42. See for instance: https://multeciler.org.tr/turkiyedeki-suriyeli-sayisi/
43. See press briefing by Turkish Minister of Interior Süleyman Soylu on 2 August 2019 available at: https://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/turkey-granted-citizenship-to-over-92-000-syrians-145480
44. Institute on Statelessness and Inclusion and European Network on Statelessness. 2020. Joint Submission to the Human Rights Council at the 35th Session of the Universal Periodic Review. (Third Cycle, January 2020) Available at: https://www.statelessness.eu/sites/www.statelessness.eu/files/attachments/resources/ENS-ISI_UPR%20Submission%20Turkey.pdf
45. LFIP Article 77(1)(ç)
46. ‘Turkey: Mass Detention Following Istanbul Push for Return of Refugees to “Satellite Cities”’ 30 August 2019. Available at: https://www.ecre.org/turkey-mass-detention-following-istanbul-push-for-return-of-refugees-to-satellite-cities/
47. The DGMM reports that as of October 2019, 72.029 foreign nationals were deported in 2019. (https://www.goc.gov.tr/duzensiz-gocle-mucadele-araliksiz-devam-ediyor). The number of foreign nationals apprehended in Turkey as of December 2019 is 448.938 (https://www.goc.gov.tr/duzensiz-goc-istatistikler).
48. The capacity for detention is reported to be 20.000 (https://www.goc.gov.tr/geri-gonderme-merkezleri33), which is well below the numbers of the foreign nationals that are apprehended which number more than 400.000 in 2019 (https://www.goc.gov.tr/duzensiz-goc-istatistikler).
49. Caroline Mortimer, ‘President Erdogan: I will open gates for migrants to enter Europe if EU blocks membership talks’, The Independent, 25 November 2019, Available at:
50. Doğan News Agency. ‘2,933 migrants detained in four days in Turkey’s West’, Hürriyet Daily News, 14 December 2015 http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/Default.aspx?pageID=238&nID=92074&NewsCatID=341; Özkan, Yusuf and Ali Çelikkan, ‘Parayı görünce düğmeye basıldı’, Cumhuriyet, 2 December 2015, http://www.cumhuriyet.com.tr/haber/turkiye/439281/Parayi_gorunce_dugmeye_basildi.html
51. ‘16-bin-423-multeci-istanbuldan-gonderildi’ Gazere Duvar. Available at: https://www.gazeteduvar.com.tr/turkiye/2019/08/27/16-bin-423-multeci-istanbuldan-gonderildi/
52. ‘Düzensiz Göçle Mücadele Aralıksız Devam Ediyor’. DGMM. 15 October 2019. Available at: https://www.goc.gov.tr/duzensiz-gocle-mucadele-araliksiz-devam-ediyor
53. Chris Baynes, ‘Turkey’s Erdogan threatens to send millions of refugees to Europe unless it backs Syria ‘safe zone’, The Independent, 26 October 2019. Available at: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/erdogan-syria-turkey-refugees-safe-zone-kurds-trump-europe-borders-a9172311.html
54. Hikmet Adal ‘Refugees at Turkey-Greece Border Being Sent to Istanbul Esenler Bus Terminal’ Bianet. 20 March 2020. Available at: http://bianet.org/english/migration/221670-refugees-at-turkey-greece-border-being-sent-to-istanbul-esenler-bus-terminal
55. ‘Geri Gönderme Merkezinde Zorla Sınıra Götürülüyoruz Çığlığı’ Müteci Net. 4 March 2020 Available at: http://multeci.net/2020/03/geri-gonderme-merkezinde-zorla-sinira-goturuluyoruz-cigligi/?fbclid=IwAR36nKG-DZXlCCEplpcnJWcta_cWWBJq_4E1isiUcxbJYf8xdo68vm4F4kM
56. ‘Çadırlar yakıldı, Pazarkule boşaltıldı: Yunanistan sınırındaki mülteciler sessiz sedasız illere götürüldü’. Sendika.Org. 28 March 2020. Available at: https://sendika63.org/2020/03/cadirlar-yakildi-pazarkule-bosaltildi-yunanistan-sinirindaki-multeciler-sessiz-sedasiz-illere- goturuldu-581,793/
57. Burcu Karakaş ‘Bir göçememe hikâyesi: “Her yere gidiyoruz, bir yere yetişemiyoruz”’, DW, April, 23, 2020. Available at:
https://www.dw.com/tr/bir-göçememe-hikâyesi-her-yere-gidiyoruz-bir-yere-yetişemiyoruz/a-53221085
58. ‘Karantina sonrası İzmir’e getirilen mülteciler kaldıkları illere yollandı.’Müteci Medyası, 14 April 2020.
Additional information
Notes on contributors
Esra S. Kaytaz
Esra Kaytaz is a research fellow at the Centre for Trust, Peace and Social Relations at Coventry University. Her research interests include immigration detention, migration journeys and migrant decision-making.