IDPs women from Serê Kaniyê: safe return is our primary demand

Displaced women from the city of Serê Kaniyê expressed their concern over the lack of security and stability in the city, stressing that a safe return to their homes and the restoration of their rights represent their primary demand.

As part of the continued implementation of the provisions of the agreement signed on January 29 between the Syrian Democratic Forces and the transitional government, the issue of the return of displaced people, particularly those displaced from Serê Kaniyê, remains under consideration, amid continued obstacles to their return. The attack on the first convoy of returnees to the city also raised concerns among the displaced regarding their safety and security during the return.

Najah Abada, a resident of Serê Kaniyê who is currently living in Washokani Camp in Hasakah Governorate, told ANHA's agency: “Our basic demands for returning to the city are for Serê Kaniyê to be safe, for us to return to our homes without obstacles, to regain our rights, and to repair our houses. We also want compensation for the years of pain and suffering we experienced with our children inside these tents. Today, one of our greatest fears is returning without security. Our only demand is safety.”

Najah pointed out that displaced women have endured difficult living conditions throughout the years of displacement, accompanied by fear, exhaustion, and social and family problems. She added: “Our situation here in the camp is very bad. We have made all our preparations to return to our homes, and we can no longer bear the wait. We want to return as soon as possible.”

She affirmed her rejection of the attack on the first convoy of returnees, questioning the reasons for attacking people who were forcibly driven from their homes and are now returning to them. She said: “We are the people who have suffered the most from the war because we spent days enduring heat, cold, humiliation, and fear, and we suffered greatly inside these tents.”

For her part, displaced woman Rifaa al-Salmo said: “We are against the attacks that the first convoy faced upon its return. After all the suffering that the displaced endured inside the camps, they were subjected to violations during their return. These homes are their right and their property, so why are they being attacked?”

She added that residents’ homes had been damaged or destroyed, and that the announced financial compensation was insufficient to meet the requirements for their return. She explained: “Our homes are destroyed today, and the financial compensation is far too little. If I return to my home and dig a well and install solar panels to provide drinking water, that will cost me around $1,200, and what remains would not even be enough to provide food for my children. How are we supposed to live?”

On the eighth of this month, it was announced that compensation of $2,000 would be provided to each family included in the return convoys, with the aim of facilitating their return to their areas.

Rifaa said that the priority for the displaced is to provide security and stability and reopen the main road leading to Serê Kaniyê, explaining that this would facilitate their return to their homes. She added: “We are preparing ourselves and getting ready to return. We have packed our belongings and are waiting for our names to be announced among the lists of returnees.”

She stressed that reopening the main road is among the residents’ foremost demands, alongside ensuring security and stability, rehabilitating homes, and reopening schools for children so that they do not lose another academic year. They are also demanding compensation for the suffering they endured during the years of displacement.

In turn, displaced woman Amina Al-Ahmad said: “We were displaced from our homes and want to return to them before winter. We are approaching the winter season, and we have no homes; everything is destroyed. We demand that our homes be rebuilt so that we can return.”

Amina pointed out that the $2,000 compensation would not be sufficient to meet the requirements for resettlement, explaining: “What will $2,000 do for us? If we build our homes and provide only doors and windows so that we can settle, the amount will not be enough. We want to return before winter.”

Amina Al-Ahmad concluded by stressing that security and stability, reopening the main road leading to the city, and accelerating the return procedures are among the foremost demands of the displaced. She added: “We want to return to our homes. We have prepared ourselves and all our belongings and necessities, and we are waiting for the news of our return.”

ANHA