Cross-Cultural Experiences of Syrian Refugees - Report Example

Author’s name Instructors’ name Course Date Cross Cultural Experiences of Syrian Refugees Overview of Refugees-Global Perspective Firstly, the term “refugees” may cover a lot of ground just like the people it refers to. Academics, politicians, as well as aid workers including the press approach the this term from varying angles with different ideas of the roles, rights and responsibilities the word “refugees” implies. The presence of divergent view about this term only creates and fuels the global debate on how refugees should be treated across the globe by different countries and nationalities. According to the 1951United Nations Convention on Status of Refugees, a refugee is a person who is outside the country of his nationality due to well-founded fear of being prosecuted for different reasons such as nationality, religion, and race, membership of a given group or due to a political opinion. In this reference, United Nations estimates that the world has close to thirteen millions refugees who are in different countries and need social economic support by the host nations, individuals, organizations or groups (World Bank 2016). The complexity of refugees’ problem including as the presence of vocal and many interest groups concerned has made it challenging to solve the issue of refugees without answering two key questions, which are: who qualifies to be a refugee and what are the main pressing issues that are faced by refugees as well as many institutions and organizations they interact. Notably, determining who is a refugee makes it possible to know and estimate the number of such people existing in different nations and regions across the globe. In this way, by getting such data, United Nations and other key stakeholders are able to develop plans carefully in order to provide relieve and other services to the refugees (Cupolo 2013). Accordingly, there are about two sources of statistics about refugees and their related populations. Firstly, UNHCR provides data on the number of refugees on annual basis under the The State of the World's Refugees. However, the organization also provides special reports regarding the status of refugee across the globe or in different situations such as in Syria. The second source is provided by the U.S. Committee for Refugees, which is also a nongovernmental organization (NGO) that focuses on advocating for refuges. The organization publishes, on annual basis, the status of refuges in the World Refugee Survey. Accordingly, it must be underlined that there are many other sources such as “Doctors without Borders” where information about refugees can be received. Based on the above two key sources of information about refugees, critical to note is that the U.S. Committee and the UNHCR present and aggregate their data differently (Ignatieff 2016). According to the U.S. Committee, there are approximately 14.5 million refugees, which also include asylum seekers. However, according to the UNHCR data, there is slightly over 13 million refugees and asylum seeker worldwide. In reference to geographical distribution, the UNHCR estimates that more than forty percent of the refugees are found in Asia, which comprises the Middle East as well. According to UNHCR close to twenty-seven percent of the refugees across the globe are in Europe while slightly over twenty five percent are found in Africa. On the other hand, five percent are hosted in North American region while less than three percent of the refuges are found In Latin America as well as in Caribbean. Finally, less than one percent of the global refugees are found in Oceania. Currently, there are close to five main sources of refugees, which include Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Eritrea, Somalia, and south Sudan. The following paper seeks to discuss different cross-cultural challenges that Syrian refugees go through including how different nations are dealing with refugees. The Syrian Refugees Notably, the main reason that makes Syrians to flee their country is due to civil war and conflicts that has been going on between Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s government and the Syrian opposition forces since 2011 (Kanat & Ustun 2015). However, there have been other players who have joined the Syrian war, including the U.S-led coalition, Russia, ISIS, Taliban rebels, Hezbollah, among others. The result is that the conflict has become one of the complex battles of the modern world, which has led to more than 200,000 deaths and close to 22 million citizens either being displaced or fleeing Syrian to the neighboring countries such as turkey as well as other parts of the world including Europe. The Syrian crises have dominated the world headlines for many years and the debate over Syrian refugees continue to raise attention after the world came to the reality that this is a global problem (Turkish Migration Conference & Tilbe 2016). By going to other nations and regions, including those being displaced within Syria, Syrian refugees have experienced unimaginable challenges. For example, in order to escape from the conflict, many refugees have become victims of not only smuggling as well as human trafficking. In this way, they are forced to seek refuge in neighboring countries such as Syria and Jordan while at the same time risking their lives when travelling on unsafe trains, trucks, and boats. On the same breath, thousands of displaced Syrian people have been arriving to refugee camps each day in countries such as turkey and Lebanon, which increase the congestion and overcrowding (Jones 2015). Consequently, the host nations are finding nit challenging to meet the needs of these refugees including their own citizens. Turkey, for example, has been collaborating with her European counterparts whereby Europe decided to help turkey in hosting refugees coming from the neighboring Syria. Further, children and women are the most hit by the Syrian crisis (World Bank 2016). Statistics show that close to two million children have been with directly or indirectly affected by the conflict, which make their education to be extremely difficult. In addition, refugees in camps are lacking enough space where they can offer their children an opportunity to learn as well as playing. Despite the above difficulties and challenges, aid organizations are responding to help Syrian refugees. Notably, nongovernmental organizations and other agencies have helped in delivering clean water and food to the refugees including providing shelter and temporary households to the victims of Syrian conflict. Further, organizations and aid agencies including the United Nations continue to provide refugees with safe access of lifesaving medical aid, which also include reproductive health care. Some families have however been able to be supported in setting up spaces where their children can learn and play by the aid agencies. Most importantly, refugees have provided with psychosocial support in order to reduce emotional consequences of the horrific and traumatic experiences in this conflicts. The Cultural Challenges of the Syrian Refugee Crisis Besides going through dangerous experiences while crossing borders for safe havens, Syrian refugees are also facing ongoing challenges, which come to define their new way of life in foreign nations. After Syrian refugee embarks on a torturous and dangerous, often delay trips towards other nations such as Europe, most of them are explicitly aware of the price they are to pay in order to settle which include accepting different laws and new ways of life. The common challenge that refugees have to come across is the cultural difference between them and the citizens of host nations. Notably, cultural differences have become a critical part of what shape the future success of Syrian refugees in the adoptive countries. Accordingly, without honest and brave assessment of the “culture” question, it would be wise to admit that those “lucky” refugees are not only becoming victims of hatred and racism but they are also facing unsettling and unhappy future before them. In this Syrian case, as is the common historical trend, the dynamic of cultural expectations has often been reduced by both the welcoming nations and the new settlers to shallow cultural differences over relatively trivial issues such as concealment of women body, food habits, among others. Accordingly, Syrian refugees have been facing such issues in their host nations especially in Europe. However, the cultural divide include much deeper issues that range from subtlety of body language as well as eye contact to even more overt actions such as development of a sense of belonging and engagement with the local society. Apart from experiencing the above cultural issues, cross-cultural communication has been one of the main aspects that refugees have to cope with (Kanat & Ustun 2015). As in Islamic state Syrian refuges have been finding it difficult to express themselves and narrating their ordeal after going into new countries. Accordingly, language has been the main obstacle for many refugees who are looking for work in Germany. In this case, some refugees have decided to learn German in order to have easier way of communicating with the German citizens. How Countries Are Dealing With Syrian Refugees Syrian Refugees in Canada As is the case with America, refuges coming from Syria to Canada are subjected to stringiest and lengthy clearance requirements (United States 2016). In the last one decade, the Conservative Government, which is led by Stephen Harper, has cut back the number of refugees that should be taken in by Canada. In fact, Canada has only accepted few Syrian refugees in the past few years. However, after the country was put under intense political pressure, it accepted to accommodate ten thousand 10000 and about 20000 Syrian refugees in 2014 and 2015 respectively. The increase in the number of Syrian refugees taken by Canada has been attributed to the new federal government whereby Liberals had accused the Conservatives of taken very few refuges compared to other countries such as Sweden when has taken more than 200,000 Syrian refugees. Despite government’s policies of reducing the number of Syrian refugees, inter-culturally most of the Canadian citizens have been willing to accommodate refugees (United States 2016). Although they understand the cultural differences that both Syrians and Canadian have, radio talk shows, Newspaper editorials, social media, as well as TV programs have come out to show support for refugees in Canada including Syrians. Accordingly, in one of the close interviews with a group of Canadians, a TV outlets documented how Canadians recall that their country was but but immigrants and it is the right time to give back to those who are facing problems in their own countries. The plight of Syrian refugees in Canada has been positively catered for as manifested by thousands of families and individuals who line up to accept and accommodate refugees in their homes and communities (United States 2016). In order tom, ensure that intercommunication and cultural integration between Canadians and Syrians is made as easier as possible, Syrian and other refugees are given opportunity of learning English and mingling with their hosts. The coats per refugee also include the provisions of public health and safety, which involves psychological support for Post-traumatic Stress Disorder.  Syrian Refugees in Lebanon As described above, Lebanon is one of the neighboring countries to Syria. Therefore, since the conflict started, Lebanon has been receiving Syrian refugees (United States 2016). According to Sabeen Abdulsater the Project Officer of International Orthodox Christian Charities (IOCC) in the Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley, the Syrian refugees are in real need and Lebanon should be assisted to “carry this load” as it does not have the required capacity. In Lebanon, different organizations and agencies have come forth to help Syrian refugees cope with the challenge including provision of basic requirements such as clothing, food, shelter and water. Since Lebanese and Syrians largely share the same cultural practices including religious beliefs, Syrian refugees have not been facing language problems and other discriminations such as dressing issues (United States 2016). However, this does not mean that there are no challenges for Syrian refugees in Lebanon. The most common challenge is finding a place to stay. According to observatory agencies, most refuges find themselves staying for two to three days by the roadsides before they even find something to eat. Although communication is not a big challenge for Syrians in Lebanon, it is rare for Lebanese to allow them to stay in the same house. Renting a place, for most Syrians in Lebanon is expensive (World Bank 2016). Thus, many resort in building temporary shelters with all kinds of waste materials such as nylon from mega-billboard. Secondly, they are also unable to get warm since they cannot get access to heaters as they are also expensive including fuels. The fear of Lebanese in staying together with Syrian refugees have made most Syrians go through cold nights in muddy tents without winter clothes, blankets , or heaters. Since communication is never a problem in Lebanon, Syrian refugees have been willing to send children to school but they are reluctant as they look forward to going back to Syria (World Bank 2016). According to Lebanese authorities, the biggest problem is not communication but rather the capacity of educational institutions. The other problem is finding employment in Lebanon. Culturally, Syrians are proud people, which make them prefer solving their problems on their own. However, the rate of unemployment in Lebanon is high and Syrians find it had to get employment opportunities. Experience of Syrian Refugees in Germany Evidently, thousands have been entering Europe from war-torn regions especially from the North Africa and the Middle East (Townsend 2015). Notably, for the Syrian refugees, Germany has been the most favorable country to seek asylum. Since the Lebanese border with Syria was closed, Germany has been receiving Syrian refugees in hundreds of thousands. According to Syrian refugees, Germany is the preferred European nation since it is wealthy and less racist, with housing, schooling and employment opportunities for their children and young people respectively. In 2015, consequently, Germany received close to one million asylum seekers where more eighty percent come from Syria. However, there are different challenges that refuges are going through in Germany. Firstly, the main challenge is language barrier (Kanat & Ustun 2015). As is expected, many, if not all of Syrians are unable to communicate in German. Therefore, Syrian refugees and their host citizens find it challenging to communicate and understand each other. In fact, after arriving in Berlin, the process of asylum registration is hampered by language barrier, which makes them wait for almost one week at the registration center- Office of Health and Social Affairs (LaGeSo). Study has also shown that although Germany is composed of aging population who are going into retirement, employing Syrians and foreigners is becoming a big challenge, as most are unable to communicate in German. In this case, media platforms have been reporting of how Syrian refugees are being introduced to German society by learning German as well being trained on different courses such as electronics. Experiences of Syrian Refugees in the US As is the case with Canada, America has been under pressure to welcome and accept as many Syrian refugees as possible. In 2015, United States accepted to receive ten thousand Syrian refugees amid opposition and support from different quarters. In fact, apart from receiving only a few refugees , based on its capacity, America has been taking Syrian refugees through strict process before they are allowed in. the most common challenge faced by Syrian refugees is the difficulty in learning and speaking English. Therefore, expressing them or making friends with their host citizens have been difficult. Further, securing work and moving up the ladder has been extremely challenging for the Syrian refugees as well as immigrants (World Bank 2016). Definitely, the failure to speak English is one of the key requirements in American labor market. Besides communicating in English, American employers also prefer people with work experience within United States and where possible possess American certifications, which Syrian refugees do not have. In addition, Syrian refugees who cannot speak English are easy victims of exploitation and discrimination not only at places of work but in the American society. Other challenges facing Syrian refugees in the United States include difficulty in raising and helping their children succeed in school, securing housing, accessing basic services, transportation problems, and cultural barriers. Media Coverage of Syrian Crisis Apparently, there has been widespread coverage of Syrian crisis by different media platforms (Ferris & KirişCi 2016). However, major media outlets have been showing partisanship when reporting events on Syrian conflict. In this way, their listeners have been getting information based on side or angle with which the outlet is reporting. For example, most of the United States media platforms have been accusing Russia and Syria regime of going against ceasefire agreement while ignoring the role that rebel factions are playing in breaking peace in Syria. Although this is true, the audience and the public fail to get the other side of the story. On the other hand, Iranian and Russian media have been accused of sympathizing with Assad regime. For example, Russia Today, which is viewed as pro-Russian Government, publishes stories that favor Assad government since it is considered legitimate government by Russia. Therefore, western media support US led coalition while other outlets Syria and Russian forces, making the public struggle to unbiased reporting. Conclusion In reference to the above information, it is clear that there is need for different countries to accommodate Syrian refugees and integrate them into their society. Further, citizens of host countries should change their attitude towards Syrian refugees and consider them as people who need assistance. Finally, governments should employ softer laws to allow more refugees in their countries. References Culbertson, S., & Constant, L. (2015). Education of Syrian refugee children: managing the crisis in Turkey, Lebanon, and Jordan. Santa Monica, CA: RAND. Cupolo, D. (2013). Seven Syrians: war accounts from Syrian refugees. [Place of publication not identified], 8th House Publishing. [Place of publication not identified]: 8th House Publishing Ferris, E. G., & KirişCi, K. (2016). The consequences of chaos: Syria's humanitarian crisis and the failure to protect. Washington, D.C.: Brookings Institution Press. Ignatieff, M. (2016). United States and the Syrian refugee crisis: a plan of action. [Cambridge, MA]: Harvard Kennedy School, Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy. Jones, S. G. (2015). The Syrian refugee crisis and U.S. National Security. Santa Monica, CA: RAND. Kanat, K. B., & Ustun, K. (2015). Turkey's Syrian refugees: toward integration. Ankara: SETA Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research. Turkish Migration Conference, & Tilbe, F. (2016). Turkish Migration Conference 2016: program and abstracts book. Transnational Press. Townsend, R. M. (2015). The European migrant crisis. United States: Riley M. Townsend. United States. (2016). The Syrian refugee crisis and its impact on the security of the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program: hearing before the Subcommittee on Immigration and Border Security of the Committee on the Judiciary, House of Representatives, One Hundred Fourteenth Congress, first session, November 19, 2015. Washington: U.S. Government Publishing Office. World Bank. (2016). The welfare of Syrian refugees: evidence from Jordan and Lebanon. Washington, D.C.: World Bank Read More

Based on the above two key sources of information about refugees, critical to note is that the U.S. commitment and the UNHCR present and aggregate their data differently (Ignatieff 2016). According to the U.S. Committee, there are approximately 14.5 million refugees, which also include asylum seekers. However, according to the UNHCR data, there is slightly over 13 million refugees and asylum seeker worldwide.

Regarding geographical distribution, the UNHCR estimates that more than forty percent of the refugees are found in Asia, which comprises the Middle East as well. According to UNHCR close to twenty-seven percent of the refugees across the globe are in Europe while slightly over twenty-five percent are found in Africa. On the other hand, five percent are hosted in the North American region while less than three percent of the refugees are found In Latin America as well as in the Caribbean. Finally, less than one percent of the global refugees are found in Oceania. Currently, there are close to five main sources of refugees, which include Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Eritrea, Somalia, and South Sudan. The following paper seeks to discuss different cross-cultural challenges that Syrian refugees go through including how different nations are dealing with refugees.

Notably, the main reason that makes Syrians flee their country is due to civil war and conflicts that have been going on between Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s government and the Syrian opposition forces since 2011 (Kanat & Ustun 2015). However, there have been other players who have joined the Syrian war, including the U.S-led coalition, Russia, ISIS, Taliban rebels, Hezbollah, among others. The result is that the conflict has become one of the complex battles of the modern world, which has led to more than 200,000 deaths and close to 22 million citizens either being displaced or fleeing Syrian to neighboring countries such as turkey as well as other parts of the world including Europe.

The Syrian crisis has dominated the world headlines for many years and the debate over Syrian refugees continues to raise attention after the world came to the reality that this is a global problem (Turkish Migration Conference & Tilbe 2016). By going to other nations and regions, including those being displaced within Syria, Syrian refugees have experienced unimaginable challenges. For example, to escape from the conflict, many refugees have become victims of not only smuggling as well as human trafficking. In this way, they are forced to seek refuge in neighboring countries such as Syria and Jordan while at the same time risking their lives when traveling on unsafe trains, trucks, and boats.

In the same breath, thousands of displaced Syrian people have been arriving at refugee camps each day in countries such as Turkey and Lebanon, which increases the congestion and overcrowding (Jones 2015). Consequently, the host nations are finding it challenging to meet the needs of these refugees including their own citizens. Turkey, for example, has been collaborating with her European counterparts whereby Europe decided to help turkey in hosting refugees coming from neighboring Syria.

Further, children and women are the most hit by the Syrian crisis (World Bank 2016). Statistics show that close to two million children have been directly or indirectly affected by the conflict, which makes their education to be extremely difficult. Besides, refugees in camps are lacking enough space where they can offer their children an opportunity to learn as well as playing.

Despite the above difficulties and challenges, aid organizations are responding to help Syrian refugees. Notably, nongovernmental organizations and other agencies have helped in delivering clean water and food to the refugees including providing shelter and temporary households to the victims of the Syrian conflict.

Further, organizations and aid agencies including the United Nations continue to provide refugees with safe access to lifesaving medical aid, which also includes reproductive health care.

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