Part 1 The Syrian Refugee crisis has been a hot button topic in America, with politicians using the situation for political gain and integrating it into their overall stances on refugees in the country. I remember hearing about it when I was in high school on the news. While there are many challenges associated with such a complex refugee crisis, three challenges do stick out that could potentially be worked with through coordination within the international community. It seems to me that the unwillingness of states in the EU and America has created a political filibuster to progress. The effort spent to secure borders and keep refugees out could be better used to set up sustainable refugee camps for these individuals. The countries that denied the influx of refugees have cited mainly security and economic reasons for their denial. However, the reasons are likely xenophobic (Heisbourg, 2015). Germany is an exception to the stonewalling that was exhibited by other nations (Heisbourg, 2015). They elected to open their borders to an unlimited number of refugees, which earned them backlash on the international stage (Heisbourg, 2015). I wonder when doing what is morally right became wrong in the eyes of other developed nations. I understand that there are risks; however, it seems cruel to deny people who pass screening a chance at a better life. It is unfortunate that human life has a cost and that the burden of providing those funds and provisions falls upon countries not directly involved in the Syrian conflict. Establishing a streamlined process to vet refugees and distribute them among host nations in the EU might help alleviate the political strain that is felt across the region. Also, leaders might need to be reminded that these are real people with real lives and families, and to deny them entry based on ethnicity or nationality is strikingly similar to what has happened in previous conflicts - with devastating results. The second issue that I think can be addressed is the quality of life that refugees face when they arrive in their host countries, specifically regarding the additional strain on healthcare systems. The influx of individuals into Lebanon has increased the country’s population by 30% and presents a case study on the resilience that is necessary for public health systems faced with the crisis (Ammar et al., 2016). The remarkable thing about the Lebanese health system is that it did not crumble under the surge conditions, but instead thrived and even improved under the increased demand conditions (Ammar et al., 2016). The dispersion pattern of the Syrian refugees is unique in a way that might contribute to the increased healthcare resiliency. There aren’t any refugee camps - the refugees are primarily settled among the Lebanese population, with 17% living in “informal tented settlements” (Ammar et al., 2016). Housing refugees this way may facilitate the integration of the refugees into Lebanese society and allow them to live healthier lives. While the concept of refugee camps is well established, it might be worthwhile to evaluate whether these are the best solution for resettlement. While people are in camps, they are often subjected to tight living conditions contributing to respiratory disease, limited access to water, food, and healthcare. Additionally, it may prevent asylum-seekers from integrating into the local economy and creates a situation where they are a burden instead of a constructive force. Moreover, the decentralization of the population allowed the healthcare burden to be spread across the country instead of concentrated in one or two regions (Ammar et al., 2016). The situation certainly presents some food for thought on how we can evaluate our current practices and potentially make improvements and modifications to systems already in place. Part 2 The Challenges Associated with the Syrian Humanitarian Crisis Akbarzada & Mackey (2018) state that since the Syrian war broke out in the year 2011, over eleven million Syrians have been displaced. Over 4.5 million people have fled to the neighboring countries such as Jordan, Lebanon as well as Turkey. Lebanon has hosted over one million refugees from Syria, Lebanon has also taken in over six hundred thousand Syrian refugees, while Turkey has accepted over two million refugees from Syria. The figures are deemed conservative because they comprise of registered refugees from Syria. Since the war came into effect, many families have also been internally displaced. In my post, I will discuss the challenges which are associated with the Syrian refugee crisis as well as the recommendations for managing the challenges. According to Balsari, Abisaab, Hamill, & Leaning (2015), the Syrian Civil War began as peaceful demonstrations before it became a conflict leading to deaths and displacements of more than 12 million Syrians. The first challenge associated with the Syrian humanitarian crisis is; Poor health: Hospitals, health care centers, sanitation, and water systems are destroyed or damaged for the case of internally displaced refugees. Syrian refugees who face medical complications which include psychological trauma and physical injuries. On the other hand, the Syrian refugees face poor housing and sanitary environments, inadequate nutrition, difficulty labor conditions, and above all, inaccessible medical care. Common ailments among the Syrian refugees are the digestive system, skin, respiratory diseases, and trauma-related psychiatric and mental complications (Balsari, Abisaab, Hamill & Leaning, 2015). Additionally, Syrian refugees are faced with diseases such as polio, which had been eradicated formerly. Polio has had outbreaks among the Syrian refugees, and this underlines the intrinsic risks. To manage the poor health challenge, the government of Syria, as well as the United Nation, should ensure that accessible medical care, adequate nutrition, as well as proper housing and sanitary environments, are provided to the refugee camps. Poverty: Historic landmarks, as well as once-busy marketplaces, have been destroyed and reduced into rubble. As a result, many Syrian refugee men are not able to get work and provide for their families. This has thus disrupted their traditional responsibility within the family, resulting in desperation and poverty. On the other hand, the Syrian government is spending much of its funds for the upkeep of the Internally Displaced people, which would have been used to initiate development projects resulting in poor living standards, thus poverty (Akbarzada & Mackey, 2018). Based on this, I would recommend that the host countries, as well as the Syrian government, should initiate projects that can create employment opportunities for refugees. Besides, the governments should fund the refugees who have new business ideas as this will enable them to engage in business activities, which can improve their living standards. Low quality of education: The quality of education that is provided to the Syrian refugee kids in host countries such as Lebanon, Turkey, and Jordan remains to be a concern. The Syrian refugee education in Lebanon and Jordan has deemed less instructional and larger classes as opposed to the first shifts (Akbarzada & Mackey, 2018). On the other hand, second shift instructors have less teaching experience as opposed to the first shift instructors. Second shift teachers also lack the training to handle issues that are specific to the Syrian refugees. The variations in the educational standards, as well as the quality of the shifts, lead to inferior education for individuals in the second, feeble shift. The civil war led to the destruction of schools. In some places, it is hard to access such facilities because of different factions of the war on them (Aburas & et al., 2018). There were over 400 attacks on schools, with more than 50 schools turned into military bases by the rebels. The population of children that are out of school currently is over 2 million, with more than 1.5 million on the verge of dropping out. Based on this, I recommend that the host nations should employ qualified instructors to teach in the Syrian refugee schools. On the other hand, the government of Syria should allocate funds to renovate the destructed structures and ensure there is security in the schools. In my opinion, Syrian refugees face the challenge of poor health because health centers and hospitals were destroyed during the civil war. This has limited their access to medical care. On the other hand, the Syrian refugees are faced with diseases such as polio, which had been eradicated formerly. Besides poor health, the Syrian refugee crisis is associated with poverty because the Syrian refugee men are not able to get work and provide for their families. Their unemployment has disrupted their traditional responsibility within the family, resulting in poverty. Lastly, the Syrian refugee crisis is associated with low quality of education which is provided by second shift instructors who have less teaching experience and knowledge to handle Syrian issues as opposed to the first shift instructors.
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