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ORSAM
CENTER FOR MIDDLE EASTERN STRATEGIC STUDIES
vegetable prices. We could not eat any fruit.
There was a blackout in general. Bottled gas
was in black market. When winter was about
to come, we decided to set up a fuel stove but
the price of fuel increased from 40 SYP to 200
SYP. Then I tried to convince my wife to come
to Turkey along with our children. However,
my wife said she would not go anywhere before
our son in military service comes back.
So I came to Turkey by leaving my wife and
children behind. My wife has been receiving
my retirement pension by proxy, and struggling
to survive. I rent an apartment with
some Syrians. I work in daily jobs; sometimes
I work as a porter, sometimes as an agricultural
worker, and sometimes I sell things I
brought from Syria. (Second hand household
items, and even clothes brought from Syria
are now sold in Hatay. As some people in Syria
do not have any source of income anymore,
they break into vacant houses and take whatever
they find.) The civil war and winter conditions
forced most people to steal. There is
no production and besides there is a constant
devaluation. The number of thieves is going
to further increase.
* This interview was made by Feyyat Özyazar
in Reyhanlı district of Hatay, on 27 December
2012.
An Interview with Naci Hassun al Kasravi,
who came from Idlib Province of Syria to
Turkey and settled in Hatay
“We hope that the current regime topples as
soon as possible,” says Naci Hassun El Kasravi
who is a farmer.
Naci Hassun al Kasravi: I am from Kille Village
of Idlib Province in Syria. I am 55 years
old. I am a father with 6 children. I have been
engaged in farming for years. I have a tractor,
pick up truck, and all kinds of land vehicles.
When people started to migrate, I took over
their lands. They told me to plant their lands
and they would accept no matter what I give
as a profit during the harvest season. My two
adult sons and I ploughed lands and started
to plant grains. However, helicopters hovered
over us and they opened harassing fire on us.
Our own army prevented us from farming in
our own country, and also they prevented us
from ploughing uncultivated lands, and producing
food. Fear on the one hand, and the
lack of oil to run vehicles on the other hand,
we could not plant the lands.
ORSAM: Could you tell us about your life
before the civil war in Syria, what you went
through during the civil war and the reasons
why you came to Turkey?
Naci Hassun al Kasravi: My children were
scared. We baked bread on a wood fire, and
generated electricity through generators.
When oil and fuel was on black market, we
had to come to Turkey by bringing only our
personal belongings with us. We are farmers.
There is no job we can do here. Some
landowners employed us for a couple of days.
However, the daily wage was not enough to
fulfill our needs. As 13 people; my children,
my daughters in law, my grandchildren and
I live in a 4 room apartment. New year has
arrived but we could not set up a stove yet.
There is no carpet, rug on the floor. We furnished
the apartment with thin and old blankets.
Even though we light electric stove from
time to time, we cannot always use it as electricity
is expensive in Turkey. We work as
laborers in various jobs. We started to make
second hand sales. However, we cannot make
much profit as there are many people do it.
Sometimes my children and I cross the border
and go to Syria. We bring our stuff from
home. We take things that we need from the
vacant houses. When there is a crowd in the
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ORSAM
Report No: 157, May 2013