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The Representation of Repatriates in Modern Syria

Demidova Ksenia Yurievna

Abstract

repatriates newspaper opposition

The thesis examines the representation of the repatriates in state-owned and opposition Syrian newspapers: Tishreen, al-Baath, Hawar News Agency and Enab Baladi. The articles are analyzed by employment of Critical discourse analysis' approaches and the qualitative analysis of the survey conducted in order to identify the attitude toward repatriates among refugees. The findings show the similarities in representations patterns of all newspapers as well as substantial differences concerning the main narratives in representation and modality of actors. The content and linguistic specifics are influenced by the political agenda of the authorities and impose the beneficial for the elites' ideology.

Introduction

Around 5.5 million of Syrian people are refugees residing outside their country `Situation Syria Regional Refugee Response', UNHCR Operational Portal, n.d., https://data2.unhcr.org/en/situations/syria. and the process of displacement both internal and external still takes place. Some 17500 refugees were displaced into Iraq during the first month of 2020, for example. Syria remains the main country of origin for refugees - around quarter of all refugees in the world Mourad Wahba and Amin Awad, `Regional Strategic Overview (2020-2021)', 3RP Regional Refugee and Resilience Plan (UNHCR, 2019), https://data2.unhcr.org/en/documents/download/73116..

Such migration flows have destabilized the political and economic situation in hosting countries no to mention the growth of populist ideas in the European countries. Therefore, it is not surprising that the majority of international discussions on the future of Syrian refugees lead to a simple solution: returning them to Syria immediately after the conflict ends (Maha)ãåì (Yahia) íÍóÜí, “ãÇ åí ÔÑæØ ÇááÇÌÆíä ÇáÓæÑííä ááÚæÏÉ Åáì ÇáæØä¿ (What are the conditions for refugees' repatriation?),” Hayat, July 6, 2018, http://www.alhayat.com/.. Moreover, the end of a period of war and exile is often seen as a `natural' part of progress towards peace and stability Richard Black, “Conceptions of `Home' and the Political Geography of Refugee Repatriation: Between Assumption and Contested Reality in Bosnia-Herzegovina,” Applied Geography 22, no. 2 (April 2002): 135..

However, some troubles have emerged. In the beginning of 2019 the Prime Minister of Jordan Osama al-Razzaz said that the most of the Syrian refugees “have no intention of going back soon”. `Jordan: Syrian Refugees Have No Intention to Repatriate', Middle East Monitor, 21 February 2019, https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20190221-jordan-syrian-refugees-have-no-intention-to-repatriate/. The same situation is in Lebanon, Turkey and others neighboring countries of Syria which have been facing the migration crisis since the beginning of Syrian civil war in 2011. The words of Jordanian politician are supported by the UN Refugee Agency's survey stating that almost 70% of the refugees hope but not intend to come back home in the next 12 month Wahba and Awad, `Regional Strategic Overview (2020-2021)'..

So why do the refugees refuse to return to their homeland even not taking into consideration economic challenges for such a journey? According to the Migration Profile of Syria made by European University Institute the state policy itself is a major problem for the potential repatriates: heavy fines, threat of prison sentence and their image in their own country. As some researchers claim the refugees are often treated as “traitors” or “terrorists” (Yahia) íÍóÜí, `ãÇ åí ÔÑæØ ÇááÇÌÆíä ÇáÓæÑííä ááÚæÏÉ Åáì ÇáæØä¿ (What are the conditions for refugees' repatriation?)'. after they came back from other countries.

In this research the main focus is on the textual representation of the repatriates in state-owned newspapers, which are the “mirror” of the official position considering the refugees' repatriation, and non-state-controlled newspapers Ksenia Demidova, `The Images of Repatriates in State Media of Syria (2011-2019)' (St. Petersburg, Higher School of Economics - St. Petersburg, 2019).. The media could be a tool potentially capable of fostering intra-group cohesion on the one hand, and facilitating intergroup cohesion on the other hand Borbala Toth, Minorities in the Hungarian Media (Budapest: Center for Independent Journalism, 2011), 9.. It leads to the third part of the research - the attitude towards repatriates is also a main topic for discussion in the survey conducted among Syrians.

The research problem in that case could be identified as the representation of the repatriates in different types of newspapers in Syria.

Consequently, the research question of the thesis is “what representation of the repatriates is formed by state-owned and non-state-owned newspapers in Syria and how well does it represent the position of Syrians towards the repatriates?”

In order to address this question further points to discuss could be identified:

· Is there any correlation between the official Syrian policy towards the repatriates and their representation in the press?

· Is there any difference or similarity in repatriates' representation between governmental newspapers and non-state-controlled newspapers?

· How well do both types of newspapers represent the position of Syrians towards the repatriates?

The research design focuses both on the descriptive and explanatory analysis. Firstly, it would be analysis of the existing literature correlated with the chosen methodology and the chosen topic. Then all newspapers will be analyzed and then the correlation between state policy and representation will be revealed as well as policy of Syrian parts which are outside the government control. The final chapter is dedicated to the analysis of the survey conducted by the paper's author among Syrian citizens, where the core is their attitude toward repatriates.

For the research the main Syrian state-owned newspapers were chosen: al-Baath (ÇáÈÚË) and Tishreen (ÊÔÑíä). The Turkish-affiliated newspaper Enab Baladi (ÚäÈ ÈáÏí) According to the BBC Syria Profile - Media https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-14703914, and the Kurdish Hawar News Agency were selected as opposition newspapers. For the analysis 20 Except for ANHA articles where only 10 were chosen, since very few articles were published about refugees in Arabic, English and Russian languages. articles from each of them were identified which cover the period from 2014 till 2019. For defining search the keywords “repatriates” (ÚÇÆÏæä Çáì ÇáæØä) or “repatriation” (ÚæÏÉ Çáì ÇáæØä) were used.

Newspapers were chosen based on the assumption made by Robinson and Levy (their book is cited by T.A. Van Dijk) that the printed mass media are more easily remembered than TV and, moreover, are considered as of higher quality T. A. Van Dijk, Discourse and Power (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2008).. The same pattern is also for screen media. Demidova, `The Images of Repatriates in State Media of Syria (2011-2019)'.^, Marilyn Y. Jones, Robin Pentecost, and Gabrielle Requena, “Memory for Advertising and Information Content: Comparing the Printed Page to the Computer Screen,” Psychology & Marketing 22, no. 8 (August 1, 2005).

As a part of the thesis the survey was conducted studying the attitude toward repatriates among Syrians. It should illustrate whether different newspapers can affect the opinion of Syrians about repatriates and what this opinion is. To obtain the information from Syrians, we ran an online survey using Google Forms with 100 responds from different governorates of Syria. The search for respondents was done through intermediates, as this is the fastest and cheapest way to get information in traditional Arab society, where social connections still play a big role.

The questionnaire consists of 15 questions; 13 of them were obligatory and were close-ended with multiply choices, 3 -were open-ended questions where the respondent could write his/her own opinion about a specific issue, in our case this issue was the opinion about repatriation process. In some questions Likert scale with 5 point was used because it is considered as “one of the most reliable ways to measure opinions, perceptions, and behaviors” `Likert Scale: What It Is & How to Use It', SurveyMonkey, accessed 13 May 2020, https://www.surveymonkey.com/mp/likert-scale/..

The study relies completely on randomly-selected samples of Syrians who agreed to participate in the survey. It should be pointed out that all the participants are Syrians who live in Syria and beyond (mostly in Lebanon). The greatest part of those are refugees themselves, however, often they do not have official refugee status. Both gender and age-related equal distribution of respondents was not an important criteria for their selection, but as a result the approximately equal proportion of both sexes has been achieved as well as wide variation in the age of respondents: from 18 till 67. Based on such age-distribution 3 groups were identified. The first is the age of the students (18-25 years), i.e. those for whom it is easier to leave the country for study. The second group consists of people of military age from 25 to 45 years. The third group includes people older than 45.

Based on the data collected, a qualitative analysis was carried out to identify the attitude of Syrians towards repatriates and repatriation, as well as to monitor to what extent the media influence their opinion. One way was to compare the responses of people living in territories controlled by Kurds, Turkey and the Turkish-affiliated forces, or the Syrian government, with the official position of newspapers distributed in that territory.

This issue becomes more pressing and relevant for the Syrian society day by day as the amount of returnees is constantly growing. Around 235 thousands of people have officially returned to Syria since 2016 `Situation Syria Regional Refugee Response'.. The positive dynamic in relation to the number of repatriates would remain.

As the main method we chose the critical discourse analysis (CDA) because it provides the best tools for analyzing the power enforcement and the social discourse constructed by the elites. Moreover, press discourse can reach millions of people and that is why their critical analysis is crucial. Two approaches of critical discourse analysis were applied during the study: the sociosemantic inventory proposed by T. van Leeuwen for determination the representation choices and T.A. van Dijk's model.

1. Methodology

1.1 Approaches and methods used in the analysis of representation

The concept of representation in different types of humanities is used and studied as a linkage between language and the area of research. The use of a particular theory directly depends on the position of the scientist regarding the nature of such a connection and his/her answer to the question “how language is used to represent the world?” In that case three theories of meaning in representation could be distinguished: the reflective, the intentional and the constructionist approaches to representation Stuart Hall, “The Work of Representation,” in Representation: Cultural Representations and Signifying Practices (SAGE Publications, 1997), 1. according to the cultural researcher Stuart Hall.

The first approach, the reflective approach, is the oldest one and, as a consequence, could be considered as outdated. It is based on the assumption that the language is a “mirror” of the objects, events, ideas etc. existing in the real world.

The intentional approach implies the opposite: the creator of a text (in the broadest sense) imposes his/her own meaning to the words.

The third approach is a constructivist one. It states that there are social actors who use the conceptual systems of their culture, the linguistic systems and other representational systems to construct meaning Ibid., 7-8..

The fourth approach was derived from the constructivist works of M. Foucault and it could be called discursive approach. Foucault argues that since we can only have knowledge of things if they have a meaning, it is discourse - not the things-in-themselves - which produces knowledge. Subjects like `madness', `punishment' and `sexuality' only exist meaningfully within the discourses about them. Moreover, the production of knowledge is always connected with the question of power and it greatly expands the scope of what is involved in representation, as it will be seen further Ibid., 36..

Another method used by researchers is content analysis which can be qualitative See, for example, the research project conducted by Kurt Lewin Foundation and three foreign research institutes which examined the representation in the media of minorities, immigrants and refugees in four countries. as well as quantitative. This method aims to systematically analyze large quantities of textual data. This method can also be used as a quantitative one which is focused on the explanation of the content, on the general principles of material analysis, on the search for the universal through analysis, the decomposition of the text into its component parts and the analysis of these variables. Traditional form on content analysis is a quantitative type of content-analysis. It suggests a systematic and reliable fixation of certain elements of the text content with subsequent quantification of the data obtained See, for example, D. Ganahl, T.J. Prinsen, S.B. Netzley “A Content Analysis of Prime Time Commercials: A Contextual Framework of Gender Representation”; R. Kaye “'Blaming the victim': an analysis of press representation of refugees and asylum-seekers in the United Kingdom in the 1990s”; L. Vicsek, R. Keszi, M. Markus “Representation of Refugees, Asylum-Seekers and Refugee Affairs in Hungarian Dailies”, etc. . Content analysis is not suitable for this research, since it does not meet its purpose - a qualitative study of relatively small amounts of text and interviews.

To address the issue of representation many other theories using different approaches could be applied. They depend on purpose of the research and of a data character.

1.2 Critical discourse analysis

Based on the works of the above mentioned Foucault, in 1992 M. Wetherell and J. Potter expressed the opinion that the researcher should “suspend judgement about real meaning and examine instead the knowledge formations which lead to meaning” Margaret Wetherell and Jonathan Potter, Mapping the Language of Racism. Discourse and the Legitimation of Exploitation (Hemel Hempstead: Harvester Wheatsheaf, 1992), 81.. They also pointed out that power in modern times enforces the masses by “less obvious rituals, less clearly repressive and coercive - in some ways less physical and more mental” Ibid., 83.. Along with this, mass media and other tools used to reach out to collective minds gain a central role in proliferating, topicalizing, de-topicalizing and creating knowings and/or beliefs Majid Khosravinik, `The Representation of Refugees, Asylum Seekers and Immigrants in British Newspapers during the Balkan Conflict (1999) and the British General Election (2005)', Discourse & Society, no. 20 (4) (2009): 478..

In that case by taking into account the discursive nature of the power we could rely on the assumptions made by one of the leading researchers of CDA that mass media are assigned a “nearly exclusive control over the symbolic resources needed to manufacture popular consent” Teun A. van Dijk, Racism and the Press, Critical Studies in Racism and Migration (London: Routledge, 1991), 42-43.. Under circumstances where the power or symbolic elites exercise the major control over the system of ideological representation e.g. public discourse - which has direct link to the press discourse - it is crucial to critically study the press discourse itself. Symbolic elites are, based on the definition made by T.A. van Dijk, people who have access to and control over mass and the most influential public discourse. They could be journalists, politicians, scholars, writers, etc. Teun A. van Dijk, `The Role of the Press in the Reproduction of Racism', in Migration: Interdisciplinary Perspectives (Vienna: Springer Vienna, 2012), 17.

Thus, public discourses of the symbolic elites are the primary source of shared prejudice and ideologies Ibid.. The latter, in turn, could justify and sustain the existing ideological practices of the power elites and ensures them survival and prosperity. Wetherell and Potter, Mapping the Language of Racism. Discourse and the Legitimation of Exploitation, 70. The structure of headlines and the text organization, choice of topics, style, used background information in press is indirectly controlled by elites, in our case the Syrian government or the forces, controlling specific territory.

If we go back and try to identify the general definition of CDA itself we can discover that it is a broad and complex interdisciplinary field with a lot of theories, approaches and research issues J. R. Martin and Ruth Wodak, Re/Reading the Past. Critical and Functional Perspectives on Time and Value (Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing Company, 2003), 5.. CDA is an approach to discourse analysis along with discursive psychology and discourse theory developed by Laclau and Mouffe See more in Marianne Jorgensen and Louse J. Phillips, Discourse Analysis as Theory and Method (London, UNITED KINGDOM: SAGE Publications, 2002).. It maintains that discourse is not only a container and carrier of ideologies but is also a social action on its own. CDA is socially and politically committed Teun A. van Dijk, `Multidisciplinary CDA: A Plea for Diversity', in Methods of Critical Discourse Analysis (London ; Thousand Oaks [Calif.]: SAGE Publications, 2001), 97..

There is no unified definition of CDA, but mostly all of them share the same characteristics. Another one was made by researchers R. Wodak and J.R. Martin. According to them critical discourse analysis is «fundamentally interested in analyzing opaque as well as transparent structural relationships of dominance, discrimination, power and control as manifested in language» Martin and Wodak, Re/Reading the Past. Critical and Functional Perspectives on Time and Value, 6..

The main characteristic of CDA is well-formulated by John. E. Richardson: “Critical discourse analysts offer interpretations [and explanation] of the meanings of texts rather than just quantifying textual features and deriving meaning from this; situate what is written or said in the context in which it occurs, rather than just summarizing patterns or regularities in texts; and argue that textual meaning is constructed through an interaction between producer, text and consumer rather than simply being read off the page by all readers in exactly the same way” John E., Analysing Newspapers. An Approach from Critical Discourse Analysis (Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2007), 42.. Mostly all the approaches to CDA involve detailed textual linguistic analyses and various levels of socio-political contexts affecting the processes of production, distribution and interpretation of language Khosravinik, `The Representation of Refugees, Asylum Seekers and Immigrants in British Newspapers during the Balkan Conflict (1999) and the British General Election (2005)', 478.. Thus, the main purpose of the CDA is to understand what “is covered” behind the actual words (the language) written in texts, how it is constructed and why.

The CDA is used in the analysis of Press, among other things, to demonstrate how social and political structures are incorporated in the meanings or organization of news reports, and how such reports may affect the social cognition of the readers Dijk, Racism and the Press, 45. on order to implement social representations.

One of the main researchers of the Arab Media William A. Rugh describes Syrian type of media system as “mobilization” one. In this type the government fully controls all the media and uses it as “a tool to mobilize popular support for its political programs”. William A. Rugh, `Do National Political System Still Influence Arab Media?', Arab Media & Society, no. 2 (2007): 5. In that case we can speak about dominance of ruling, or symbolic, elite in Syrian media discourse which could lead to abuse of power and, consequently, social injustice. Researches focus on “the role of discourse in production and reproduction of power abuse and domination” by using the theory and methods of Critical discourse analysis Teun A. van Dijk, `Discourse, Opinions and Ideologies', Current Issues in Language and Society, no. 2 (1995): 115.. Hence, CDA should be considered as the main method in our case. It should be pointed out that Teun A. van Dijk himself prefers to use the term “Critical discourse studies” (CDS) instead of CDA claiming that CDS cannot be considered as a method for any research. From his point of view any method can be used if it suitable for the research purposes Van Dijk, Discourse and Power, 14..

Teun A. van Dijk primarily researches the negative consequences of power abuse in the context of any type of inequality such as ethnic, gender, political inequality etc. However, the Syrian government is more inclined to represent the former refugees in a positive way. It still abuses its power towards socially vulnerable groups by manipulating the social consciousness but this manipulation does not necessarily result in negative representation of the repatriates Demidova, `The Images of Repatriates in State Media of Syria (2011-2019)'..

T.A. van Dijk developed a model/a sequence of action how to conduct a critical discourse analysis in his works “Multidisciplinary CDA: a plea for diversity” (2001), “Racism and the Press” (1991), “The Role of the Press in the Reproduction of Racism” (2012), etc. However, he constantly emphasized a necessity of broad, diverse and multidisciplinary approach to CDA Dijk, `Multidisciplinary CDA: A Plea for Diversity', 97..

First of all, T.A. van Dijk divides analysis into two main steps: structural analysis and following contextual analysis. The first one includes different level of analysis. So-called “surface” level implies the general organization of the text: word formation, style and syntax, graphical presentation (for printed text), sound structures, while underlying level of analysis is an interpretation of surface in terms of meaning and references. Together they realize specific social act - “speech act”, such as assertions, questions, promises, threats, or accusations, and deal with the pragmatic function of the text. The second step of discourse analysis is contextual analysis which implies the answer to the question how all the findings on the structural level affect the reader or the listener.

One of the important dimensions of discourse analysis is one of the rhetorical structures, such as sounds, sentence structures (for example, parallelism), or meaning structures (metaphor, understatements, irony). This can help to understand which parts of the text are underlined by the author Dijk, Racism and the Press, 45-47..

In his analysis T.A. van Dijk pays a lot of attention to the headlines, which, he supposes, have important textual and cognitive function (for example, for a reader it is an overall organizing principle for the representation of the news event in memory) Ibid., 50.. Another crucial point in the analysis is “topic”, in other words, about what are people writing and reading. This could refer to “semantic macrostructures” of discourse, that is, “global meanings that organize the local meaning of words and sentences at higher levels of paragraphs and whole discourses” Dijk, `The Role of the Press in the Reproduction of Racism', 22..

The analysis of semantic macrostructures consists, among other things mentioned above, of positive and negative local meanings which are represented in different structures of the text starting from words to complex description of events, people, etc. All in all, T. A. van Dijk developed a model which could be applicable to any analysis of any form of discrimination presented in any discourse, that is why it would be one of the cornerstones of our research.

Another method used in CDA is Fairclough's model. He argues that to fully understand what discourse is and how it works, analysis needs “to draw out the form and function of the text, the way that this text relates to the way it is produced and consumed, and the relation of this to the wider society in which it takes place” Analysing Newspapers. An Approach from Critical Discourse Analysis, 37..

The Fairclough's model includes three elements: textual analysis, discursive practices and social practices. Textual analysis involves the analysis of the way propositions are structured and the way they are combined and sequenced. Norman Fairclough, Critical Discourse Analysis: The Critical Study of Language, Language in Social Life Series (London ; New York: Longman, 1995), 183. The text should be analyzed from different points. Its analysis includes not only the analysis of the linguistic forms and its content, but also the text's “involvement in reproducing and resisting the systems of ideology and social power” Analysing Newspapers. An Approach from Critical Discourse Analysis, 49..

Discourse practices focus on the relations between texts and the social conditions of their production and consumption Fairclough, Critical Discourse Analysis, 87.. Social practice (or socio-cultural) analysis implies the analysis of context “at different levels of abstraction from the particular event: it may involve its more immediate situational context, the wider context of institutional practices the event of embedded within, or yet wider frame of the society and the culture” Norman Fairclough, Media Discourse, Edward Arnold (London, 1995), 62.. For example, in our case the social practice entails the context of the Syrian state policy of repatriation which is reflected in the newspapers.

Another method of CDA used in the paper is the T. van Leeuwen's model of analysis. It is the most suitable for analyzing the specific features of social actors' (refugees, internally displaced persons, repatriates) representation. It provides more “insight” in the process of how social and political inequalities are manifested in and reproduced through discourse Amer, “Critical Discourse Analysis of War Reporting in the International Press”, 4. and presents the “pan-semiotic” system for doing critical analysis of media texts. The method of T. van Leeuwen is more linguistic-centric: he constantly emphasize in his works that each representation choice is tied with linguistic or rhetorical realizations Demidova, `The Images of Repatriates in State Media of Syria (2011-2019)'..

Van Leeuwen's “pan-semiotic” system of analysis described in the article “The representation of social actors” (1996) includes ten categories:

1) Exclusion: there is no reference in the text about certain social actors and/or their activities;

2) Role allocation: role played by social actor could be passive (“patient” or “goal”) or active (“actor” or “agent”);

3) Genericisation / Specification: social actors can be represented as classes or as specific, identifiable individuals;

4) Assimilation / individualization: social actors can be referred to as individuals, or as group;

5) Association: it is another way to represent social actors as a group. This dimension specifically refers to groups formed by social actors which were not labelled in the text;

6) Indetermination and differentiation: indetermination occurs when social actors are represented as anonymous individuals or groups, their identity is unspecified. Differentiation, in turn, emphasizes the differences of one social actor from similar social actor or a group;

7) Nomination and categorization: social actors could be represented in terms of their unique identity by being nominated, or in terms of identities and functions they share with others (categorization);

8) Functionalisation and identification: these are two types of categorization. The first occurs when social actors are identified in terms of their activity, occupation or action. Identification occurs when social actors are defined in terms of what they are. This type of representation includes another three categories: classification (differentiation between classes, in broad terms, of people given them by society or institution, such as age, religion, sexual orientation, etc.), relational identification (social actors are represented in terms of their relation to each other, such as “friend”, “colleague”, etc.) and physical identification (refers to unique physical characteristics of a social actor);

9) Personalization and impersonalization. Personalization includes the representation of social actor by means which implies the feature “human”.

10) Overdetermination: social actors are represented in more than one social practice Theo van Leeuwen, `The Representation of Social Actors', in Texts and Practices. Readings in Critical Discourse Analysis (Routeledge, n.d.), 32-71..

All the above mentioned models are used in the analysis conducted in this work. There was no clear option of what approach to use because of the lack of more detailed information about the refugees described in press. That is why the full usage of CDA is restricted.

2. Literature review

2.1 Main categories and basic concepts

Before starting a discussion about the representation of the repatriates in the newspapers it is necessary to give definitions to basic concepts, such as refugees, repatriates, asylum seekers, displaced persons etc.

According to the Article 1 in the “Convention relating to the status of refugees”, which is the main document concerning the refugees' issue, refugee is defined as a person who “as a result of events occurring before 1 January 1951 and owing to well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality and is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country; or who, not having a nationality and being outside the country of his former habitual residence as a result of such events, is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to return to it” United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, `Convention and Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees', accessed 11 December 2018, https://www.unhcr.org/protection/basic/3b66c2aa10/convention-protocol-relating-status-refugees.html.. The key points are that the refugee should be outside the country of origin or former habitual residence because of the persecution for different reasons or because of different events and is not able to return for variety of reasons. The preference for these groups was shaped largely by the experience of World War II.

Although the definition “refugee” has been enshrined in the UN Convention in 1951, it is highly limited Emma Haddad, The Refugee in International Society: Between Sovereigns (Cambridge, UNITED KINGDOM: Cambridge University Press, 2008), 30.. The changing circumstances in the world politics forced to review and broaden the refugee status. In 1957 the category of “mandate refugees” - people fleeing from the country of origin because of the conflict - was added to the “refugee list”. Since 1975 “displaced persons” are considered as equal to refugees. Then the “asylum seekers” were added to the list. Now the UNHCR uses the term “people of concern” which includes all the above mentioned categories.

According to the UN Convention a “refugee” is an asylum seeker who gets the approval of being a person fleeing the prosecution or conflict. However, UN considers sometime asylum seekers as refugees before their claims are approved. In that case Syrian refugees enjoy prima facie refugee status which basically means that the status of refugee could be recognized by the UN on the basis of circumstances rapidly occurred in the country of origin and it is mostly applicable to the group of people rather that individually Guidelines on International Protection No. 11: Prima Facie Recognition of Refugee Status URL: https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/558a62299.pdf.

As for repatriation it is based on the principle of the “right to return”. This right was enshrined in many international legal documents such as four Geneva Conventions, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Article 13, Paragraph 2), and the International Charter of Civil and Political Rights (Article 12, Paragraph 4). As an example an abstract from the Article 13 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights could be given: “Everyone has the right to leave any country, including his own, and to return to his country” `Universal Declaration of Human Rights', 6 October 2015, https://www.un.org/en/universal-declaration-human-rights/.. Moreover, fulfilling the task of voluntary repatriation Words “repatriation” and “voluntary repatriation” are regarding in this essay as synonyms. We will not consider the forced repatriation which could be carried out under certain circumstances, but it is not connected with the selected cases. was one of the main functions assigned by the General Assembly to the UNHCR since its foundation.

However, these documents do not oblige signatories to grant the permanent protection of refugees, and consequently a person could lose refugee status at any time when the necessary conditions for this ceased to exist `The Syrian Refugees Issue under Russia's Auspices', Enab Baladi, 2 August 2018, https://english.enabbaladi.net/archives/2018/08/the-syrian-refugees-issue-under-russias-auspices/..

One of the key concepts in critical discourse analysis is ideology as it is an important aspect for establishing and maintaining power relations by organization a specific set of attitudes towards, for example, repatriates or refugees. The concept of ideology is also the issue to be investigated in the paper. Ideology is a contested term “usually relating to relatively coherent systems of ideas held by social groups or those in particular social roles within a culture, but sometimes also to the more fragmentary forms of common sense “Ideology - Oxford Reference,” accessed May 28, 2019, https://www.oxfordreference.com.”.

Despite the fact that there is no a unified opinion among researchers about the specific purpose of ideology, its organization and its effects, most of them agree that the term should refer to class or group consciousness, which actualizes socio-economic, political and cultural practices of group representatives in such a way that their interests are realized Van Dijk, Discourse and Power, 53..

The concept of ideology is directly connected with the cognitive system of a group, culture and society. T.A. van Dijk shares this cognitive approach to ideology and at the same time emphasizes the socio-cognitive nature of ideology. It generates the group attitudes which sustain optimal group reproduction (incl. group's “position” toward something or another group), both in relations of dominance, as well as that of resistance. Moreover, the persuasive exercise of power in modern societies is ideological Dijk, Racism and the Press, 37.. Combined the mentioned notions lead to a crucial role of ideology study tin CDA.

The third category needed to be determined is “representation”. The representation could be understood as “what is explicitly or literally described, depicted, or denoted in a sign, text, or discourse in any medium as distinct from its symbolic meaning, metaphoric meaning, or connotations”. `Representation - Oxford Reference', accessed 28 May 2019, https://www.oxfordreference.com/view/10.1093/acref/9780191800986.001.0001/acref-9780191800986-e-2314. Representation is, to put it simple, the production of meaning through language Hall, `The Work of Representation', 5. and is fully formed by the human cognitive system. In the paper the representation is referred to the process of meaning production through combination of texts. Accordingly, meaning is constructed by linguistic representation in news media. Representation of social actors relates them to specific behaviors and attitudes. These particular representations of individuals or groups in media are linked to certain ideologies Amer, `Critical Discourse Analysis of War Reporting in the International Press', 3. which would be investigated in the research Demidova, `The Images of Repatriates in State Media of Syria (2011-2019)'..

2.2 An overview of the repatriation problem in Syria

As UNHCR claims there is 5.5 million of Syrians living outside their country of origin. Only 260 thousands of them are living in refugee camps. The rest settled among the local population `Situation Syria Regional Refugee Response'.. Moreover, 6.2 million people are internally displaced persons. It represents the biggest internally displaced population in the world. Many people became displaced for the second or the third time. `Internally Displaced People - UNHCR Syria', UNHCR (blog), accessed 18 May 2019, https://www.unhcr.org/sy/internally-displaced-people. The most interested in repatriation country is Lebanon while Jordan and Turkey implement programmes for integration and resettlement. Lebanese government from the very beginning stated that the influx of Syrian refugees is a temporary phenomenon, and after the de-escalation of the conflict within Syria this whole category is a subject to repatriation. A.M. Varatanyan, `Experience of integrating Syrian refugees in Lebanon and Jordan', Institute of the Middle East, accessed 18 June 2019, http://www.iimes.ru/?p=55423#more-55423. However, these countries began to create such conditions for refugees that they were forced to return home. This is due to the almost exhaustion of the country's domestic resources and the refusal of additional funding from international organizations `Pushing Syrian Refugees to Return', Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, accessed 2 May 2020, https://carnegieendowment.org/sada/75684..

Despite the absence of a unified government repatriation program in Syria, the pace of returns to and within Syria has increased over the past three years. According to UNHCR statistics, over 250 thousands (4.5%) of refugees have spontaneously (outside the framework of any official programme) returned to their homeland since 2016 till January 2020. Most of them have come from Turkey (almost 85 thousand - 2%), where 64.5% of all refugees had found the shelter. However, as a percentage, the largest number of refugees returned from Iraq - 16% of total refugee's number, which makes 38 thousands of people. The most “popular” destination for repatriation is governorate Aleppo `Situation Syria Regional Refugee Response'., which was liberated in 2019 and where reconstruction works have already started.

The numbers provided by Russian Centre for Reconciliation of Opposing Sides and Refugee Migration Monitoring in the Syrian Arab Republic is significantly higher: 577 thousand Syrians have returned to their homeland since the beginning actual involvement of Russia in monitoring of situation and supporting the repatriation process `Bulletin of the Russian Centre for Reconciliation of Opposing Sides in the Syrian Arab Republic', accessed 2 April 2020, http://syria.mil.ru/peacemaking/info/refugee_migration/more.htm?id=12289237@egNews.. This organization coordinates its efforts on repatriation with the government in Damascus and Joint Coordination Headquarters of Russia and Syria. The difference in numbers can be caused by the difference in the methods for counting refugees and by different sources of refugee appearance. Many of them may be unregistered in the system of UNHCR. Another possible explanation could be the Syrian government's desire to improve its image by demonstrating the large number of repatriates as this can prove that there are good conditions in the country for their return.

In 2018 Moscow announced its own repatriation plan with coordination with Syrian government. According to it, 76 centers will be established for housing, reception and distribution of repatriates in Damascus, Aleppo, Homs, Hama, Deir ez-Zor governorates and in Eastern Qalamoun. These centers can accommodate more than 336 thousand refugees `The Syrian Refugees Issue under Russia's Auspices'..

As it was said before the repatriation movements are spontaneous/self-organized, it means that there is no assistance or any kind of organization to sustain the return process. It fits within Phase 1 of organizational framework of UNHCR, where only support provided by international community is any kind of counselling and informational assistance. Phase 2, in turn, would be focused on “a large-scale, facilitated refugee repatriation operation will be supported by the international community, UN, NGOs, host governments and the Government of Syria”, and will be implemented only when certain criteria will be met, concerning the existence the legal framework, decent living conditions and confirmation of return's voluntary character by UNHCR Working Group for the Syria Situation, `Regional Operational Framework for Refugee Return to Syria', Regional Durable Solutions (UNHCR, March 2019), 5.. Unfortunately, it is not the case in today's condition. The official position of UNHCR states: “present conditions in Syria are not conducive for voluntary repatriation in safety and dignity as significant risks remain for civilians across the country” UNHCR, “Protection and Solutions Strategy: Protection Thresholds and Parameters for Refugee Return to Syria” (the UN Refugee Agency, 2018), 2, https://data2.unhcr.org/ar/documents/download/63223..

The situation from the Syrian official point of view is quite the same. The Syrian government executes the programme to restore settlements on the territory liberated from terrorists in the provinces of Aleppo, Damascus and Hama. The programme includes three stages: preparation of infrastructure (water supply, electrification), targeted assistance to the population, and return of Syrian citizens to places of permanent residence `Bulletin of the Russian Centre for Reconciliation of Opposing Sides in the Syrian Arab Republic'.. However, it is still on the stage 1 of the process.

In that case the official position, which is ambiguous, of Syrian government is crucial for understanding of the official discourse in the country. President of Syria in 2018 said “We encourage every Syrian to come back to Syria” `Assad Urges “Every Syrian to Come Back to Syria”', TASS, accessed 18 June 2019, https://tass.com/world/1014990.. The Ministry of National Reconciliation is committed to provide necessary help for repatriates including psychological and social support. “Russian and Syrian Joint Coordination Committees Hold Session in Moscow on Repatriation of Syrian Refugees : Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation,” accessed May 18, 2019, https://syria.mil.ru/en/index/syria/news/more.htm?id=12203003@egNews. Nevertheless, as a human rights lawyer Mai el-Sadany argues, the government welcomes only those who are and were loyal to the regime of B. Assad. Others are represented as “terrorists” Sandy Tolliver, `When Assad Asks Syrians to Come Home, Here's What He Really Means', Text, TheHill, 16 August 2018, https://thehill.com/opinion/international/401638-when-assad-asks-syrians-to-come-home-heres-what-he-really-means. or “traitors” íÍóÜí, “ãÇ åí ÔÑæØ ÇááÇÌÆíä ÇáÓæÑííä ááÚæÏÉ Åáì ÇáæØä¿..

In September 2017 the Senior Commander of the Syrian Army Issam Zahreddin said in his interview “To those who fled Syria to another country, I beg you don't ever return, because even if the government forgives you, we will never forgive or forget”. Later he apologized for his words and claimed that he was referring to the ISIS fighters. “Syrian General Apologizes after Apparently Warning Refugees against Return,” Middle East Eye, accessed May 25, 2019, http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/syrian-general-apologises-after-apparently-warning-refugees-against-return.However, these remarks are the example, according to S. Batrawi and A. Uzelac, of the widely-accepted view among the Assad's “inner circle” at this time Samar Batrawi and Ana Uzelac, `Four Ways in Which the Syrian Regime Controls Refugee Return', Netherlands Institute of International Relations, 2018, 2.. The researchers also argue that those who fled the country are perceived in the official discourse like “cowards who refused to defense their country” Batrawi and Uzelac, `Four Ways in Which the Syrian Regime Controls Refugee Return'.. An example of it is the words of the Syrian First Lady Asma Assad: “You are far stronger and more courageous than many men because when the going got tough, you were on the front lines, but they were running away or hiding” ãÍãÏ (Muhammad) ÇáØÇåÑ (At-Tahir), “ÃÓãÇÁ ÇáÃÓÏ ÊÎÇØÈ `ÖÝÇÆÑ ÇáäÇÑ' (Asma Assad speaks to `Dafair al-nar' ),” RT Arabic, accessed August 25, 2019, https://arabic.rt.com/..

The inconsistency of Syrian politics toward refugees is also reflected in the law-making process. In 2018 the Syrian government issued several laws which have become one of the main obstacles for refugees to return to their homeland UNHCR, `Fifth Regional Survey on Syrian Refugees' Perceptions and Intentions on Return to Syria', 2019.. The first one is about issuing èan on leaving the country for young people of draft age (between 17 and 42). Soon after this, a decision of the government was published about the compulsory military service in order to apply for a job in a public sector. `Syria Still Unsafe, "Shall We Return Home, or Not?”', Enab Baladi, 12 September 2018, https://english.enabbaladi.net/archives/2018/09/syria-still-unsafe-shall-we-return-home-or-not/.

The second law is “Law No 10”, which “requires house owners to provide proof of the property ownership within 30 days; otherwise they will lose ownership of that properties”. Ibid. This law came out during the war, when several million Syrians left their homes, and many who remained could lose their property documents, which could allow the state to take these houses for use and forced evict the owners Ibid..

In other words speaking of the official discourse it could be concluded that, although the president of Syria is claiming that the repatriates are more than welcome at their home, there is no an elaborated official strategy and general consensus even among the political and military elites in regard how to treat the former refugees. Demidova, `The Images of Repatriates in State Media of Syria (2011-2019)'.

The problem of repatriation touched not only the Syrian government, but also other actors on the Syrian territory - Turkey and Syrian Kurdistan (Rojava or Northern and Eastern Syria). Turkey facing the refugee crisis claims that there is a programme of repatriation into the “safe zone” in Northeast Syria, which should be cleared of Kurdish forces. The plan is to resettle about 3 million refugees in this 20 miles zone beginning in November 2019 despite the concerning living and security conditions in the area Lara Seligman, `Turkey Begins Resettling Refugees in Northeastern Syria', Foreign Policy, accessed 2 May 2020, https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/12/09/turkey-resettling-refugees-northeastern-syria/.. Sara Kayyali, a Syria researcher with Human Rights Watch, argues that some of the refugees returned freely, some of them were not; they are forcibly deported from Turkey Bethan McKernan Turkish-Syrian border, `Syrian Refugees Return to Home Towns in “safe Zone” despite Dangers', The Guardian, 18 December 2019, sec. World news, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/dec/18/syrian-refugees-return-to-home-towns-in-safe-zone-despite-dangers.. The process of repatriation from other countries or other regions of Syria into Turkish-controlled territories has not yet occurred.

If we turn our attention towards the Syrian Kurdistan, we will notice that there is no programme of repatriation, however, the Kurdish government encourage refugees to resettle in Kurdish-controlled area. A wave of mostly internally displaced persons (several thousand people) started to come to Raqqa after the statement of the General Commander of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) Mazlum Abdi who said, “Our doors are open to the people…” `Refugees from Idlib in Raqqa: SDF Have Ensured Our Safety', ANF News, accessed 2 May 2020, https://anfenglish.com/rojava-syria/refugees-from-idlib-in-raqqa-sdf-have-ensured-our-safety-40650. As of January 2020 almost 5 thousand refugees have returned to Rojava - their place of residence - from other countries `More Refugees from Rojava Return Home', ANF News, accessed 2 May 2020, https://anfenglishmobile.com/rojava-syria/more-refugees-from-rojava-return-home-40834..