Border Crossing

Front Matter

2024-12-19

Power Dynamics of Cross-Border Conflict in Lebanon and Syria

Lina Khatib — 2024-11-05

This paper identifies the main conflict actors in cross-border conflict across Lebanon and Syria as being Hezbollah and the Syrian Arab Armed Forces, and highlights the power hierarchies between those actors as well as between them and ordinary people in those border regions. The paper shows that in those two countries, both state and non-state actors (de factor authorities) are the main conflict actors who are invested in the conflict status quo that they profiteer from—the state is therefore also part of the problem. The paper additionally argues that there is a need to understand hierarchies of power among conflict actors and how they position local communities at the bottom of the conflict economy pyramid. The paper shows that local communities end up entangled in the conflict economy for the sake of economic coping and survival. Often, both conflict actors and local communities act pragmatically rather than ideologically for the sake of economic survival or gain, but conflict actors trap local communities in the coping economy by removing alternatives, cultivating relationships of dependency by coping communities on major conflict actors. The paper uses these conclusions to present recommendations for conflict response policies. The paper is published as part of the Cross-Border Conflict, Policy and Trends (XCEPT) research programme funded by UK International Development.

Adjustment and Adaptation of Female International Higher Education Students: A Qualitative Study

Zeynep Mercan — 2024-11-05

Deciding to be an international student is challenging, and adjusting to a new culture is even more so for women from collectivistic cultures. Despite some attention to women’s adjustment and adaptation to different cultures, limited attention has been given to the specific challenges faced by women from diverse collectivistic backgrounds. This qualitative study explored the cultural adaptation experiences of 5 Chinese, 2 Azerbaijani, and 3 Turkish international master’s students through semi-structured interviews. Using the thematic approach, four main themes emerged from the data regarding how female students adjust to the new culture: educational adaptation, formation of social groups and language learning, understanding identity and gender, and emotional involvement in the new culture and future planning. The implications for psychological well-being and future career decisions are discussed in detail.

Daily Life Experiences of Working Women in Existential Threat

Betül Dilara Şeker — 2024-11-05

The pandemic has profoundly impacted daily life, resources, and gender roles, resulting in significant changes. This study examines how the gender roles of working women transform in the face of existential threats. We investigate their experiences, reactions, and defense mechanisms during the pandemic. The sample consists of 17 women, revealing increased inequalities and responsibilities faced in both domestic and professional settings. Participants expressed uncertainty, anxiety, and fear for their loved ones, sharing experiences with the disease, preventive measures, and psychological and social consequences. Understanding the defense mechanisms used by women will bring short-term individual benefits. This research sheds light on women's experiences during the pandemic, highlighting the urgency of addressing gender disparities in COVID-19.

Social-Cultural Effects of Kahramanmaraş Earthquakes: The Case of Hatay

Çakır Ceyhan Suvari — 2024-12-02

Eleven cities in Turkey were affected by two major earthquakes centered in Kahramanmaraş on February 6, 2023. Official authorities announced that 15 million people were affected by the earthquakes. With these earthquakes, which are together called “the disaster of the century”, not only were people’s homes and workplaces destroyed, but their cultural spheres were also turned upside down. Family structures, habits, values, social memories, social relations, customs, and beliefs, that is, the cultures to which they owe their sociality, were also severely damaged. Unfortunately, as in most other development projects in our country, “culture”, which is the basic value that distinguishes humans from other living creatures, is not taken into account in disaster management projects. Any project that, is planned without considering the sophisticated needs, expectations, and habits of neither individuals nor society, cannot achieve the intended purpose, and even brings a greater financial burden on the country's’ economy. In this research, the cultural damage caused by recent earthquakes in Hatay is attempted to be detected, and solutions for repairing such damage, and rebuilding social harmony are proposed. For this purpose, an anthropological fieldwork was conducted in Hatay's’ Antakya, Defne and Samandağ districts between May 31 and June 4, 2023, and a series of interviews and conversations were held with the earthquake victims.

Return Intention Outcomes of Forced Migrants

Yuliya Byelikova — 2024-12-02

Why do some forced migrants intend to remain in their new location, while others plan to return? The study is based on in-depth interviews and focus groups with forced migrants from South Asia in Greece in 2017 and collected 423 responses to open-ended questions from Ukrainian refugees in Germany in 2022. Through qualitative analysis and the aspiration-capability theoretical framework, the researchers identified the main return intention outcomes. They added to the analysis two main dimensions of coping with cultural trauma: place (direct or indirect return to origin-country or culture) and time (permanent or temporal). For Ukrainian refugees, return intention outcomes are defined by the image of their country of origin and the temporality of their status. For forced migrants from South Asia, returning intention outcomes are connected to risky and often illegal ways of reaching the EU, their asylum status, and their attempt to recreate their cultural practices in the destination country. Therefore, the findings of the study help develop an understanding of the study of forced migration under the agenda of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2030 of the United Nations. It would encourage researchers, policymakers and academicians to further research in the area of forced migration and refugees.

The Worker’s Right to Refrain from Fulfilling The Obligation to Work Due to The Non-Provision of Occupational Health and Safety Services Under Turkish Law

Deniz Bade Akkoyun — 2024-12-09

The right to life of individuals is guaranteed by the Turkish Constitution and various international treaties concerning human rights. In the event of a serious and imminent hazard in the workplace, workers’ refrainment from working is a manifestation of the most basic human right, the right to life. In such hazardous situations, workers cannot be expected to continue their work and their rights cannot be restricted due to their refrainment. In other words, it is a requirement of the modern social state to ensure that the workers, whose rights are guaranteed within the framework of the relevant legislation, acquire their wages and other rights during this period. The Turkish Occupational Health and Safety Law regulates the scope and conditions of this right. Should the employer not comply with their obligation to take the necessary measures to eliminate hazardous situations within a reasonable amount of time after learning, the worker may then be entitled to the right to termination.