Lelun Afrin
Executive Summary
In light of the complex challenges faced by forcibly displaced individuals and victims of human rights violations in Syria, Lelun Association for Victims organized a series of participatory dialogue sessions in the cities of Qamishli and Al-Hasakah, in northeastern Syria. The aim was to empower victims by providing them with a safe platform to share their personal stories and experiences and transform these narratives into effective tools for advocacy.
Discussions focused on listening to the victims’ own narratives, exploring storytelling as a method of advocacy and driving social and political change. Participants concluded the sessions by formulating a set of joint recommendations, emphasizing the need to continue and expand such community-driven initiatives.
Background
These dialogue sessions were conducted as part of an ongoing project by Lelun Association aimed at supporting and empowering victims in northeastern Syria, particularly in Al-Hasakah and Qamishli. The initiative responds to the deteriorating conditions endured by forcibly displaced persons and survivors of human rights abuses across various Syrian regions, where justice remains absent and perpetrators continue to enjoy impunity.
The sessions sought to establish a safe and inclusive space for victims to exchange experiences, strengthen their capacity to use storytelling as an advocacy tool, and collaboratively formulate practical recommendations rooted in their personal suffering. The initiative also worked toward building a participatory support network that connects victims with relevant stakeholders.
The sessions brought together a wide range of participants, including victims of forced displacement and arbitrary detention, as well as families of the missing and disappeared from Afrin, Serê Kaniyê (Ras al-Ain), rural Aleppo, Al-Hasakah, and Qamishli. Civil activists, human rights defenders, media workers, and representatives of local institutions also took part.
Lelun’s Experience in Advocacy: From Storytelling to Impact
The sessions began with an interactive introduction outlining Lelun Association’s advocacy approach – led by survivors themselves and grounded in lived experience. Speakers emphasized that advocacy is not limited to political elites; it is a right and a tool available to all who have endured injustice. Every voice, they asserted, holds the power to shape change.
Participants discussed advocacy as a process of legal and social change, influencing public policy, shape collective narratives, and raise awareness through a range of tools such as personal testimony, media engagement, digital campaigns, legal action, and coalition-building.
They also explored how personal pain can be transformed into powerful messages. Participants reflected on the ethical and emotional dimensions of storytelling, including the boundaries of disclosure, safety concerns, and methods for protecting both the storyteller and the audience.
Key Challenges
Participants discussed the worsening humanitarian and rights situation in their communities and identified a number of recurring challenges, including:
. Ongoing waves of forced displacement and the absence of guarantees for safe, voluntary, and dignified return.
. Political and social marginalization, with victims often excluded from political and legal processes.
. The international community’s silence or preoccupation with political settlements that disregard the rights and demands of victims.
. Prevalence of social stigma, particularly affecting women survivors of arbitrary detention.
. Lack of reliable information on the fate of the forcibly disappeared.
. Breakdown of social cohesion and loss of community identity in displacement and exile contexts.
. Insufficient donor support for northeastern Syria due to the political complexities surrounding local governance.
. Local authorities’ failure to adequately respond to the needs of displaced populations, especially in areas such as Tabqa, Raqqa, and Al-Hasakah, amid worsening economic and psychological conditions.
Participants stressed the need to formulate a collective advocacy message that reflects these challenges with clarity and represents the aspirations of a wide spectrum of victims.
Recommendations
Participants expressed their appreciation for the sessions, describing them as a true platform for victims to share their pain, knowledge, and experiences, and to feel that their voices are being heard. They said such meetings help build collective action, reduce isolation, and provide social and psychological support.
They emphasized the importance of continuing and expanding these sessions, and called for the creation of safe, survivor-led spaces in other regions. Lelun Association was encouraged to broaden the scope of the initiative to reach more communities and affected groups.
Joint Practical Recommendations:
. Include programs to support women-led projects for victims of displacement and human rights violations.
. Increase the number and geographic coverage of participatory dialogue sessions to reach more affected individuals.
. Build the capacities of young survivors to engage actively in advocacy and community rebuilding.
. Raise public awareness around transitional justice, victims’ rights, and legal empowerment.
. Expand psychosocial and community rehabilitation programs, especially for displaced persons, former detainees, survivors of abuse, and families of the missing.
. Promote victim-led advocacy campaigns to ensure legitimacy and amplify survivor voices.
. Develop safe digital tools for documenting and sharing testimonies without compromising participants’ safety.
. Train victims in storytelling, communication, and advocacy to ensure their stories have real impact.
. Enhance legal awareness regarding victims’ rights within the framework of transitional justice.
. Demand transparent and inclusive mechanisms to uncover the fate of the missing and forcibly disappeared.
Recommendations to the Syrian Government and International Actors:
. Guarantee the safe, voluntary, and dignified return of displaced persons, ensuring legal protection and protection from reprisals or discrimination.
. Establish compensation committees for victims of the conflict and ensure accountability for war crimes.
. Document violations, including illegal property seizures, and provide legal aid to help victims reclaim their rights.
. Prevent war criminals from holding decision-making positions and amend Decree No. 20 to ensure accountability.
. Protect all Syrian communities from discrimination and political exploitation, eliminate hate speech, and promote national reconciliation.
. Integrate gender equality into the Syrian constitution, guaranteeing full rights for women and ensuring inclusive representation of all societal groups.
. Form specialised committees to clear landmines, rehabilitate degraded lands, and implement environmentally sustainable land use projects.
. Support sustainable water infrastructure projects, such as the Tigris River water pipeline, to address the water crisis in northeastern Syria.
. Work to return stolen Syrian artefacts and preserve cultural heritage.
. Initiate inclusive and sustainable reconstruction projects and provide adequate compensation to displaced individuals based on the scale of loss and damage.
. Establish oversight mechanisms to monitor the implementation of rights protection measures and land rehabilitation efforts.
. Provide unconditional humanitarian and logistical support to all displaced persons in camps across Syria, regardless of political affiliation.
. Establish an independent body to investigate arbitrary detention and human rights abuses and ensure the safe return of forcibly displaced individuals.
. Form specialised task forces to search for the disappeared, especially in areas affected by military operations such as “Olive Branch” and “Peace Spring.”
. Ensure full accountability for all parties responsible for systematic violations and restore properties to their rightful owners with fair compensation.
. Engage social media influencers and digital content creators to amplify advocacy efforts and raise public awareness.
. Urge donors and international organizations to compensate civilians affected by the conflict, support post-war reconstruction, and assist farmers impacted by environmental degradation and land seizures.
. Establish an international rapid-response mechanism to resume operations at the Alouk water station and restore essential services in affected areas.
. Cooperate with the World Health Organization to support war-affected individuals with physical disabilities, including access to prosthetics, medications, and medical equipment.
. Provide comprehensive logistical support to camp residents to ensure their basic needs are consistently met.