Housing, land and property violations in government-held syria

Introduction

On 25 June, Damascus Governorate officials approved reconstruction plans for two areas of the Syrian capital – Qaboun in eastern Damascus and Yarmuk camp in southern Damascus – during a special session of the governorate’s council. The Qaboun plans will reportedly see implementation of Law 10/2018, Syria’s principal reconstruction legislation, alongside other urban planning and rezoning laws; whereas in Yarmuk, other housing, land and property (HLP) laws will be used.

Despite the appearance of process and legality, the devil of Syria’s reconstruction plans is usually in the detail. There are also fundamental question-marks over how the Syrian government will actually execute the plans, let alone their humanitarian impacts. The fact that the Syrian government is now opting to apply Law 10 and/or other laws in both Qaboun and Yarmuk means that even residents who verify ownership of their properties will be denied key protections, such as alternative housing and rent payment support (as was previously promised). In Qaboun, the government will implement Law 10 and Law 23/2015 in different designated zones alongside Law 5/1982, whereas in Yarmuk the government will implement Law 23 and Law 5. The costs of this protracted displacement will hit many displaced residents hard at a time of unprecedented economic crisis in government-held Syria.

Redevelopments in Qaboun and Yarmuk will serve as crucial case studies in how the Syrian government intends to move forward with controversial reconstruction plans that have been in planning stages for several years now. But what will this actually look like on the ground? And what humanitarian risks do they pose? The two case studies in this report will seek to answer these questions by including an analysis of the plans, initial reactions to the plans within local communities and loyalist circles, and the humanitarian risks emanating from the plans themselves.

LAW 10/2018

In September 2012, the Syrian government passed Decree 66/2012, earmarking a 2.15m m2 plot of land for redevelopment on the southwestern and southern outskirts of Damascus. According to Damascus Governorate, the development would provide 12,000 housing units for an estimated 60,000 residents, along with malls, parks and other luxury sites. However, the area was not empty or damaged by war: thousands of people were already living in an area known as Basateen al-Razi (since renamed ‘Marota City’).

As such, the government encouraged residents to invest in shares for the redevelopment, and in return they would be given shares, rent compensation and alternative housing. Then, in 2016 and 2017 at least two rounds of eviction orders were issued to residents still residing in the area – ultimately, the offers of rent compensation and alternative housing were delayed and as of now have not been provided. Construction on the other hand is already underway, with big-name investors backing the project through the Damascus ash-Sham Holding Company.

Decree 66 became the blueprint for Law 10/2018, now Syria’s principal reconstruction legislation. Law 10 replicated the basic tenets of Decree 66 for application anywhere in the country, giving local authorities and holding companies powers to rezone areas ahead of reconstruction. Once an area is designated for redevelopment, authorities publish the plans. Local property owners and residents then have one year to verify ownership of their properties, either in person or remotely via relatives or an assigned agent acting as proxy. If residents are able to verify ownership, they can (i) register and receive a share of the profits from the redevelopment; (ii) sell their shares at public auction; or (iii) found a company to invest in the development. Those unable to verify ownership effectively lose their property – land is turned over to the authorities instead.

Law 10 therefore gives local authorities powers to rezone areas ahead of reconstruction. Human rights groups have long argued that the law effectively gives a procedural veneer to violations of HLP rights that the Syrian government and its allies have been carrying out since the early years of the conflict – including arbitrary demolitions and property expropriations. Local authorities have already signalled their intention to implement Law 10 in a range of areas, mostly in Damascus, although areas like Baba Amr (Homs) and the eastern suburbs of Aleppo have also been discussed as potential Law 10 developments in the future.