Musa Saleh Al Hassaviy – Abu Haled, who is a farmer, came to Turkey due to the lack of raw material to do agriculture. He says they lost their hope for the future when the civil war broke out.
ORSAM: Could you tell us about yourself?
Musa Saleh Al Hassaviy – Abu Haled: I am from Salkin district of Idlib Province, Syria. I am 46 years old. I am a father of 3 children. I am a farmer. We live together with my old parents and handicapped sister.
ORSAM: Could you tell us about your life before the civil war in Syria, what you went through during the civil war, and what brought you to Turkey?
Musa Saleh Al Hassaviy – Abu Haled: Our lands, orchards, and whatever we had were all damaged during the civil war. There was no hope for our future either. Because we did not have raw material, fuel, electricity to do agriculture. We could not do agriculture. Sakin turned into a place where everywhere was destroyed, set on fire and roads were damaged.
On the one hand the army, and on the other hand Jaish al Hur destroyed a great number of houses as a result of the conflicts. Lots of people were killed. Peasants, who were completely innocents, were damaged most. People were tortured, beaten and killed. Fields were set on fire, crops were destroyed. They were completely innocent. They did not know the reason they were tortured. There was no authority to put an end to this torture and massacre, or to complain.
I suffered a lot as well. I had a responsibility for my family, and they could not stand to those circumstances in Syria anymore. We only took our clothes and came to Turkey. We live in a village called Harran in Reyhanlı district of Hatay. I work for a farmer here. Many people coming from various parts of Syria were settled in this village. Syrians, who know farming, work as onion and olive collector.
Most of us do not have heating stoves at home, nor blankets. Sometimes aid organizations provide Syrians with aid. However, only those who live in central Reyhanlı receive the aid provided. By the time we hear about the aid, it is already distributed among those who live there and we cannot receive them.
* This interview was made by Feyyat Özyazar in Reyhanlı district of Hatay on 15 January 2013.
