absentee_land_investment

Posts

IDPs Return to Regime-Controlled Areas in Idlib and Hama

18-06-2024/in HLP, News /by Rand Shamaa

In several public statements Syrian officials have encouraged the return of Internally Displaced People (IDPs) from opposition areas in northwestern Syria to regime-controlled areas in the countryside of Idlib and Hama. However, no Syrian official has mentioned that returnees must undergo security screening by reconciliation committees as a condition for their return. The journey back is costly, and some returnees face arrest and financial extortion.

For example, Abu Burhan has been waiting for three months to obtain a security approval for his request to return to his hometown in the eastern Idlib’s countryside. Displaced since 2020, Abu Burhan and his family reside in a refugee camp in Atma in northern Idlib. His cousin, who lives in regime-controlled areas, convinced him to apply for return through the reconciliation committee. Abu Burhan said that if he receives a security approval, he will return to work on his pistachio farm, which would provide his family with the minimum living costs, as their financial situation has become dire in the Atma camp.

Abu Burhan fears disclosing any information that might identify him, worrying about security persecution if he returns or if his return request is denied. He plans to return alone initially, leaving his family in the camp. Depending on the situation in his village, he will either return to the camp or have his family join him.

Abu Burhan’s cousin informed him that the pistachio trees on his land have yielded a very good crop this year, prompting him to take the risk of returning to harvest this season. He added that his cousin had managed to bribe a member of the committees responsible for designating absentee lands for public auctions for investment by relatives over the past few years. This allowed Abu Burhan’s cousin to harvest the pistachio crop from his land during these years. However, it wasn’t for free. Abu Burhan said his cousin always negotiated a large share of the crop’s price, exploiting his absence. “I have more rights to the harvest than my cousin. Here in the camp, I don’t have the money to buy bread to feed my family,” he said.

A significant number of those returning to regime-controlled areas are motivated by the desire to return to their farmlands, reinvest in them, and benefit from their produce. A better option than staying in the camps and enduring the harsh conditions there. According to a report by the Syria Response Coordinators team on May 31, 91.16 percent of families in northern Syria are living below the poverty line, with 40.9 percent reaching severe food insecurity. These indicators explain why forcibly displaced people in the north are seriously considering returning to regime-controlled areas despite the potential risks.

Those wishing to return to regime-controlled areas must submit a return request to the reconciliation committee, either through relatives or acquaintances or by contacting the committee directly via WhatsApp, according to a correspondent for The Syria Report. There are three regional reconciliation committees: one in Khan Sheikhoun, another in Maarat Al-Numan, and another in Abu Dhuhour. To submit the request, one must send a photo of their ID card, photos of the family record book, and indicate which family members are returning and justify why the others are not. Often, the justification is that they are outside Syria. Afterward, a committee from various security agencies reviews the request. Approval or rejection of requests usually comes within one to three months. Those whose requests are approved are given a written approval that facilitates their passage through regime checkpoints until they reach their destination.

The correspondent noted that older men are often the ones who decide to return, as young men, if they return to regime-controlled areas, must immediately join the military service, which prevents many of them from returning. Additionally, the opposition Syrian National Army (SNA) prohibits the return of young men aged 18-30.

There is no direct route between opposition and regime-controlled areas. The return journey starts from opposition areas in Idlib and rural Aleppo to the Aoun Al-Dadat crossing between Jarablus, controlled by the Turkish-backed SNA, and Manbij, under SDF control. From the Aoun al-Dadat crossing, returnees move to the Al-Tayha crossing between SDF areas in Manbij and regime-controlled areas in Aleppo.

The cost of the return journey from Idlib to Hama via this route exceeds USD 250, not including the bribes imposed by various checkpoints controlled by different factions along the way.

Returnees must register their personal details with the military police of the SNA in the presence of two guarantors who hold ID cards issued by one of the local councils affiliated with the Syrian Interim Government (SIG). These guarantors must attest that the returnee will not join the regime’s military forces and is returning for agricultural purposes.

Returnees can bring whatever luggage and furniture they wish, but they must send a description of their belongings to the reconciliation committee for registration and make them known to regime checkpoints upon their return so that these belongings don’t get confiscated. They must also specify whether they are returning in their own vehicles or rented ones. These vehicles must be registered with the transport directorates in regime-controlled areas.

Approximately 10 days after returning, the returnee will be notified by a representative of the relevant security branch in the area to report to a specific security branch for an investigation. In many cases, returnees have reported harassment and threats at these security branches, aimed at extorting money from them. One returnee to Khan Sheikhoun earlier this year said he was forced to pay about USD 20,000 to branch officers to secure his release. He confirmed that no charges were brought against him, he was not presented to a court, and he was only released after his relatives managed to raise the full amount. This is essentially kidnapping for ransom, according to the correspondent, who noted that this practice is commonly used against returnees whom the security officers know are financially capable.

Sahl Al-Ghab: FAO Funds Rehabilitation of Water Channels for Lands Belonging to Forcibly Displaced People

31-10-2023/in HLP, News /by Rand Shamaa

The General Commission for the Administration and Development of Al-Ghab (GCADA), in cooperation with the U.N.’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), has completed the rehabilitation and maintenance of a section of a main irrigation canal that waters agricultural lands, some of which are owned by individuals forcibly displaced from the area. The lands were previously listed for public auction by the Hama governorate for investment purposes.

The GCADA, with its main office in the city of Al-Suqaylabiyeh in rural Hama, is an administrative and service-oriented body tied to the Ministry of Agriculture and Agrarian Reform. It is a legal entity with financial independence and administrative autonomy.

According to an official report published in the Tishreen newspaper on October 22, the rehabilitation included the removal of damaged concrete tiles along both sides of the canal, restoring the tiles and walls to their original state using technical methods and adhering to approved specifications to ensure smooth water flow without any waste or loss. Workers also maintained the gates and iron doors on the canal.

The director of the Irrigation and Drainage Department at the Commission stated that the rehabilitation works covered a section of the J-2 canal from the Tari Al-Ala – Al-Asharneh irrigation network, extending over a distance of six kilometres, between the towns of Khirbet Dams and Asilah. The total length of the J-2 canal is 49 kilometres, stretching from the city of Mhardeh to the Al-Bared River highway west of Hama. It irrigates about 14,840 hectares of agricultural land in the Al-Ghab area in the Hama governorate.

A correspondent for The Syria Report in the region pointed out that on both sides of the J-2 canal, especially west of the city of Mhardeh, agricultural lands belonging to villages and farms whose inhabitants were forcibly displaced to opposition-held areas in northwest Syria. Some of these villages and farms are almost entirely deserted, such as the town of Al-Treimseh and the farms of Al-Rawda, Al-Khwaitat, Al-Karama, and lands belonging to the towns of Al-Asharneh and Jirjisiya. The Hama governorate has put the lands of those absentees up for investment in public auctions held annually.

According to official statements, the area of agricultural land benefiting from the canal rehabilitation project exceeds 2,093 hectares, belonging to around 2,000 farmers and investors. The GCADA aims to rehabilitate and maintain 28,000 square metres of canals, irrigation networks, culverts, and existing metal protection fences in the Mhardeh area, extending to the city of Salhab, with funding from the FAO. Associations were formed for irrigation water investors who will be trained by FAO workshops on optimal usage of the canals and maintaining their safety and equipment for the longest possible time.

The Syria Report’s correspondent mentioned plans to rehabilitate other sections of the J-1 irrigation canal in Sahl Al-Ghab. One of the sections currently being rehabilitated is located in the Al-Asharneh plain southeast of Sahl Al-Ghab, connecting the towns of Sheizar and Al-Asharneh, and irrigating an area of about 24,000 hectares. It is not clear whether FAO or another international organisation will fund this project.

This is not the first time that rehabilitation work were carried out with funding from non-governmental and international organisations on projects that violate the property rights of absent landowners who have been forcibly displaced. In November 2022, with funding from the French Islamic Aid Organisation Secours Islamique France, 3,060 metres of the J-4 canal in the Qalaat Al-Madiq area in Sahl Al-Ghab were maintained, irrigating lands of those forcibly displaced from the area extending from west of Qalaat Al-Madiq city to the town of Al-Hawash to the north.

Lands Belonging to Residents of Regime-Held Aleppo Areas Undergo Public Auction

19-09-2023/in HLP, News /by Rand Shamaa

Hassan is trying to protect his family’s farmland after it was recently listed by the Directorate of Agriculture and Agricultural Reform in Aleppo governorate among properties offered for investment in public auctions. According to the Directorate, these lands in the southwest countryside of Aleppo are vacant and belong to people they describe as “absentees,” which include displaced persons and those forcibly expelled to opposition-held areas in northwestern Syria.

Since 2020, regime forces have established their military control over the region adjacent to the Damascus-Aleppo road M-5 in the southwest countryside of Aleppo, extending to the southern countryside of Idlib.

Local sources told The Syria Report that the lands being offered for investment in the southwest Aleppo countryside are located near the international M-5 highway, and administratively belong to villages and towns such as Kafr Aleppo, Al-Kaseebiya, Al-Bawabiya, Jeb Kas, and Arada. The region is known for rainfed grain crops such as wheat, barley, and lentils, and irrigated farming from wells, such as cotton and vegetables.

The Directorate of Agriculture and Agricultural Reform, located in the Jamiliya district of Aleppo city, published a list earlier this month of “absentee”-owned lands in the southwest countryside of Aleppo, in preparation for offering them for investment in public auctions. This list included Hassan’s family land. The Syria Report’s sources confirmed that all lands were listed for the upcoming public auctions, even though many of their owners are not absent but live in regime-controlled areas. Notably, some villages, like Al-Bawabiya and Al-Kaseebiya, are still considered closed military zones, and regime forces do not allow the displaced to return.

Hassan, who lives in regime-controlled Aleppo city, had planted the land last season through intermediaries from the pro-regime National Defence Militia, which controls parts of the southern countryside of Aleppo. Hassan was recently surprised to find his family’s six-hectare plot of land on the auction list.

The surprise discovery came after the death of Hassan’s father last year. The land is still listed under his father’s name in the Land Registry, which means it is currently communally owned amongst the heirs and has not yet been subdivided. To subdivide the property – that is, to divide it amongst the heirs, a legal inventory of inheritance needs to be carried out, determining each heir’s share of the land. Hassan and his siblings visited the Directorate of Agriculture, where an employee asked them to produce an inheritance inventory document. This would allow them to invest in the land without entering the auction, as they are direct relatives of the deceased.

The inheritance inventory document pertains to those whose death is confirmed either by factual proof or by legal judgment, according to the Personal Status Law No. 59 of 1953 and its executive instructions. It is a legal document intended to identify the deceased’s heirs who are entitled to inherit and their degree of kinship to the deceased.

The Council of Ministers had permitted, in its Decision No. 12011 issued in October 2022, for the first degree family members to invest in their vacant relatives’ lands intended for agricultural investment without entering public auctions. The council, relying on Ministry of Agriculture Letter No. 291 issued in September 2022, stipulated that immediate relatives – being the father, mother, daughter, and son – must announce the properties belonging to their relatives that they wish to invest in, 15 days prior to the date of the public auctions.

Indeed, the Directorate of Agriculture and Agricultural Reform in Aleppo announced several days ago the times and dates that they will hold special relative auctions for the lands being offered for investment in the southwest Aleppo countryside, according to local sources. The Directorate gave a deadline of October 5, 2023 for those interested in investing in their relatives’ lands to provide the necessary documents to enter the special auctions.

Huda, another area resident, is coping with a problem similar to Hassan’s. She is working to prevent the land of her father-in-law, that is, the father of her ailing husband, from undergoing public auction.

Huda went in early September to the Directorate of Agriculture in Aleppo to obtain a “No Objection” document to remove the land from the list being offered for investment in the southwest Aleppo countryside. The Directorate grants this approval if the landowner’s name is not listed in the wanted lists circulated by the security agencies to the directorates and institutions. This document allows the landowner to cultivate or lease the land, and its purpose is to account for the properties of those actually absent from the area, or those displaced outside the regime-controlled areas.

Huda’s father-in-law also resides in regime-controlled areas, but he is ill and unable to tend to the Directorate of Agriculture in person. During her visit to the Directorate of Agriculture, Huda had a property registration statement confirming her father-in-law’s ownership of the two-and-a-half hectare plot of land, as well as a copy of his ID. The employee at the Directorate refused to provide Huda with the “No Objection” document, insisting that the landowner must be present in person, carrying proof of his land ownership and identification. After much debate, the employee agreed that one of the landowner’s children or his wife could attend on their behalf.

In a First, Idlib Governorate Offers Absentee-Owned Olive, Almond and Fig Orchards for Public Auction

06-09-2023/in HLP, News /by Rand Shamaa

The regime-run Idlib governorate is continuing to seize lands owned by forcibly displaced absentees, offering the properties for investment via public auctions. For the first time, the latest auctions include agricultural lands cultivated with figs, olives and almond trees, as well as barren lands. Previously, in June and July, the governorate held its second annual auctions for pistachio orchards.

The governorate’s general secretariate announced last month it would hold public auctions to invest in absentee lands, including 1,160 hectares planted with figs, 200 hectares with almond trees, 80 hectares of barren, unwooded land, and 5,285 hectares planted with olives.

The fig plots are located in Kafruma, Haas, Basqala, Kafr Nubl, Jabala, Maarat Al-Numan, Hazarin, Kursa and Al-Fuqei. They also included a section west of the city of Maarat Al-Numan, along the front line between opposition and regime forces. On the regime side of this line is the Russian-backed 25th Special Mission Forces Division, formerly known as the Tiger Forces. This area regularly witnesses military operations and back-and-forth shelling.

The areas under regime control in the Idlib governorate are divided into three sections, known as the first, second, and third “stability zones” depending on how close they are to the frontlines. The first stability zone is closest to the frontline and thus the most dangerous, followed by the second and third zones. The first zone includes the town of Al-Habit, the cities of Khan Sheikhoun and Maarat Al-Numan, and their western countryside, as well as the cities of Saraqib and Khan Al-Subul. The second zone includes the towns of Al-Tamanah and Al-Tah, extending north to Sinjar. Finally, the third zone includes villages and towns that are further from the frontline, such as the town of Abu Al-Duhur and its countryside.

The western section of Maarat Al-Numan, currently up for investment, is within the first stability zone. This is a military area that the regime forces describe as a “deployment zone,” where civilians are prohibited from residing or returning to their homes. Officers have been dividing up these lands among themselves, with conscripts harvesting and drying the figs via unpaid forced labour. The officers then sell the produce to merchants and fruit and vegetable distributors in the region. Some of the produce is smuggled into opposition areas in Idlib and even to Iraqi markets.

Previously, neither the Hama nor Idlib governorates had any role in organising these investments; instead, the officers distributed shares of the profits among some local officials.

However, according to a local correspondent for The Syria Report, the fig orchards were placed under auction after disagreements arose over land- and profit-sharing among regime officers who had been exploiting them for their own benefit. Locals reportedly expect that these lands will be invested in by civilians close to the officers as a way to manage those disputes. This is because it is difficult for civilians to operate in this area without the security cover provided by influential regime officers.

The auctions were held between August 17-23, but solely for show, as the land was awarded to preselected individuals, according to the correspondent. The lands will be officially handed over to the investors through a formal handover record by governorate officials. It appears that the Idlib governorate is in a hurry to offer fig orchards for investment because the fig harvesting season ends in mid-September. The current price per kilogram of fresh figs in Al-Hal markets in the area is SYP 8,000, but most of the figs are sold dried, and they can sell for as much as SYP 30,000.

During that same period, the Idlib governorate general secretariat offered 200 hectares to be planted with almonds, apricots, peaches and plums for investment in auctions. These lands are spread across areas in southern rural Idlib: Khan Sheikhoun, Al-Tah and the eastern countryside of Maarat Al-Numan. This area is famous for pistachio cultivation and the almond trees are typically planted by farmers along the borders of their lands, rather than as a primary crop.

The governorate also held auctions between August 17-24 for investing in 5,285 hectares of land cultivated with olive trees, distributed across areas under regime control in Khan Sheikhoun, Maarat Al-Numan and Saraqib.

In all these recent auctions, the governorate general secretariat did not specify the investment conditions for lands planted with figs, almonds and olives, nor whether they fall under Public Contract Law No. 51 of 2004, as is the case with other auctions. Also, the announcement did not specify the initial security deposits or minimum bid price, unlike in other auctions.

Meanwhile, the Idlib governorate has announced it will offer 80 hectares of uncultivated, arable land for agricultural investment for the 2023-2024 growing season. The auctions are set to take place September 3-12.

Unlike the lands cultivated with figs, almonds and olives, these auctions for uncultivated lands have been organised in accordance with Public Contract Law No. 51 of 2004. This decision is based on a letter from the Ministry of Agriculture approving the areas offered for investment and confirming that they align with the ministry’s annual agricultural plans.

People who wish to participate in these auctions must first obtain security clearance and a certificate of good standing from the governorate’s Financial Directorate. They must also pay an initial deposit of SYP 1 million per hectare and submit an SYP 50,000 technical voucher. The winning bidder will pay 10 percent of the final bid amount as a final deposit to the Idlib governorate.

Syrian Government Auctions Agricultural Land Owned by IDPs

08-08-2023/in HLP, News /by Rand Shamaa

In June and July 2023, the General Secretariat of the Idlib governorate held a second season of public auctions inviting people to invest in agricultural lands left behind by absentees, including those who fled or were forcibly displaced from regime areas. Although most of the Idlib governorate is outside regime control, part of it still is and the governorate’s official administration continues to formally operate.

The auctions included absentee-owned pistachio groves, as the governorate determined in its Announcement No. 456 on May 18, 2023. The General Secretariat opened up the first auction round of the new season on June 4, afterward holding three additional auctions, the last of which was on July 24. These auctions focused on lands that had not yet been invested in previous rounds.

The governorate increased the required financial security deposits to enter the auctions for the current season to SYP 1 million per hectare, up from SYP 700,000 in the previous season last year. Meanwhile, the value of the final security deposits remained the same as the previous season, which is 10 percent of the “referral” value, that is, the final offer price for the land to be invested in. The technical dossier price for each piece of land applied for by an investor also increased to SYP 50,000, up from SYP 35,000 last season. The investor can obtain the technical dossier from the Contracts Department in the General Secretariat of the Governorate.

The General Secretariat set July 16, 2023, as the formal appointment date for investors to receive their pistachio harvest documents. This document allows the investor to harvest the crop, confirms the completion of payment of the due financial instalments, and prevents any harassment by the watchmen and patrols led by the Idlib Police during the harvesting period. The General Secretariat designated July 20 as the formal start date for the season’s harvest. However, given that the last auction was July 24, the General Secretariat is behind schedule on its original appointments.

According to the General Secretariat, this urgency comes from a keen interest in protecting the rights of non-absentee pistachio grove owners who personally invest in their lands. Their groves are often subject to theft by agricultural worker crews employed by absentee land investors. But now with a set date for the season’s harvest, there is no longer any justification for the work crews to be present outside their designated times.

The General Secretariat has sorted absentee land investors into three categories this season:

The first category includes first- and second-degree relatives of the absentee landowner. They are entitled to apply to invest in their relatives’ lands without having to enter the public auctions, according to Council of Ministers Decree No. 12011 from October 2022, so long as they obtain security approval. They must also provide a statement of inheritance, or family statement, or civil registry extract and proof of their kinship with the absentee landowner, as well as pay an investment fee set by the governorate for members of this category. First-degree relatives include parents, spouses and children while second-degree relatives include grandparents, siblings and paternal grandsons.
In the second category are third- and fourth-degree relatives — participation by these individuals is referred to as “actions by mutual consent”. In such cases, those hoping to invest must submit requests to participate in the auction for the land owned by their absentee relatives, as well as enter the regular auction sessions and pay the initial security deposits. The relative/investor in this category has the right to invest in lands at the final auction price, so long as they indicate their desire to invest in the finale of the auction. The investor must provide a document signed by themself and their other relatives proving that they have agreed by mutual consent to invest in this particular piece of their absentee relative’s land.
Finally, the third category includes all investors who are not relatives. However, according to the most recent auction announcement, this category is only for residents of Idlib governorate. The Syria Report’s local correspondent reported that there have been calls from locals to limit auction participants solely to residents of the area whose lands are offered for investment. These residents argue that an investor from the same village as the original absentee landowner would take more care of the land and preserve it better than outsiders would.

The state-run news agency SANA reported that the Minister of Agriculture, Engineer Mohammed Hassan Qatana, recently visited the southern part of the governorate, which is under regime control, where he stated that the government’s goal of investing in these agricultural lands is to ensure their continued production and preservation of their fruit trees. This is especially true for olive and pistachio trees, which require many years to reach the production phase. Mr Qatana did not refer to the revenues that the Idlib governorate generates from organising the investment of the agricultural lands of the absentees, as an objective for the auctions.

The minister added that a committee is working on amendments to the investment guidelines and conditions for first- and second-degree relatives, in a way that “facilitates the investment of these lands and guarantees the rights of their owners”. He affirmed the government’s efforts to restore the production of these lands and return them to their original owners.