Social changes affect the elderly at most, as the order, they have established with years of effort, altruism, and self-sacrifice is destroyed instantly. The thought of “Leaving home” wears them out at most, as well, in a period of life when the physical restrictions increase. Ahmed el Farhoud (68) and his wife Hansa (64) say, “Our house was invaded at the very time we were retired and thought we rode out the storm. It is safe to be in Turkey, but our biggest wish is to return to Syria” when they tell about their new life they started in Turkey by overcoming all those physical and psychological challenges.
El Farhoud couple, who is pushing 70, is one of the beneficiary households of the “Complementary Emergency Social Safety Net (C-ESSN)” Project, financed by the European Union and jointly implemented with the Ministry of Family and Social Services.
While the family was preparing to enjoy their “Second Spring” with Mr. Farhoud’s retirement from the Syrian Ministry of Communication, they became “immigrants in their own country” in an instant when their house was occupied.
Even though they have been living in their rented house in Keçiören, Ankara for 1,5 years, with their own words, “with peace and safety,” they often look at the photos of their former home from internet or photos coming from the region, which has now turned into a roofless ruin.
Mr. Farhoud says, “Our financial condition was good in Syria. We owned 3 apartmants, a car, and some lands out of the city. I was just retired from civil service. Now the rubble of our houses is seen in the photos and our lands are occupied”.
Mrs. Farhoud recalls those days with tears in her eyes, saying, “We are still grateful. We shuttled between relatively safe cities and villages for 8 years, living in relatives’ homes. We were sitting with outdoor clothes even inside the house, just in case “we might need to run away at any moment.”
Mr. Farhoud says that they decided to go to Turkey as that Mrs. Farhoud’s heart disease was getting worse and “They were too tired to run away anymore”.
Explaining that they preferred Ankara for treatment, Mr. Farhoud says, “We heard about Kızılaykart support from our neighbors in Turkey. We could start the treatment of my wife once our application was accepted.”
Mrs. Farhoud’s greatest longing is her daughters living in Syria and her sons living in Morocco. She tells was telling in tears that it was not enough for her to satisfy her longing with her children only with video calls, she misses hugging them, inhaling their scent, she says, “It's been years since the whole family couldn't get together. Our children also have families to support. Our minds and hearts are always with them.”
They were explaining that they started peaceful life again after the age of 60 with the support of the C-ESSN Project which is implemened through Kızılaykart Platform, except for the homesickness. The couple said, “We are safe in Turkey. But our biggest wish is to go back to Syria.”
