The governance of Syrian refugees in Turkey: The state-capital nexus and its discontents

This article argues that the convergence of state policies and the interests of capital and business owners are central to the understanding of the governance of Syrian refugees in Turkey. Drawing on fieldwork in Ankara, Gaziantep, Hatay and Izmir, collected between 2016 and 2018, this article shows that the terms of Turkish state's temporary protection regime, the state's ad hoc leniency towards the informal use of refugee labour and the disciplinary effects of the laws complies with the economic expectations of business and capital owners. This article also sheds light on the structural limitations that the state-market convergence places on civil actor's ability to make improvements to the overall living and working conditions of Syrians in Turkey. The overall analysis points to the fact that the governance of Syrian refugees in Turkey could be conceived as yet another manifestation of the vital role that the state plays in the pursuits of capital.