Development of Refugee Law and the social rights of refugees in Turkey

The development process of Refugee Law has begun to reflect on ad hoc solutions for legal regulations during the period of the League of Nations. The matter reached general and objective standards during the United Nations period. The objective of this study is to analyze this process - in which the Turkish Republic takes its place as one of the international actors - the development of Turkish refugee law and finally, to evaluate which conditions specify the legal regulations that aim to protect a person's right to seek asylum. The basis for Turkish refugee law was established by the 1951 Geneva Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, which was signed by Turkey to grant refuge to people from Europe. This convention has been the main regulation regarding refugees until the introduction of the new Law on Foreigners and International Protection in 2013. In the last few years, Turkey has been displaying another example of refugee law practices by granting Syrian refugees temporary protection status. Provision of social rights such as access to housing, health care, work and educational rights for refugees as well as domestic citizens is indicative of the importance a government puts on international protection. Therefore, the study aims to present a clear view regarding Turkey's current and contemporary perspective of people seeking refuge within its borders, alongside an analysis of the general development of refugee law. Keywords: Refuge, asylum, refugee, international protection, international refugee law, Turkish refugee law, Law on Foreigners and International Protection, social rights.