Theorical analysis of voluntary repetriation as a type of permanent solution to the refugee crisis

Voluntary repatriation is considered by UNHCR as another type of permanent solution alongside social integration and resettlement, which are among the three types of permanent solutions to the refugee crisis. Voluntary repatriation is accepted as the most appropriate and durable, long-term and most preferred type of solution in international legal documents, especially the UNHCR 1951 Geneva Convention and 1967 Protocol. In the voluntary return process, which is possible in a full-fledged manner if the principles of volunteerism, security and sustainability are fulfilled, the destination country of the refugees during migration and the countries of origin to which they will return should provide the conditions, and international actors should be supportive and intermediary for this. It will not be possible to ensure the voluntary and long-term return of refugees to their country of origin in cases where internal conflict and violence continue, where a secure area is not created with the guarantee of international actors, and where necessary measures are not taken in economic, social, political and cultural terms. The purpose of this study is to make a theoretical evaluation of the nature of voluntary return, the conditions of its possibility, and the way the process works for both refugees and the states parties. In general, in the study, a theoretical analysis of voluntary repatriation as a permanent solution type is presented with reference to the literature review. In the first part of the study, some concepts and theories related to the issue of migration in general are evaluated, while in the second part, which forms the core theme and main body of the study, a detailed analysis of the voluntary return issue is presented. This section discusses many aspects of voluntary repatriation, from its historical background to its principles and legal, social and economic dimensions. In the third part, in order to embody the issue of voluntary return discussed in the second part, the voluntary return programs that operated in two migration processes, one of the Kurdish immigration in Iraq in the early 1990s and the other of the Afghan immigration that started in the 1980s, are examined. These two examples are important to ensure that the theoretical discussion on the issue of voluntary repatriation does not remain abstract