Nearly two years after the lifeless body of three-year-old Syrian toddler Alan Kurdi was found on a Turkish beach, UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, urges the international community to take robust action to prevent more tragedies.
Although the number of arrivals in Europe has drastically decreased since Alan’s death, people continue to attempt the journey and many have lost their lives in the process. Since 2 September 2015, at least 8,500 refugees and migrants have died or gone missing trying to cross the Mediterranean alone. Many others have died in the desert.
Many of the children trying to reach Europe travel on their own, making the journey even more terrifying and perilous. This was the case for 92 per cent of the 13,700 children who arrived to Italy by sea in the first seven months of 2017.
The urgent need for solutions for these children and others on the move remains – if people see no hope and live in fear, then they will continue to gamble their lives making desperate journeys.
UNHCR is encouraged by the commitments made at the Paris meeting on migration and asylum on Monday that address some of these issues, but much more needs to be done to protect and save lives.
Political leaders need to work together to develop safer alternatives, to better inform those considering making the journey of the dangers they face, and most importantly to tackle the root causes of these movements, by resolving conflicts and creating real opportunities in countries of origin.
In light of the dramatic worsening since Friday of the situation in Myanmar’s Rakhine state, UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, has today communicated to the Government of Bangladesh its readiness to support Bangladesh in helping refugees fleeing across the border.
As of Sunday it was estimated that some 5,200 people had entered Bangladesh from Myanmar since Thursday. Several thousand were reported to be in locations along the Myanmar side of the border. UNHCR underscores the UN Secretary-General’s statement of Monday in which he condemned the violence in Rakhine State.
On the Bangladesh side of the border some people are in cordoned off areas near the border, and others are mainly in the Kutupalong area. Most are women, children, or the elderly, and there have been reports of wounded people among them.
Aid efforts involving the Bangladeshi authorities, local communities, UNHCR partners and NGOs have been under way, including to get food, water, and medical help to the new arrivals. UNHCR is grateful to the Bangladeshi authorities for the support being provided. Rapid needs assessments are being planned, however with the precarious situation inside Myanmar we are concerned that numbers of people needing help may rise further over the coming days.
UNHCR is aware of several reported instances of people being prevented from entering Bangladesh. This poses very grave risk to the individuals affected. Bangladesh has hosted refugees from Myanmar for decades, and UNHCR believes it is of the utmost importance that it continue to allow Rohingya fleeing violence to seek safety there. UNHCR also calls on the international community to support Bangladesh in doing so, with all necessary aid and other help.
In Myanmar’s Rakhine State meanwhile, the security situation means that access to populations in need of help is severely restricted. We are appealing to the Myanmar authorities to do everything possible to facilitate humanitarian help and ensure the safety of our staff.
UNHCR’s Goodwill Ambassador, met with Thailand’s Prime Minister
Praya Lundberg, UNHCR’s Goodwill Ambassador, met with Thailand’s Prime Minister General Prayuth Chan-ocha at the Government House of Thailand.
Submitted by webmaster on 25 August 2017
BANGKOK – Praya Lundberg, UNHCR’s Goodwill Ambassador, met with Thailand’s Prime Minister General Prayuth Chan-ocha at the Government House of Thailand. This meeting is the first of its kind since Praya’s appointment as Goodwill Ambassador in January 2017. During the meeting, Praya expressed her gratitude to the Royal Thai Government for generously hosting refugees for over three decades.
Refugee team competes in World Athletics Championships
Five athletes heading from Kenya to the IAAF championships in London will be the first refugees to take part in the competition.
Submitted by webmaster on 18 August 2017
NAIROBI, Kenya – Five refugee athletes are heading to London from Kenya to compete in the World Athletics Championships opening this week, the first time in the competition’s 34-year history that refugees will be taking part.
More urgency needed in quest for South Sudan peace – UN Refugee Chief
During a visit to Sudan, Filippo Grandi calls on warring parties, regional states and the international community to do more to end the conflict which has uprooted nearly four million people.
“The victims of this failure, so far, are the civilians.The civilians that we see around here.”
“The victims of this failure, so far, are the civilians. The civilians that we see around here. People that have left everything behind. Often women and children, without their men, to embark on an uncertain life because they are too afraid to stay back home in their villages which are affected by war,” Grandi said.
During his visit to Sudan, the UN Refugee Chief also highlighted the country’s key role in hosting hundreds of thousands of South Sudanese refugees. Al-Nimir camp hosts more than 5,000 refugees - over 90 per cent of them women and children.
“I want to say to the world that Sudan is keeping its doors open at a time when so many countries are closing doors,” Grandi said,
The High Commissioner also appealed for more help for Sudan. “Often, we forget that Sudan continues to be a very key host country not just for South Sudanese but for Eritreans, Syrians and many other refugees,” he said.
Grandi praised the model of cooperation and coexistence between refugees and the local communities in Sudan.
“Throughout the world, we are experimenting with new ways to promote livelihoods, to promote new sources of energy and other forms of sustainable development for refugees and for the communities hosting them. I think that Sudan qualifies very much for this model of development.”
During his visit to the camp, Grandi met Sadia Mohammed Wali, a 42 year-old refugee mother. Sadia fled South Sudan with her seven children when fighting erupted in her home town back in June this year.
“We came with our children and we had nothing to feed them.”
“We were very scared,” she said giving details of her month-long trip to reach safety in Sudan. “The journey was so difficult for us, because we came with our children and we had nothing to feed them. We were moving in huge groups,” she said. “Those who carried some small foods would share and we gave them to the children.”
She expressed her desire for her children to get a good education and get some help herself to support her small business, selling roasted peanuts, dumplings and sweets.
Sudan hosts some 416,000 refugees from South Sudan since 2013 - including some 170,000 new arrivals so far this year. South Sudan became the world’s youngest country when it gained independence from Sudan in 2011. Hundreds of thousands of other refugees – who stayed in Sudan following the partition are also in need of humanitarian assistance.
On Wednesday, the UN Refugee Chief concluded his visit by meeting with Sudan’s leaders and authorities in Khartoum.
