Year of return and partnerships, but challenges remain, says Lubbers
High Commissioner Ruud Lubbers has closed this year's Executive Committee session by lauding major voluntary repatriation operations while raising concerns about trends like restrictive asylum policies. The solution, he says, lies in burden-sharing and closer partnerships.
Ukraine, Sri Lanka provide models for solving statelessness
UN refugee agency chief Ruud Lubbers has reminded states that there are several million stateless people in the world today and introduced Ukraine and Sri Lanka as positive examples of countries that had found resolutions for the huge and hidden problem.
Too early for returns to Darfur; timeline uncertain, says High Commissioner
While there is no longer massive, systematic violence in the western Sudanese region, ceasefire violations are still happening, said High Commissioner Ruud Lubbers as he elaborated on UNHCR's work to protect displaced Darfurians and rebuild trust in the region.
Lubbers outlines progress, challenges as ExCom session opens
High Commissioner Ruud Lubbers today opened the 55th annual session of UNHCR's governing Executive Committee (ExCom) by warning of a less friendly climate for refugees despite the sharp drop in the number of persons of concern to UNHCR and unprecedented repatriation levels in Africa.
Lubbers outlines expanded protection role for UNHCR in Darfur
UN refugee agency chief Ruud Lubbers has met with the Sudanese government to discuss an expanded protection role for UNHCR in Darfur. This includes setting up mechanisms for uprooted people in the strife-torn region to report violations and seek redress.
Zero violence needed to restore trust in Darfur, says Lubbers
Visiting camps for internally displaced people in western Sudan's Darfur region, UN refugee agency chief Ruud Lubbers called for a complete end to violence and for the government to work with international agencies to rebuild confidence in the strife-torn region.
Darfur refugees "facing disaster", warns Lubbers
UN refugee agency chief Ruud Lubbers has warned that people fleeing conflict in Sudan's Darfur region are "facing a disaster" unless peace is restored to the area where more than 1 million people have been displaced in recent months.
Violence and misery could spark new Darfur refugee exodus, says Lubbers
UNHCR chief Ruud Lubbers has warned the UN Security Council that unchecked violence and human rights abuse and the absence of aid workers in Sudan's Darfur region could lead to a further exodus of refugees into Chad. Meanwhile, UNHCR now has seven camps sheltering nearly 75,000 Darfur refugees.
Lubbers calls for more reconstruction in West Africa
High Commissioner Ruud Lubbers has visited Guinea and Sierra Leone to review the repatriation of Sierra Leone refugees and prospects for starting the movement back to Liberia, urging the international community to invest more in these countries to make returns sustainable.