Refugees/Migrants/IDPs [to 5 September 2015]

Editor’s Note:
The growing, multiple crises across the globe involving refugees, migrants and internally-displaced persons – especially in the EU context – received comment and calls-to-action by many agencies and INGOs [see the Watch sections in this edition]. We present the full-text of UNHCR and UNICEF statements and a New York Times editorial.

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UNHCR praises Austrian, German Leadership and Civil Society Response
Press Releases, 5 September 2015
UNHCR welcomes the decision of Austria and Germany to receive thousands of refugees and migrants who crossed the border last night from Hungary. This is political leadership based on humanitarian values.

UNHCR also praises the civil society groups and individuals of Austria and Germany who are mobilizing in large numbers to welcome and provide aid to people as they enter. All over Europe, UNHCR is witnessing a remarkable outpouring of public response, including from faith-based organizations, NGOs and individuals, in many cases driving governments to change policies and rhetoric.

However, the current concentration of refugees and migrants in a small number of countries willing to receive them is not a sustainable solution. There is clearly an urgent need to put in place an emergency plan to manage the refugee crisis. The High Commissioner for Refugees, António Guterres, us putting forward concrete proposals to respond ahead of key meetings of European leaders. They are outlined here: http://www.unhcr.org/55e9793b6.html

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Statement by UN High Commissioner for Refugees, António Guterres on refugee crisis in Europe
Press Releases, 4 September 2015
The European Union is preparing key emergency meetings to take decisions in its response to the present refugee and migration crisis. The situation requires a massive common effort that is not possible with the current fragmented approach.

Europe is facing its biggest refugee influx in decades. More than 300,000 people have risked their lives to cross the Mediterranean Sea so far this year. Over 2,600 didn’t survive the dangerous crossing, including three-year-old Aylan, whose photo has just stirred the hearts of the world public. After arriving on Europe’s shores and borders, they continue their journey – facing chaos and suffering indignity, exploitation and danger at borders and along the way.

The selfless generosity of private citizens and civil society organizations reaching out to welcome and help the new arrivals is truly inspiring. And there has been exemplary political and moral leadership from a number of countries. But overall, Europe has failed to find an effective common response, and people have suffered as a result. To address this untenable situation, we all must keep in mind a number of fundamental points:

1. This is a primarily refugee crisis, not only a migration phenomenon. The vast majority of those arriving in Greece come from conflict zones like Syria, Iraq or Afghanistan and are simply running for their lives. All people on the move in these tragic circumstances deserve to see their human rights and dignity fully respected, independently of their legal status. But we cannot forget the particular responsibility all states have vis a vis refugees, in accordance with international law.

2. Europe cannot go on responding to this crisis with a piecemeal or incremental approach. No country can do it alone, and no country can refuse to do its part. It is no surprise that, when a system is unbalanced and dysfunctional, everything gets blocked when the pressure mounts. This is a defining moment for the European Union, and it now has no other choice but to mobilize full force around this crisis. The only way to solve this problem is for the Union and all member states to implement a common strategy, based on responsibility, solidarity and trust.

3. Concretely, this means taking urgent and courageous measures to stabilize the situation and then finding a way to truly share responsibility in the mid to longer term. The EU must be ready, with the consent and in support of the concerned governments – mainly Greece and Hungary, but also Italy – to put in place immediate and adequate emergency reception, assistance and registration capacity. The European Commission should mobilize the EU asylum, migration and civil protection agencies and mechanisms for this purpose, including the resources of member states and with the support of UNHCR, IOM and civil society. From our side, UNHCR is fully committed to step up its efforts. It is essential that refugee families that disembark in Europe after having lost everything are welcomed into a safe and caring environment.

4. People who are found to have a valid protection claim in this initial screening must then benefit from a mass relocation programme, with the mandatory participation of all EU member states. A very preliminary estimate would indicate a potential need to increase relocation opportunities to as many as 200,000 places. This can only work if it goes hand in hand with adequate reception capacities, especially in Greece. Solidarity cannot be the responsibility of only a few EU member states.

5. Those who are found not to be in need of international protection and who cannot benefit from legal migration opportunities should be helped to return quickly to their home countries, in full respect of their human rights.

6. The only ones who benefit from the lack of a common European response are the smugglers and traffickers who are making profit from people’s desperation to reach safety. More effective international cooperation is required to crack down on smugglers, including those operating inside the EU, but in ways that allow for the victims to be protected. But none of these efforts will be effective without opening up more opportunities for people to come legally to Europe and find safety upon arrival. Thousands of refugee parents are risking the lives of their children on unsafe smuggling boats primarily because they have no other choice. European countries – as well as governments in other regions – must make some fundamental changes to allow for larger resettlement and humanitarian admission quotas, expanded visa and sponsorship programmes, scholarships and other ways to enter Europe legally. Crucially, family reunification has to become a real, accessible option for many more people than is currently the case. If these mechanisms are expanded and made more efficient, we can reduce the number of those who are forced to risk their lives at sea for lack of alternative options.

Beyond the immediate response, it is clear that this situation will require us to reflect seriously about the future. This massive flow of people will not stop until the root causes of their plight are addressed. Much more must be done to prevent conflicts and stop the ongoing wars that are driving so many from their homes. The countries neighbouring war zones, which shelter 9 in 10 refugees worldwide, must be supported more strongly, along with the funding required. At the same time, it is also essential that development cooperation policies are reoriented with the objective of giving people the opportunity to have a future in their own countries.

Europe is facing a moment of truth. This is the time to reaffirm the values upon which it was built.

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United action needed now for child refugees: UNICEF
NEW YORK/GENEVA, 5 September 2015 – Europe has a brief window of opportunity, before winter approaches, to protect and care for the tens of thousands of children seeking refuge, UNICEF said today.

About a quarter of those seeking refuge in Europe this year are children. More than 106,000 children have claimed asylum within the first half of 2015, up 75 per cent from last year.
Many refugee and migrant children in Europe are living in overcrowded and inadequate conditions, where they are at risk of violence, exploitation and abuse. Many are sleeping out in the open air; as winter approaches, the health of young children is especially at risk, including from the threat of diseases like pneumonia. Only concerted action to accommodate and care for children now will prevent more deaths and suffering in the months ahead.

With the growing numbers of children making perilous journeys into and across Europe, collective action with a fair distribution of responsibility across the European Union is essential. This should include putting in place a number of immediate safeguards for children and their families:
:: Safe, child-friendly reception facilities as children arrive, with access to health care, psychosocial support, recreation and schooling.
:: More resettlement places across Europe and humanitarian visas for children and their families. The processing of asylum cases should be timely, and always focus on the best interests of the children.
:: Stronger commitment to resettlement of refugees from countries in conflict to reduce the likelihood that refugees resort to unsafe routes and people smuggling.
:: Stepped-up search and rescue operations at sea and on land.
:: Speeding up family reunification programmes for separated and unaccompanied children.
:: Adequate numbers of trained child welfare specialists to care for and counsel children and families.

Such care is enshrined in the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which provides for the protection of all children – whether on the move from their homes, on the seas, over land, or on the shores of destination countries.

UNICEF urges the international community to address the root causes of this huge movement of desperate children through more vigorous diplomatic efforts to end conflicts, and to provide the required development and humanitarian support in countries of origin.

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Editorial: Piercing the Denial on Refugees
New York Times, SEPT. 4, 2015
By THE EDITORIAL BOARD

Photographs of a lifeless little boy, dressed in a red shirt and dark shorts, lying face down on a beach, and then, minutes later, cradled in the arms of a police officer, have taken the world by storm. These heartbreaking images of 3-year-old Aylan Kurdi, who drowned when the rubber dinghy that was to carry him and his Syrian family to safety in Greece capsized off the coast of Turkey on Wednesday, have succeeded, finally, in bringing home the terrible human cost of Europe’s failure to deal with a surging refugee crisis.

Reaction to the photos has been swift: Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany and President François Hollande of France issued a joint statement on Thursday calling for “a permanent and obligatory mechanism” to allocate refugees among the 28 member states of the European Union and for new reception centers in Italy and Greece. Prime Minister David Cameron of Britain, whose government has balked at allowing in any refugees from the Continent, said Friday that Britain would take in “thousands” of refugees from camps near the fighting in Syria. The Austrian chancellor, Werner Faymann, said his country would now accept the refugees who have been stuck in Budapest. Meanwhile, ordinary European citizens pledged to open their homes to Syrians.

The photos provoked reaction across the Atlantic as well. Canada, where the Kurdi family had sought refugee status, is looking into its own policies, and the United States pledged to intensify the clearing process for accepting refugees from Syria.

But this drama is unfolding in Europe, and it is far from clear that the European Union will be able to overcome the stark divisions the crisis has provoked among member states. Prime Minister Viktor Orban of Hungary blames Germany, which is expecting to take in 800,000 refugees this year, for the surge of people entering Hungary on their way north. Slovakia and Poland are refusing to accept refugees who are not Christian.

More than 300,000 people have crossed the Mediterranean to Europe this year, and about 2,500 others have died trying. Thousands are making a harrowing journey overland through Greece, Macedonia, Hungary, Austria and Serbia in search of refuge, mostly in Germany. And until there is peace in the Middle East and Africa, more people will flee to Europe.

On Friday, the United Nations called on the European Union to take in 200,000 people under a binding emergency relocation program, and to set up large reception camps in Italy, Greece and Hungary. The European Commission must act swiftly to ensure that ministers meeting in Brussels on Sept. 14 to deal with the crisis respond to these demands — before the emotions triggered by the photos fade and more people die.