A heavily pregnant Eritrean refugee in Sudan has given birth to a healthy baby after escaping her home in Khartoum during recent fighting, trekking to the Egyptian border with her daughter and evading danger. The woman was waiting for a refugee family reunion visa, which has been delayed for over a year. Family reunion visas are now 40% less than in pre-pandemic times, whilst resettlement numbers have fallen by 75% since 2019. Applicants should use "safe and legal routes", according to the government.
The policy of "stop the boats" is taking a mounting toll as countries like Greece are accused of inhumanely pushing back refugees at sea. Greece's Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has enjoyed considerable electoral success because he has been seen as bringing stability and control after the upheavals of the 2010s - part of that success has reflected his claims to have largely stopped refugees crossing from Turkey. However, research by the New York Times alleges that some refugees are being taken from Lesbos, and then abandoned at sea. While Greece's prime minister has called the incident “completely unacceptable” and launched an investigation, it is part of a wider pattern. The EU has not pressured member countries to protect asylum seekers' rights sufficiently, leading to criticism from campaigners who also accuse Europe of hypocritically "pulling up the drawbridges".
System is broken says Ontario mom waiting 9 months to bring adopted Nigerian daughter home
CBC
23-05-29 13:28
A Canadian woman is still awaiting the arrival of her adopted daughter from Nigeria nine months after receiving official adoption papers, amid reports that Canada is delaying entry to adopted Nigerian children. Advocates warn that this inexcusable delay contravenes both international and domestic commitments to children. Andrea Eaton of Tillsonburg, Ont., moved to Accra, Ghana, to become closer to the High Commission of Canada, but has received no response to her application for Maya’s Canadian citizenship. “There’s no way to access or contact a soul. Consular services declined every inquiry saying, ‘that’s immigration,’” said Eaton. Maya’s application is on file and being processed and Eaton has also applied for a visitor’s visa for her daughter. Critics argue that Canada has a bad habit of using bureaucratic inertia to delay child adoption and systematically exiles legally adopted, racialized babies. Canada is a signatory to the Hague Conventions on Intercountry adoption and lawyers suggest that the country is arguably in breach of such obligations under Article 18 of the Hague Convention.
Pledged fund to support Rohingya refugees is grossly insufficient, U.N. says
The Toronto Star
23-05-29 16:55
Bangladesh is “grossly insufficient” to shoulder the burden of more than 1 million Rohingya refugees amid reports that UN agencies are facing challenges feeding them, the global organisation’s Olivier De Schutter has warned. The U.N. special rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights said that only 17% of the $876m required to support the refugee community for a year has been pledged so far. Earlier this month, the World Food Program was forced to reduce from $12 to $10 the monthly food vouchers provided to each refugee, which it will further cut to $8 in June.
The almost 1m Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh are at risk of becoming “the new Palestinians”, according to Olivier De Schutter, UN special rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights. De Schutter said the refugees should be given the right to work in their host country of Bangladesh, as forcing them to rely on dwindling international funding was unsustainable. The refugees – most of whom fled brutal crackdowns by the Myanmar military in 2017 – are fenced off from the local community and live in squalid and cramped shelters. Since international outrage over the violence against the Rohingya, the crisis has not been front and centre with international donors increasingly distracted by crises elsewhere. The World Food Programme recently announced it was forced to cut Rohingya refugees’ food allowance to $8 a month per person due to lack of funding.
An additional 90,000 people have fled from Sudan amid conflict to seek sanctuary in neighbouring Chad, which is already hosting 600,000 refugees and is grappling with a fourth year of acute food shortages. The crisis has put an extra burden on one of the poorest countries in the world, with around 2.3 million people in the currently facing acute food insecurity, according to the World Food Programme. The influx of refugees has also disrupted goods markets and put pressure on Chadian water supplies. "The situation is tough for everyone," said Fanna Hamit, a 58-year-old widow who has 11 families from Sudan living under her roof.
Afghans face “staggering neglect” by EU member states, with just 0.1% of the 270,000 Afghans identified as in need of permanent protection resettled in the bloc last year, according to an International Rescue Committee report. The investigation also noted that schemes established to admit Afghans to Germany and Italy last year had not lived up to promises. Meanwhile, Afghans also faced barriers to fair and full asylum procedures, the threat of forcible returns, and the prospect of undignified detention-like centres upon arrival in Europe, the report said.
Lebanon has deported hundreds, and possibly up to 700 Syrians to territories controlled by the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad between April and mid-May, according to the Access Center for Human Rights. Those deported have been subject to arrest and deportation since April 2019, but the country’s recent economic crisis has led to an increase in the number of forced deportations. Human rights groups have called for a halt to the policy, and Lebanese authorities have been criticised for using Syrians as scapegoats for the country’s economic problems. There has also been a call for essential reforms to tackle the crisis.
A damning report by the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has claimed that the UK government's failed attempts to deport small boat migrants are “merely leaving asylum seekers in limbo at a higher cost” to the public. The UNHCR suggests that ministers should drop their refusal to take claims from refugees who have passed through France and other safe countries because of the “absence” of deportation agreements. UNHCR warned failing to declare boat migrants “inadmissible” for asylum “merely caused unnecessary delays and inefficiencies”, worsening the asylum backlog and driving up soaring costs for hotel accommodation.
Public spending on the asylum system has quadrupled under Conservative-led governments
since 2010, according to official figures unearthed by the Labour Party. The spending has increased from £550m in 2012 to £2.1bn in 2021 due to the slower asylum decisions and costly hotel use by Suella Braverman’s last-minute decision. Yvette Cooper, the shadow home secretary, says: “Nothing the government is doing is working, and their legislation is making the situation worse with more people stuck in the system than ever before.” The asylum backlog was recently announced to have risen to a new record high of 173,000 and 1% of small boat asylum cases have had a decision made over the past year.
Refugees and asylum-seekers in Sri Lanka fear they could be “forever trapped in transit”, following the ending of operations by the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) in the country. The situation is complicated by the fact that Sri Lanka is not a signatory to the Global Refugee Compact and so refugees have no right to legal work. As of November 2020, there were 1,253 refugees and asylum-seekers in Sri Lanka. The country’s navy saved 105 displaced Rohingya people from Myanmar in December 2022. However, some refugees, including those classified as UNHCR-recognised asylum-seekers, have received requests to return to their countries of origin, despite fears about the dangers they may face there. UNHCR has provided grants to those recognised as refugees in the country for living and school fees, but aid may cease in December. Recent data suggests that only 21% of the UNHCR’s financial requirements for Sri Lanka has been met.
Burkina Faso’s five-year long conflict has led to 2 million people being displaced, but despite it being named the world’s most neglected crisis, the country has received only limited international aid when compared to Ukraine, according to a report by the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC). Burkina Faso has been attacked by armed militias and educational facilities are being severely impacted with school closures. The NRC report also calls out the need for international support for the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where displacement continues to grow due to a renewal in fighting by Rwandan-backed M23 rebels.
Over 100,000 Sudanese refugees have fled violence to neighbouring Chad, with the UN refugee agency warning that the numbers could double in the next three months. The recent seven-week conflict has pushed Sudan into a humanitarian crisis with the Blue Nile area becoming a warzone. Chad was already hosting close to 600,000 refugees prior to the conflict breaking out in April. The UNHCR requires $214.1m to provide proper services to those displaced in the area, however, the country is currently only 16% funded.
A communications blackout in Darfur is leaving families split between the Sudanese region and Chad guessing about the fates of their loved ones. Widespread fighting in April and May led to more than 250,000 people being displaced, figures that are likely to increase during the current communication blackout. As many as 500 people died in those first few weeks, mostly after armed militias stormed the city of el-Geneina. The shelling was described as relentless. Residents said that Sunni Islamic extremist group ISIS is becoming more entrenched in the region, mirroring its efforts across Africa. Some people have reportedly been unable to leave from el-Geneina after armed Arab ranchers prevented it, either by shooting at those who tried or by restricting access at checkpoints. The Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) have been fighting since April 15, and many refugees said that attacks began after the army and local police left their areas.
The UK Home Secretary, Suella Braverman, is at the centre of an urgent call from Westminster City Council to explain why a group of some 40 asylum seekers have been left stranded for two nights on the streets of Westminster. The refugees refused to enter a Pimlico hotel where they were being asked to have four people share a room. The situation jeopardises health and safety, with the council warning that putting people who may have been through traumatic experiences in such a confined space could cause further trauma. As of the time of writing, the Home Office had not yet provided a resolution to the issue. A spokesperson for the Home Office said that the UK had an obligation to provide accommodation to asylum seekers, a task that costs the country £6m per day.
Lululemon has been awarded an exemption from Canadian foreign worker rules to allow it to hire foreign workers for “high-skilled occupations” without approval that is usually required. The labour market impact assessment (LMIA) determines if foreigner workers are needed when a Canadian employee is unavailable. Working with closed work permits as a condition makes an employee’s position more precarious. The sole previous exemption to the LMIA Labour Market Impact Assessment was in 2014 when Microsoft Canada was allowed to bring in unspecified trainees as employees. The clothing manufacturer has argued that Canada has a shortage of talent, with 2600 jobs needed. This year, labour shortages have become a challenge in Canada, with a record high of almost one million employment opportunities. Critics say that this expansion is leading to a significantly rising second tier workforce that lacks immigration protection.
Cash Incentives and Coercion: The Controversial Strategy for Rohingya Repatriation
Diplomat
23-06-02 13:49
The Bangladeshi government is using misinformation, threats of violence, and financial incentives to coerce Rohingya refugees into returning to Myanmar, say human rights advocates and humanitarian agencies. Rohingya families on Bhasan Char, a silt island serving as a makeshift refugee camp, were promised a $2,000 payment if they agreed to repatriation, according to two people who spoke to Reuters. Coercion and financial offerings have left the Rohingya population vulnerable, said Jeff Crisp, formerly the head of the Policy Development and Evaluation Service at UNHCR. Critics argue that the approach does not address the safety, welfare and rights of the Rohingya refugees.
Amnesty International awarded BBC Sport presenter Gary Lineker a Sport and Human Rights award in Rome, despite his recent BBC suspension over a political tweet that challenged anti-immigration UK government policy. Lineker criticised a speech by Suella Braverman when she presented her “stop the boats” (migrants) bill and compared elements of her rhetoric to that of Nazi-era Germany. Although he was suspended for breaching impartiality, Lineker believed his actions to be humanitarian, calling for “empathy” and “compassion towards people in a perilous plight”. The independence of refugees, their status and portrayal has since become an issue of international importance and concern.
The United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) has been told it will receive just $107m in pledges towards its $1.6bn fundraising target. UN chief Antonio Guterres had warned that the UNRWA, which provides healthcare, social services, jobs, and education to refugees including 700 schools and 140 clinics, was "on the verge of financial collapse." Philippe Lazzarini, the commissioner general of UNRWA, said the fresh donations were welcome, but insufficient to keep the agency running. The UNRWA provides assistance to 5.9 million refugees from Gaza, the West Bank, and Middle East countries, including Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan.
The Fear Door: life as a refugee an immersive experience in new exhibit
CBC
23-06-03 12:00
The Museum of Immigration in Halifax is now showing a travelling section, Refuge Canada, which highlights the plight of refugees and Canada's mixed record in supporting them. The exhibit allows visitors to experience various aspects of the refugee journey, which begins with The Fear Door - an authentic green wooden door with violent gouge marks to evoke the memory of arrests, roundups, kidnappings and killings in refugees' home countries. It ends with viewing real-life tents provided by the United Nations Refugee Agency. One of the most poignant parts of the exhibit is the UN refugee tent that visitors can crawl into and, according to Marie Chapman, CEO of the Museum of Immigration, has made refugees feel as though "this fancy museum tells my story, I must be worthy of that story". Sophie Auffrey, heritage development officer with Resurgo Place, where the exhibit is being shown, feels the exhibit is important given that Moncton has recently welcomed refugees from Syria, Afghanistan and Ukraine.
