Tag Archives: UNHCR
12 November 2013
Adrian Edwards, spokesperson for the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said the UNHCR is encouraging cooperation among countries affected by mixed migration, and is supporting the Yemeni government to organise a conference next week on asylum and migration together with the International Organization for Migration.
This three-day conference will take place in Sana’a, with participants from governments from the Horn of Africa, Gulf states, donor countries, non-governmental organisations, and institutions such as the Regional Mixed Migration Secretariat.
According to Mr. Edwards, ‘the aim of the Yemen conference is to establish a regional plan to help manage mixed migration between the Horn of Africa and the Arabian Peninsula’.
Source: UNHCR | More than 62,000 people, mostly Ethiopians, risk lives to cross Gulf of Aden this year
15 October 2013
After one of deadliest migrant-ship disasters in recent history, whereby a vessel originating from Libya capsized, already resulting in the death of 311 individuals, UN High Commissioner for Refugees spokesperson Adrian Edwards urged wider responsibility-sharing among European Union states to process asylum claims, and to find lasting solutions for people that are in need of international protection.
A better gathering and sharing of information about the routes and means that people are taking in flight is also needed, as well as improved rescue at sea detection and response, and better care arrangements on arrival after their disembarkation, such as improved facilities, according to Edwards.
Source: UNHCR | UNHCR warns of further boat tragedy risk on Mediterranean
Source: UN News Centre | After Lampedusa tragedy, UN refugee agency urges European Union to revisit migration polices
3 October 2013
UN High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres said regarding Syrian refugees that found refuge in neighbouring states that it is his ‘duty to ask the international community to realize that this burden is far too heavy to be borne by only the neighbouring countries, and to put in place more – and more robust – measures of sharing this burden.’
He said that ‘more international solidarity with host countries and communities is now a must’, meaning not only ‘assistance through humanitarian organizations. It must also mean emergency development support – structural assistance – to neighbouring States, most importantly in health, education, housing, water, and energy supply.’
Helen Clark, Administrator of the UN Development Programme, added that ‘the challenge now is to ensure that our collective response to this complex crisis is both humanitarian and developmental in approach. The humanitarian needs are very stark, but the developmental challenges exacerbated by the crisis in the sub-region cannot be ignored.’
Source: UNHCR | UNHCR head says international community must share burden of Syrian refugees
Source: UNDP | Helen Clark: Speech at UNHCR Executive Committee High Level Segment on “Solidarity with Syrian refugees and host countries”
29 July 2013
The UN Refugee Agency expressed concerns over Australia’s Regional Resettlement Agreement (RRA) with Papua New Guinea in a written statement citing the absence of adequate protection standards for asylum seekers and refugees in Papua New Guinea.
According to UNHCR, Australia maintains a shared responsibility with its developing neighbour to ensure appropriate legal standards for asylum seekers, which includes access to sustainable solutions within Australia. The agency said the RRA raises serious protection questions as there are significant shortcomings in the legal framework in Papua New Guinea for receiving and processing asylum seekers. These include lacking national capacity and poor physical conditions within open-ended and arbitrary detention settings.
Source: UNHCR News & Media | UNHCR: Australia-Papua New Guinea asylum agreement presents protection challenges
26 July 2013
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres addressed gaps in the protection of Syrian refugees who are fleeing to Europe, and urged European states to burden-share and maintain a more generous and consistent approach.
Mr. Guterres said it should be a priority for every EU member state to ensure adequate standards of treatment for Syrian refugees who seek safety in Europe. He observed that only two European states, Sweden and Germany, have received almost two-thirds of the Syrians who are seeking protection in the entire European Union, and highlighted Turkey, which has received more than ten times as many Syrians as have claimed asylum in other countries in Europe.
In order to ‘demonstrate concretely the European commitment to responsibility-sharing with Turkey and other host countries’, it is crucial to find means to ensure that those who seek protection at the borders of the EU have access to procedures, safety and territory, according to Guterres.
He urged that the ‘EU must engage in more burden-sharing initiatives so as to help mitigate the crushing impact which the refugee crisis is having on Syria’s immediate neighbours’.
Source: UN News Centre | As Syrian exodus continues, UN official urges Europe to help shoulder refugee burden
Source: UNHCR News | UN's High Commissioner for Refugees urges Europe to do more for Syrian asylum-seekers