Blogs About Refugees
Regional Focus: Africa
The Kampala Convention: Entry into Force (Brookings-LSE Project on Internal Displacement, May 2013) [access]
Libyans in North Africa Scared to Return Home (IRIN, May 2013) [text]
"Life in Transition: Ongoing Social and Economic Impacts of Internal Displacement on Young People in Liberia," Georgetown Public Policy Review, vol. 18, no. 2 (Spring 2013) [full-text]
Returns to South and Central Somalia: A Violation of International Law (Amnesty International, May 2013) [text via Refworld]
Tales of the Unexpected (Inside Story, May 2013) [text]
Voices from Exile: Daily Realities and Future Prospects of Congolese and Burundian Refugees in the Great Lakes Region (Danish Refugee Council, May 2013) [text via ReliefWeb]
Tagged Publications.
Thematic Focus: Gender Issues
FY 2013 Funding Opportunity Announcement for Global Programs to Develop and Assess the Humanitarian Community's Capacity to Prevent and Respond to Gender-based Violence (GBV) within Refugee and Conflict-affected Populations [info]
- Proposal submission deadline is 5 June 2013.
Gender, the Refugee and Displacement (1900-1950), Newcastle upon Tyne, UK, 5 July 2013 [info]
- Registration is now open; a programme will be available at the end of the month.
Publications:
Annual Review of the Human Rights Situation of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex People (ILGA Europe, May 2013) [text via Refworld]
- See also other related materials from ILGA Europe including score sheets per country.
Female Refugees Fleeing Conflict (IntLawGrrls, May 2013) [text]
Invisible in the City: Protection Gaps Experienced by Sexual Minority Refugees and Asylum Seekers in Urban Ecuador, Ghana, Israel, and Kenya (HIAS, Feb. 2013) [text]
- See also related U.S. State Dept. speech.
"Nexus with a Convention Ground: The Particular Social Group and Sexual Minority Refugees in Ireland and the United Kingdom," Irish Law Journal, vol. 1, no. 1 (2012) [full-text]
The Plight of LGBTI Asylum Seekers, Refugees (IRIN, May 2013) [text]
"Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity and the Protection of Forced Migrants," Forced Migration Review, no. 42 (April 2013) [open access text]
-"Around the world, people face abuse, arbitrary arrest, extortion, violence, severe discrimination and lack of official protection because of their sexual orientation and/or gender identity. This latest issue of FMR includes 26 articles on the abuse of rights of forced migrants who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or intersex. Authors discuss both the challenges faced and examples of good practice in securing protection for LGBTI forced migrants."
UK Asylum Process Painful for Lesbians Fleeing Death Threats (Thomson Reuters Foundation, May 2013) [text]
"Women as a Particular Social Group: A Comparative Assessment of Gender Asylum Claims in the United States and United Kingdom," Georgetown Immigration Law Journal, vol. 26, no. 2 (Winter 2012) [full-text via SSRN]
Tagged Publications and Events & Opportunities.
UK asylum process painful for lesbians fleeing death threats
MANCHESTER, England (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – When Glory Metfyean’s family found out that she was a lesbian, they beat her up, locked her in a dark room, prayed for her and threatened to kill her.
She was cut with a razor blade and had chillies rubbed into the wounds, she said, lifting her shirt to show numerous small horizontal scars on her spine.”They called the pastor from the church to pray for me secretly,” the 34-year-old recalls. “My family said if I don’t change it they would be forced to kill me.”
Hatred of homosexuality is particularly virulent in Glory’s native Nigeria, and has been described as the one issue on which the country’s fractious Christians and Muslims are united. Homosexuality is illegal and punishable by up to 14 years in prison. In some of Nigeria’s northern Muslim states, gays can face death by stoning under sharia, Islamic law.
“In my country, people take laws into their hands. Nobody can stop them. They can kill you. People can be burnt alive,” Glory told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. “You face discrimination, torture, death and if you’re not careful, some people can rape you, saying they want you to be a woman.”
Such widespread intolerance meant that when Glory first came to Britain in 2007 and sought asylum, she kept quiet about her sexuality and claimed asylum on the ground that members of her family, living in the Niger Delta, had been killed and persecuted. When she later gained enough confidence to reveal she was a lesbian, and claimed asylum on that basis, Home Office officials said her case lacked credibility.
A judicial review of her case is now pending.
BEING FORCED TO OPEN UP
Glory’s experience is not uncommon among foreign gays seeking asylum in Britain, campaigners and researchers say.
There is no hard data, but the UK Lesbian & Gay Immigration Group (UKLGIG) released a report three years ago which said the number of asylum cases being rejected at the initial decision-making stage was far higher for lesbians and gay men than for other people.
The report said that 73 percent of all asylum claims made in the UK were rejected at this initial stage. But 98-99 percent of the asylum claims made by lesbians and gay men that the UKLGIG was aware of were rejected at the same stage.
A complicating factor is that the Refugee Convention does not recognise persecution due to an individual’s sexuality as a basis for establishing refugee status. These cases are usually argued under another category – “membership of a particular social group” – one of the most difficult categories to define.
For the women themselves, speaking openly to UK immigration officials and judges about their sexuality, after keeping it hidden for so long to avoid persecution, is one of the greatest hardships they face, said Claire Bennett, a researcher at Southampton University.
“Because of how their sexuality was deemed in their home countries … it’s something that simply may not be talked about,” said Bennett, who spent three years interviewing lesbians from Jamaica, Uganda, Gambia, Nigeria, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia about their experiences seeking asylum in the UK. “There’s the view that it’s contagious. There’s the fear of other people finding out, the fear of imprisonment.”
In Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, homosexuality is considered un-Islamic.
In Uganda, a draft bill dubbed “Kill the Gays” required gays to be reported to the authorities and homosexuals to face a death sentence. Those clauses were later dropped and as of February, the draft legislation was awaiting debate in parliament.
The first screening interview with UK immigration officials – in a public space, within earshot of other asylum seekers – can be excruciating. “For lesbian asylum seekers, that’s when they have to say ‘I’m a lesbian’, and for some women that’s the first time they had ever publicly said that,” Bennett said.
Having to share such personal information with people in positions of authority was particularly painful for women who had been jailed for their sexuality and were wary of those in uniform, Bennett said.
She quoted a Jamaican woman she interviewed, who said being forced to reveal so much was like being raped. “It just feels like you’ve taken all your innards and just spread them out there and somebody’s just walked on them, and then you’ve just got to try to tuck it back in for your mere survival,” the woman said.
Full article via UK asylum process painful for lesbians fleeing death threats.
Filed under: News Tagged: news
Refugees United and Ericsson Announce Global Hack for Good to Connect Refugees to Missing Families
PRESS RELEASE — In order to raise awareness of the plight of refugees, and find new ways to reconnect refugee families in some of the most remote areas in the world, Ericsson and Refugees United will run a series of developer competitions leading up to World Refugee Day, on 20 June 2013.
The number of forcibly displaced people around the world is measured now at 43 million. That is why it is urgent to reconnect families who have been separated due to conflict, war, and disaster. So far over 200,000 refugees have registered on the service, and the aim is to reach 1 million by the end of 2015.
The Global Hack for Good will galvanize the talent and skill of the developer community toward a solution for separated families. The unique series of “hackathons” – a weekend-long marathon of developing applications on mobile networks – will be held on three continents, on three separate weekends, but all are working toward the same goal of making re-connection easier. For example, refugees may be reluctant to share data, or they face challenges such as illiteracy and lack of internet connectivity.
Developers might find ways to make the platform more accessible from low-cost mobile phones, change interfaces or modify the built-in messaging application that allows refugees to exchanges messages without additional costs.
The first hackathon will be in Cairo, Egypt, on 31 May-1 June. Then, a new batch of developers will gather in San Francisco, USA, on 7-8 June, and the third part of the Global Hack for Good will be held in Nairobi, Kenya, on 15-16 June.
Christopher Mikkelsen, co-founder of Refugees United, says: “Everyone has the right to know where their family is. To separated refugee families, this for many years seemed impossible. Today, we’re at a tipping point where technology can help them reconnect. Now it’s up to us to act and help.”
Elaine Weidman-Grunewald, Vice President of Sustainability and Corporate Responsibility, Ericsson, said: “We have a long-term commitment to the refugee cause, and have been working with Refugees United since 2010 to create a mobile platform for refugees to reconnect with family and loved ones. We now want to harness some of the new innovation and technology of the developer community with this Global Hack for Good, in order to scale and amplify the great work that is already underway.
“Increasingly we see developers wanting to apply their skills for a good cause - this is a true example of Technology for Good, and we hope to see the world’s most talented developers create new ideas to serve more separated families,” she said.
The jury, including experts from both Ericsson and Refugees United, will select two finalists at each location. On World Refugee Day, June 20, 2013, a winner from each location will be announced. The three winners receive a trip to Kenya and will be invited to test their prototypes in the Kakuma refugee camp in late 2013.
- The hack in Cairo: May 31st - June 1st 2013
- The hack in Silicon Valley: 8th of June - 9th of June 2013
- The hack in Nairobi: June 15th - June 16th 2013
FOR MEDIA INQUIRIES PLEASE CONTACT:
Ida Jeng, Communication Manager, Refugees United. Mail: ij@refunite.org / mobile: +45 31 49 31 93.
Turkey: Syrian Refugees Targeted after Reyhanlı Blasts
On May 11th, Reyhanlı [en] small Turkish town on Turkey-Syria border, was under terrorist attacks. This was the biggest terrorist attack [en] in country's 90 year-old republican history. After the explosions nine people were detained [en] by the security forces. Officials said [en], two vehicles were used in the bombings and more than 50 people were killed and at least 100 people were injured. But on social media, there were rumors that the real number of the victims is more than 100.
Twitter user shiny (@Idauk) tweets [Tr]:
@Idauk Simdi Antakya'dan arkadasimla konustum.Olu sayisi 100′un uzerinde diyor.Reyhanli'da fiili sokaga cikma yasagi varmis.Hastahaneler perisan.
I just talked with a friend from Antakya. As my friend said, the number of the people were killed is over 100. Also, there is a curfew. Hospitals are all miserable.
Just after the explosions, the Turkish government issued a media ban [en] on the Reyhanlı blasts. This ban received a big reaction on social media. Twitter user denizatam (@denizatam) writes:
@denizatam AKP çareyi buldu, Reyhanlı için yayın yasağı başladı! Ana akım medya yetmedi yerel basını sustur şimdi. http://haber.sol.org.tr/devlet-ve-siyaset/akp-careyi-buldu-reyhanli-icin-yayin-yasagi-basladi-haberi-72848 …
AKP (Justice and Development Party) found the solution. A media ban was initiated for the Reyhanli Blasts! Mainstream was not enough, now it is the time to silence local media.
Journalists protested [en] the media ban. On Türkmax, the media ban was protested in a more sarcastic way, on their comedy show “Heberler”. In the video, the anchorman is opening the program with Reyhanlı blasts. Due to media ban, he remains speechless. Here is the video [tr]:
A picture at bobiler.org on the blast media ban
A Turkish viral graphics and design website, bobiler.org, published a picture about media ban. User brewolve prepared a graphic about the Turkish media's reaction on Reyhanlı blasts, since the media was just following their normal program line and not mentioning Reyhanlı blasts. Graphic can be seen here.
Although the media ban was lifted by Turkish courts, on May 16, a video on YouTube claims that the ban has fulfilled its purpose. In the video [tr], a journalist interviews several people on the street asking them “what do you think about Reyhanlı?”. The answers are shocking; only one person recognized the blasts, and a few remembered where the town was, and rest had no idea where it was or what happened in Reyhanlı, even though the video was recorded only five days after the blasts. Here is the video:
There are also reports [tr] on racist attacks on Syrian refugees. Since the Syrian civil war, Syrian refugees and militants fled to Antakya [en], a Turkish city on Syrian-Turkey border, and Reyhanlı, a town of the same city. Since the refugees and militants moved [en] into Antakya, the tension between the locals and Syrians has been high. In the report it says:
“Suriyelilerin yaşadığı binalara topluca gidilmiş birçok ev yakılmaya çalışılmış, ele geçirilen kişiler darp edilmişlerdir. Aşırı milliyetçi/ulusalcı eğilimlere sahip partilere mensup fanatiklerinden olduğu söylenen ve her geçen gün sayıları artmakta olan bu gurup, yaşanan gelişmelerden Suriyelileri sorumlu tutmakta, Reyhanlı ilçe merkezinde devriye gezerek sıklıkla yol kesmekte, Suriyeli veya Suriye vatandaşı olduğunu zannettikleri kişileri linç etmeye çalışmaktadırlar”
A group of people went to the buildings that Syrians are living in, they beat the people they caught. As said, these people are the members of ultra nationalist parties and they increasing in numbers, they blame Syrians for the blasts, and they patrol the Reyhanli city center, where they are attacking Syrians or people who look like Syrian citizens.
Turks on social media gave mixed reactions on the attacks on Syrians in Reyhanli.
Twitter user T.C. Zehra Aydogan (@TurkKizi1919) is angry at Syrians in Antakya:
@TurkKizi1919 Turkiye'ye yerlestirilmeye calistiklari Suriyeli Multeci dedikleri terorsitlerdir.
The so called Syrian refugees that they want to settle in Turkey are, actually terrorists.
Another user, T.C.Devrim #ATATÜRK (@saadet_karakus), is angry at government for helping the refugees instead of the locals:
@saadet_karakus Suriyeli multeci icin milyar dolar harcayanlar,Reyhanlı esnafının vergi, sigorta borçlarını 1 yıl erteliyor.Silsene o borcu buyuk devlet!
The ones, who spend billions of dollars for Syrian refugees, are delaying Reyhanli store owners’ debts for one year. Write off those debts, you big government!
Twitter user Sami Pelitli (@SamiPelitli) says:
@SamiPelitli Reyhanli'da patlayan bomba yuzunden multecileri suclamak, onlara saldirmak nasil bir vicdansizliktir? Bir de irkci degiliz dersiniz.
What kind of remorselessness it is, to blame refugees for the blasts in Reyhanli, and to attack them? And you also say we are not racist.
Journalist Hayko Bağdat (@haykobagdat) tweets:
@haykobagdat ÖSO, cemaat, AKP'li filanlı olmaktan değil, tehcirin ne olduğunu bildiğimden Suriyeli mültecilere toz kondurmuyorum ben.
I am defending Syrian refugees, because I know the meaning of emigration, not because I am fan of FSA (Free Syrian Army), AKP (Justice and development Party), or congregation.
After the death of tens of people and a border town with tens of buildings collapsed [en], life still continues in Reyhanlı. Twitter user Bünyamin Salmanyan (@bunyms) remembers Mustafa Ayaz [tr], who was killed by the blasts in Reyhanlı:
@bunyms Reyhanlı'daki saldırıda hayatını kaybeden 25 yaşındaki Mustafa Ayaz'ın eşi bugün doğum yapmış, adını Mustafa koymuşlar..
Mustafa Ayaz, 25, was killed by the blasts; his wife gave a birth to his son today, and they named him Mustafa…
Australia Excuses Itself from Refugee Law
On 17 May 2013 Australian blogger and self-styled ‘global nomad’ More Atlitude posted a lengthy and detailed post in response to “Australia’s decision yesterday to excise its mainland from the migration zone” this week. He argues that it
essentially reinforces a horrible, horrible policy of enforced detention for legal (I stress, again and again and again, people, LEGAL, good grief do I need to paint it neon and string it with lights?) asylum-seekers.
The Death of Mr Khalid Shahzad following his release from Colnbrook Immigration Removal Centre
Reblogged from The Detention Forum:
The Detention Forum sent the joint letter below to the Guardian in response to their news item on the death of Mr Khalid Shahzad on 30 March 2013. It was reported that Mr Shahzad, an asylum seeker, passed away hours after being released from Colnbrook Immigration Removal Centre near Heathrow Airport. The letter was unfortunately not published.
The Death of Mr Khalid Shahzad following his release from Colnbrook Immigration Removal Centre…
Healthcare of undocumented migrant children
Reblogged from Postcards from ...:
Nando Sigona analyses the predicament of undocumented migrants and the way the uncertainty and stress of the family struggle, as well as restricted access to healthcare services, impact the mental and physical well-being of the children.
Meeting the health needs of a growing and super-diverse, foreign-born population in the UK is a challenge for health services. However, these needs are currently only partially acknowledged and addressed.
New Issues of Global Eye, JIRS, J. Intercult. Stud., J. Intl. Humanit. Legal Stud., MPP, Vivre Ens., WAN
- A news bulletin from IOM.
Journal of Immigrant & Refugee Studies, vol. 11, no. 2 (2013) [contents]
- Mix of articles including "Navigating Between Control and Autonomy: Recently Arrived Iraqi Refugees’ Perceptions Regarding Honor, Well-Being, and Risk for Intimate Partner Violence."
Journal of Intercultural Studies, vol. 34, no. 2 (2013) [contents]
- Focus is on migration in Australia.
Journal of International Humanitarian Legal Studies, vol. 3, no. 1 (2012) [contents]
- Mix of articles.
Migration Policy Practice, vol. III, no. 2 (April/May 2013) [full-text via ReliefWeb]
- Mix of articles.
Vivre Ensemble, No. 142 (April 2103) [contents]
- Mix of articles on asylum and Syria. Some articles are provided in full-text.
Women's Asylum News, no. 117 (May/June 2013) [full-text via Refworld]
- Lead article is "Pregnant Women in Detention."
Tagged Periodicals.
Scientific Conference on The right to rehabilitation for torture victims
Scientific Conference on
The right to rehabilitation for torture victims 27 – 28 JUNE 2013Beirut, Lebanon, Holiday Inn Beirut – Dunes Center
ContextInternational law grants torture victims a right to rehabilitation. This is included as a means of redress and reparation guaranteed by Article 14 of the Convention against Torture. While the precise scope of the obligations on states under Article 14 has been clarified to some extent by the Committee against Torture’s General Comment on Article 14, rehabilitation services are not readily available in all countries. Additionally, many governments lack specific programmes or health budget lines to provide or ensure the provision of rehabilitation services to torture victims. There is accordingly a need to encourage further discussion and collaboration between key stakeholders from government, civil society, academia and donor organisations on how rehabilitation for torture victims can be effectively delivered and can contribute to the fight against torture.
The conference will explore in detail the way rehabilitation is provided to torture victims and it will consider how States can be encouraged to strengthen their implementation efforts in providing holistic and victim-centred rehabilitation services and the necessary funding to torture victims. The four interlinked themes of the conference will provide a platform to share good practice examples in models for the delivery and funding of rehabilitation and explore ways in which rehabilitation services and other key stakeholders can assess and evaluate the services provided in their national context. Linked to this is a need to focus on the immediate situation in the MENA region which faces particular challenges with regard to the provision of rehabilitation services to torture victims. The conference will draw on the experience from rehabilitation centres worldwide as well as representatives from academia, governments, inter-governmental organisations and civil society.
The conference will be hosted jointly by the IRCT and Restart. The IRCT is a health-based umbrella organisation that supports the rehabilitation of torture victims and the prevention of torture worldwide. Its members comprise 144 independent organisations in over 70 countries. Restart is an IRCT member centre based in Lebanon and is active in the field of rehabilitation of victims of torture and violence.
RegistrationRegistration is free but required – please fill in the online registration form. Please note places are limited. Registration closing date: 14 June 2013
Your kind attention is drawn to the fact that, due to budgetary constraints, the IRCT and Restart are regrettably not in a position to cover participants’ costs.
ProgrammeFor the detailed programme please click here.
Practical InformationFor practical information please click here.
For further information please contact: Rachel Towers (rto@irct.org) or Dalal Khawaja (dalal@restartcenter.com).
Filed under: Conferences & Meetings, Events Tagged: events
Re-Blog: Events & Opportunities: May/June 2013
Details of these new events and opportunities were originally circulated by Elisa Mason on the incredibly useful: Forced Migration Current Awareness Blog. Further details can be found on the website at: http://fm-cab.blogspot.co.uk/
Events and Opportunities
Crisis and Migration – Perceptions, Challenges and Consequences, IMISCOE 10th Annual Conference, Malmö, Sweden, 25-27 August 2013 [info]
- Some 45 workshops have been organized, with a variety of CFP deadlines (mostly May and June 2013). Follow the link above to search for relevant fora, browse through workshop descriptions, or check out the overview.
Job Vacancy: Senior Programme Officer, Libya & Tunisia, Danish Refugee Council [info]
- Based in Tripoli. Application deadline is 22 May 2013.
The Political Geography of Refugee Camps, Panel proposal for International Studies Association Annual Convention, Toronto, 26-29 March 2014 [info]
- Submit a proposal by 24 May 2013.
Job Vacancy: Interim Campaigns & Communications Manager, Freedom from Torture [info]
- Based in London. Application deadline is 28 May 2013.
The (Mis)treatment of Eritrean and Sudanese Asylum Seekers in Israel, Oxford, 28 May 2013 [info]
Regional Protection Programmes: An Effective Policy Tool?, Brussels, 30 May 2013 [info]
- The agenda is now available!
XV Humanitarian Congress, Berlin, 25-27 October 2013 [info]
- Online registration opens in June 2013.
FY 2013 Funding Opportunity Announcement for NGO Programs Benefiting Refugees and IDPs in the Balkans [info]
- Proposal submission deadline is 3 June 2013.
FY 2013 Funding Opportunity Announcement for Global Programs to Develop and Assess the Humanitarian Community’s Capacity to Prevent and Respond to Gender-based Violence (GBV) within Refugee and Conflict-affected Populations [info]
- Proposal submission deadline is 5 June 2013.
FY 2013 Funding Opportunity Announcement for NGO Programs Benefiting Sri Lankan Refugees in Tamil Nadu, India [info]
- Proposal submission deadline is 6 June 2013.
Summer School: European Union Law and Policy on Immigration and Asylum, Brussels, 1-12 July 2013 [info]
- Apply by 7 June 2013.
Filed under: Events Tagged: events
New Thematic Publications on Climate Change/Disasters; Human Trafficking/Smuggling ; and
Details of these new publications were originally circulated by Elisa Mason on the incredibly useful: Forced Migration Current Awareness Blog. Further details can be found on the website at: http://fm-cab.blogspot.co.uk/
New Publications on Climate Change/Disasters
Global Estimates 2012: People Displaced by Disasters is a newly-released report from the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC). It finds that “98% of all displacement in 2012 [an estimated 32.4 million people] was related to climate- and weather-related events… .” Follow the link to access the text of the report, a press release, global estimates highlights, and a map.
Other recent publications:
Climate Change, Environmental Degradation, and Migration, Commission Staff Working Document, no. SWD(2013) 138 final (European Commission, April 2013) [text]
CRED Crunch, no. 31 (March 2013) [full-text]
- Provides data for natural disasters in 2012.
Measuring Disasters’ Full Impact (Brookings-LSE Project on Internal Displacement, May 2013) [access]
“Wet Feet Marching: Climate Justice and Sustainable Development for Climate Displaced Nations in the South Pacific,” Vermont Journal of Environmental Law, vol. 14, no. 1 (2012) [full-text]
Where the Sea has Risen too High Already (IPS, April 2013) [text]
New Publications on Human Trafficking/Smuggling
Analysis: Southeast Asia’s Human Trafficking Conundrum (IRIN, May 2013) [text]
“Assistance and Protection of Smuggled Migrants: International Law and Australian Practice,” Sydney Law Review, vol. 35, no. 1 (2013) [full-text]
Global Eye on Human Trafficking, no. 12 (April 2013) [full-text]
- A news bulletin from IOM.
In Brief: Raids Free Enslaved Migrants/Refugees in Yemen (IRIN, May 2013) [text]
‘No to People Smuggling’: A Review of Australia’s Anti-migrant Smuggling Awareness Campaigns (Migrant Smuggling Working Group, May 2013) [text]
Stuck in Traffic: How Helpful is the Trafficking Framework? (COMPAS Blog, May 2013) [text]
New General Publications
Refugee Repatriation: Justice, Responsibility and Redress (Cambridge University Press, 2013) [info via
Brookings]
- Follow link for text of introduction.
Regional Inter-State Consultation Mechanisms on Migration: Approaches, Recent Activities and Implications for Global Governance of Migration, Migration Research Series, no. 45 (IOM, May 2013) [text via ReliefWeb]
A Report on IASFM14: The 14th Conference of The International Association for the Study of Forced Migration, Kolkata, 6-9 January 2013 [text]
Transitions and Durable Solutions for Displaced Persons: 21 Reasons for Optimism, Presentation at the Transitions and Solutions Roundtable, Amsterdam, 18-19 April 2013 [text]
Filed under: New Resources, Publications Tagged: climate change, Disasters, General, human smuggling, human trafficking, Publications, reports, thematic publications
New Regional Publications on Asia; Europe and Israel, Syrians
Details of these new publications were originally circulated by Elisa Mason on the incredibly useful: Forced Migration Current Awareness Blog. Further details can be found on the website at: http://fm-cab.blogspot.co.uk/
New Publications on Asia
Blasphemy Laws in Pakistan and the Influx of Refugees (International Refugee Law Blog, May 2013) [text]
In Search of Survival and Sanctuary in the City: Refugees from Myanmar/Burma in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (International Rescue Committee, Dec. 2012) [text]
- See also related IRC blog post.
“Polish Refugees in India during and after the Second World War,” The Sarmatian Review, vol. XXXIII, no. 2 (April 2013) [full-text]
Rohingya Evacuation under Way in Myanmar (IRIN, May 2013) [text]
- See also related OCHA map.
Sanctuary in the City? Urban Displacement and Vulnerability in Peshawar, Pakistan, HPG Working Paper (ODI, May 2013) [text]
“Towards an Understanding of North Korean Adolescent Refugees in South Korea,” Torch Trinity Journal, no. 15.2 (2012) [full-text]
New Publications on Europe
Asylum Applicants and First Instance Decisions on Asylum Applications: 2012, Data in Focus, no. 5/2013 (Eurostat, May 2013) [text via EMN Belgium]“Asylum Seekers/Refugees’ Orientations to Belonging, Identity & Integration into Britishness: Perceptions of the Role of the Mainstream and Community Press,” Observatorio (OBS*), vol. 7, no. 1 (2013) [full-text]
A City Says Yes! Reflections on the Experiences of the Save Me Campaign to Promote Refugee Resettlement in Germany (European Resettlement Network, May 2013) [access]
- Launch of publication at event promoting resettlement. Follow link for text and event information.
Initial Observations by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Regional Representation for the Baltic and Nordic Countries on Law Proposal No. 579/Lp11 Amending the Asylum Law of the Republic of Latvia (UNHCR, May 2013) [text]
“Refugees in Serbia – Twenty Years Later,” Journal of the Geographical Institute “Jovan Cvijić” SASA, vol. 63, no. 1 (2013) [full-text]
Social Networks, Social Capital and Refugee Integration (Nuffield Foundation, April 2013) [text]
New Publications on Israel, Syrians
Israel
Despite Halt in Deportations, Refugees in Israel Live in Fear (IPS, May 2013) [text]
Israel: Knesset Urged Not to Pass Law that Would Forcibly Evict Tens of Thousands of Negev/Naqab Bedouin (Amnesty International, April 2013) [text]
“Israel’s African Refugee Dilemma,” Peace Newsletter, no. 824 (May 2013) [full-text]
Protection Concerns Facing Asylum Seekers and Refugees in Israel (HIAS, April 2013) [text]
Syrians
Fleeing Syria, Refugees Arrive to a Different Kind of Hell in Greece (The Atlantic, May 2013) [text]
Shelter Poll Survey on Syrian Refugees in Lebanon (UNHCR & Statistics Lebanon, April 2013) [text via ReliefWeb]
Too Close for Comfort: Syrians in Lebanon, Middle East Report, no. 141 (International Crisis Group, May 2013) [text via ReliefWeb]
Filed under: Refugee Archives Tagged: Asia, Europe, Forced Migration Current Awareness Blog, Israel, Publications, regional publications, reports, Syrians
The Syrian Children Sleeping in the Park
In the park outside our house in Damascus, Syria, new families regularly come to sleep for a couple nights before being escorted away. The few belongings they keep themselves with; blankets, clothes and plastic cups, are being hauled away at the same time. Where do they go? To the temporary camps in schools or mosques? Will they be one of the families living in unfinished buildings, without electricity or water, with no protection from strangers?
One afternoon when I was meeting up with a friend, a teenage girl saw us walking on the street. She came up, asking for money.
”No, habibti.”
After a couple of weeks here I have improved my skills in saying no. And if I gave to someone living close to me, I might be harassed every day.
“Ahmed!” the girl called out and a little boy, maybe 5 years old, ran between us. He didn’t look like the kids I usually saw sleeping in the parks, he was different: even though being barefoot he easily crossed the pebbly street, and no adults were to be seen around. When being approached by kids in other cities, I sometimes ask: “Why are you on the street like this? Why are you not with your mom?” That usually makes them back off, feeling a bit ashamed of their parents sending them out to beg. But I had a feeling that wouldn’t take effect here.
“Please khala, we’re hungry.”
”No.”
The girl was dressed like an adult even though she recently must have entered her teens. Her long dress was ripped, her black scarf hung loosely around her head, displaying her hair, as if she didn’t care anymore.
“They have been in our house too, banging the doors, screaming for money,” my friend told me.
The little boy pulled my blouse, aggressively: “Please!”
I freed myself from his grip and turned around. We tried to speed up the pace to get away. After a few steps, stones and other small things started falling down on us.
“Khallas!” (Stop it!) I yelled to the one closest to me, it was the girl that had ran up behind us.
“No, I won’t stop!”
More stones came swirling through the air, the boy had catched up with my friend and suddenly struck her in the back.
“Hey!” she turned around and raised her hand, appearing a bit stronger than I had.
First then the kids slowed down, but they didn’t stop. It wasn’t until then that I realized they were not afraid of being hit. The girl already had traces of a black eye and scratches in her face. After a while the children seemed to lose the energy to harass us. They stopped, only throwing some small sticks at us as we left the park.
Later that day I saw them again, this time accompanied by two other children. The little group followed people on the street, pulled their clothes, pulled an old woman’s long robe. They received nothing from no one. In a state of conflict, no one is willing to give up whatever little they could spare. One of the boys was now being dragged along the sideway by an older girl, she half carried him. He was beyond tired; exhausted. Another boy, maybe 11 or 12, carried a long stick, violently swinging it back and forth. One man yelled at them, others got scared by the boy and his stick, and crossed the street.
I caught myself thinking, as if I wanted to tell them: “We can’t blame you, you’re just ordinary children. It’s not your fault that you had to become like this.”
PRESS RELEASE // Refugees United Receives Prestigious Award
Copenhagen, Denmark – Prix Ars Electronica honors individuals, institutions and organizations that have made an outstanding achievement in the field of art and technology. Refugees United has received an Award of Distinction from Prix Ars Electronica 2013 in the category Digital Communities, which honors innovative work that bridges geographical, cultural and gender divides. Established in 1987, Prix Ars Electronica is one of the most important awards honoring what is new, radically different and making an impact right now. Headquartered in Linz in Austria, Prix Ars Electronica has previously honored sites, such as Wikipedia, Pixar and Wikileaks. The Award of Distinction includes 5000€. Refugees United has also been invited to present the innovative family-tracing platform at a special ceremony at the annual Ars Electronica Festival in Linz in September 2013. “It is a great honor and a tribute to the fantastic work being carried out by our amazing team and partners every day,” says David Mikkelsen who founded Refugees United in 2008 with his brother Christopher Mikkelsen. Refugees United is on a mission to connect one million refugees by 2015 and has created a web and mobile platform that allows refugees to take the search process into their own hands. Visit www.refunite.org for more info. For media inquiries, please contact: Ida Jeng, Communication Manager Mobile: + 45 31 49 31 93 / Mail: ij@refunite.org
Regional Focus: Australia
For more information and initial reactions:
- Australia’s Expanded Excision Law a New Low in Refugee Protection (Refugee Council of Australia, May 2013) [text]
- Government Removes Australia from its Own Borders to Avoid Obligations (Amnesty International, May 2013) [text]
- "Parliament Excises Mainland from Migration Zone," ABC News, 16 May 2013 [text]
- What Does "Excising the Mainland from the Migration Zone" Mean? (Australian Immigration Law Weblog, May 2013) [text]
I will add more references as they become available.
[Map credit: "Maritime Boundaries and Application of Excision Legislation," Commonwealth of Australia, Jan. 2007]
Events:
Asylum Seekers: In Search of a Humanitarian Solution, Melbourne, 22 May 2013 [info]
Human Rights 2013: The Annual Castan Centre for Human Rights Law Conference, Melbourne, 26 July 2013 [info]
- Includes session on "Refugees, the rule of law and the ethics of protection." Registration is ongoing.
Publications:
Asylum Seekers and Refugees—How Will They be Affected by This Year’s Budget? (FlagPost, May 2013) [text]
"Australia’s Costly Asylum-Seeker Policy Contributes to Nation’s Deficit Woes," Time Magazine, 14 May 2013 [text]
Can Either Side of Politics Stop the Asylum Boats? (Off the Hustings, May 2013) [text]
PromiseWatch 2013: The Houston Panel (Centre for Policy Development, May 2013) [text]
Tagged Publications and Events & Opportunities.
COURSE: Psychosocial and Mental Health Interventions for Urban Refugees | URBAN REFUGEES | Raising the voice of the invisible
The Center for Migration and Refugee Studies of the American University of Cairo will deliver a short course on Psychosocial and Mental Health Interventions for Refugees living in urban context, from 16th to 20th June 2013. Deadline for application: May 19
See more here
Filed under: Courses, Events Tagged: courses, events
Displaced by disasters: 32.4 million people uprooted in both rich and poor countries
Reblogged from Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC):
A new report released today by the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) reveals that 32.4 million people were forced to flee their homes in 2012 by disasters such as floods, storms and earthquakes. While Asia and west and central Africa bore the brunt, 1.3 million were displaced in rich countries, with the USA particularly affected.
98% of all displacement in 2012 was related to climate- and weather-related events, with flood disasters in India and Nigeria accounting for 41% of global disaster displacement in 2012.
King Nigel's Speech: recasting 'us' and 'them'
Reblogged from Postcards from ...:
[Article published in OpenDemocracy, 13 May 2013)
In the UK political debate, boundaries are being blurred between the two hot topics on the political agenda: migration and the EU. This should be a wake-up call for the 2.7 million European immigrants living and working in the UK, says Nando Sigona.
Written by the government and delivered by the reigning monarch, the
Events & Opportunities: May/June 2013
- Some 45 workshops have been organized, with a variety of CFP deadlines (mostly May and June 2013). Follow the link above to search for relevant fora, browse through workshop descriptions, or check out the overview.
Job Vacancy: Senior Programme Officer, Libya & Tunisia, Danish Refugee Council [info]
- Based in Tripoli. Application deadline is 22 May 2013.
The Political Geography of Refugee Camps, Panel proposal for International Studies Association Annual Convention, Toronto, 26-29 March 2014 [info]
- Submit a proposal by 24 May 2013.
Job Vacancy: Interim Campaigns & Communications Manager, Freedom from Torture [info]
- Based in London. Application deadline is 28 May 2013.
Regional Protection Programmes: An Effective Policy Tool?, Brussels, 30 May 2013 [info]
- The agenda is now available!
XV Humanitarian Congress, Berlin, 25-27 October 2013 [info]
- Online registration opens in June 2013.
FY 2013 Funding Opportunity Announcement for NGO Programs Benefiting Refugees and IDPs in the Balkans [info]
- Proposal submission deadline is 3 June 2013.
FY 2013 Funding Opportunity Announcement for Global Programs to Develop and Assess the Humanitarian Community's Capacity to Prevent and Respond to Gender-based Violence (GBV) within Refugee and Conflict-affected Populations [info]
- Proposal submission deadline is 5 June 2013.
FY 2013 Funding Opportunity Announcement for NGO Programs Benefiting Sri Lankan Refugees in Tamil Nadu, India [info]
- Proposal submission deadline is 6 June 2013.
Summer School: European Union Law and Policy on Immigration and Asylum, Brussels, 1-12 July 2013 [info]
- Apply by 7 June 2013.
Related posts:
- Employment Opportunities: May Deadlines
- Events & Opportunities: Even More May 2013
Tagged Events & Opportunities.
