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Statement by Mr. António Guterres, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, to the League of Arab States, Cairo, 4 March 2007
4 Mar 2007 Long Arab tradition of according the asylum-seeker dignity and respect
Quotations from Holy Qur'an dealing specifically with duty to give protection to those who need it
This prefigures modern refugee law to a remarkable extent
Easy therefore for Arab countries to sign Convention and Protocol
Appeals to Muslim world to play a greater role inn discussion and formulation of international refugee policy
"Today, the majority of refugees worldwide are Muslim," at a time of rising intolerance
Wants more Arab governments in ExCom
Unfortunately, many refugee programmes in Muslim world underfunded (e.g. Somalis in Yemen, Sudanese in Egypt)
Iraq: all attention on military and political dimensions of crisis, hardly any on humanitarian aspect
- One in eight Iraqis forced from their homes,
- 1.8 million displaced internally, 2 million fled across borders
- 40,000 to 50,000 new displacements every month
Jordan and Syria have shouldered the main burden, very generously
Numbers too big for local integration, resettlement possible for most vulnerable, solution for most will be return, once security situation permits
Iraq Conference scheduled for April, aim to sensitise the world to humanitarian dimension of crisis -
Statement by Mr. António Guterres, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, to the Third Committee of the United Nations General Assembly, 61st Session, New York, 7 November 2006
7 Nov 2006 Two major challenges:
1. Reassessment of UNHCR's mission
2. Need for deep structural reform
Covers internal displacement, mixed migration flows
Protection must remain central
Statelessness, sustainability of return
Emergency response capacity
Darfur, Somalia, Iraq
Organisational change process
All this needs financial support -
Welcome Address by Mr. António Guterres, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, at the 7th Biennial World Conference of the International Association of Refugee Law Judges, Mexico City, 6 November 2006
6 Nov 2006 -
Opening Statement by Mr. António Guterres, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, at the Fifty-seventh Session of the Executive Committee of the High Commissioner's Programme (ExCom), Geneva, 2 October 2006
2 Oct 2006 First commitment. To strengthen UNHCR's identity as a protection agency.
Exemplary treatment of incoming Rwandans by Burundi
Need to reduce statelessness, work with partners (e.g. UNICEF, UNFPA, UNDP) important on this
Second commitment. To make UNHCR a predictable and fully-engaged partner in the new approach to situations of internal displacement.
UN's new 'cluster' approach has been a success in Uganda (300,000 internally displaced so far gone home)
But UNHCR not waiting for official green light in e.g. Colombia, Sri Lanka, North and South Caucasus
Third commitment. To effectively address the protection concerns in mixed population flows, the so-called migration-asylum nexus.
Migration movements are here to stay, as globalisation labour supply and demand even up
Control is fine, but needs also opportunities for legal migration, development strategies in poorest places, plus cooperation in cracking down on smugglers and traffickers
Fourth commitment. A stronger emphasis on solutions with particular focus on the sustainability of returns and the enhanced role of resettlement, two of the main concerns of Convention Plus, which has been mainstreamed in the Office.
Working closely with USA to minimise impact of recent of material support regulations on refugee admissions
Canada and Australia important resettlement partners
Sustainability of return (examples Congolese from Tanzania, South Sudan, Burundis from Tanzania, Afghans)
Return is all very well, but "refugees cannot live on hope alone"
Fifth commitment. To re-establish a quick, agile and flexible emergency response capacity.
UNHCR recently active in emergencies in Lebanon, Timor-Leste and Pakistan
Financial constraints hampering stockpiling of supplies necessary for commitment to emergency to responses to 500,000 by 2007
Sixth commitment. Reform: the structural and management change process. To make the organization more flexible, effective and results-oriented based on a thorough review and reform of its procedures and structure.
Ratio of staff to operational costs out of balance
UNHCR doing too much itself, results in not being flexible and adaptive
Hence change process, see what can be delivered closer to beneficiaries, and what can be moved out of Geneva
Staff welfare a major component in all of this, including safety standards in the field -
Remarks by Mr. António Guterres, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, to the High Level Dialogue on International Migration and Development, New York, 14 September 2006
14 Sep 2006 Migration
UNHCR participating because often mixed up in migratory movements are refugees
UNHCR should have physical access to these people to see if there are any refugees among them
If there are, they should have access to national asylum procedures
Protection capacity must also be enhanced all along the routes, at borders and on the high seas
UNHCR's role more than just advocacy: practical support to build protection capacity; provision of country-of-origin information (Refworld); using good offices to promote burden-sharing
Important to address the causes of migration, including economic development -
Statement by António Guterres, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, at the Conférence ministerielle Euro-Africaine sur la migration et le développement, Rabat, Morocco, 10-11 juillet 2006
10 Jul 2006 Migration and development
1. Sees development as more broad and inclusive than just synonym for economic growth
2. Those who move, whether migrants or refugees, are doing so precisely because they cannot exercise their right to development at home, in one way or another
3. Special attention needed on mixed migration/refugee flows
Measures taken to curb irregular migration must not prevent refugees from gaining protection they are entitle to
This should happen as close as possible to country of origin, reducing dangerous travel to a minimum
References recently produced UNHCR 10-Point Plan of Action as way in which UNHCR can offer concrete help
Issue not confined to countries of origin, European countries can also help by:
- contributing to responsibility-sharing arrangements
- providing protection to those who need it
- ensuring public debate on asylum and migration is conducted in a calm and rational manner
4. Consider the contribution refugees themselves can make to the development process
5. Seize peacebuilding opportunities when they arise, linking short-term aid to longer-term development initiatives
6. Promoting social inclusion and tolerance can maximise development impact of migration -
Statement by Mr. António Guterres, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, for 2006 World Refugee Day, 20 June 2006
20 Jun 2006 Triumph of hope over despair -
Remarks by Mr. António Guterres, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, at the Launch of the "State of the World's Refugees," London, 19 April 2006
19 Apr 2006 SOWR reflects what UNHCR and others feel are the pressing issues of the day
There are 33 cases involving 25,000 people in protracted refugee situations (more than 5 years)
22 UNHCR staff killed in line of duty since 1990 -
Statement to media by Mr. António Guterres, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, on the conclusion of his Mission to the People's Republic of China, Beijing, 23 March 2006
23 Mar 2006