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Opening Statement by Mr. António Guterres, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, at the Fifty-sixth Session of the Executive Committee of the High Commissioner's Programme (ExCom), Geneva, 3 October 2005
3 Oct 2005 2005 World Summit Outcome produced consensus on establishing a Peacebuilding Commission and reaffirmed commitment to MDGs, both of which important for addressing root causes of forced displacement
Because UNHCR is mandated to put needs of refugees before all else, protection remains central
Mainstreaming policies on gender, age and diversity a top priority for 2006
3 increasing challenges today:
- rising intolerance: fuelled in part by a rise in populist confusion of security problems, terrorism and refugee issues
- preserving asylum in complex migration flows: examples Mediterranean and Gulf of Aden
- gap between relief and development: particularly affects repatriation, where large inflows of returnees become unsustainable without development to match
Biggest challenge: internal displacement, UNHCR plans to be fully engaged on this
But UNHCR's involvement has two conditions:
- affected populations can seek and enjoy asylum
- extra funding (no diversion of refugee funds for internal displacement response)
Plans to create emergency response capacity for up to 500,000 displaced by 2007
Committed to a results-based management system
Headquarters to have a 'zero-growth' policy
In 2004 UNHCR had 605 NGO partners
Afghan return operation continues to break records (3,8 million helped by UNHCR since 2002)
2005 also saw big Liberian repatriation (38,000 refugees, plus 200,000 internally displaced)
Colombia still a huge issue (internal and refugees)
Hope for returns to South Sudan and Burundi
Other positive developments: Tajiks in Turkmenistan (citizenship granted); Vietnamese Montagnards; Myanmarese in Thailand
"Côte d'Ivoire, the Central African Republic and Myanmar require close attention"
Welcomed Afghan's signature of Convention and Protocol -
"Voices against Poverty" - Statement by Mr. António Guterres, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, to the High-Level Segment of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), New York, 29 June 2005
29 Jun 2005 A message from the despairing Sudanese refugees met recently in Uganda
Despite Millennium Development Goals and international conferences, thousands of desperate people "fall through the cracks"
3 issues:
- displaced too often seen as a burden rather than a source of skills and potential
- achieving development goals hard with so much conflict
- gap between relief and development: saving lives with assistance unsustainable without development strategies
50% of countries slide back into conflict within 5 years of a peace, conflict-prevention needed -
Remarks by Mr. António Guterres, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, to the Informal Meeting of the Executive Committee of the High Commissioner's Programme (ExCom), Geneva, 17 June 2005
17 Jun 2005 Thanks to Deputy High Commissioner, Wendy Chamberlin, for stewarding UNHCR during its transition period (since departure of High Commissioner Lubbers)
All must assume more responsibility for refugees, plus improve collective response to internal displacement
Discussion is all very well, but "what really matters is delivering protection and solutions to those who need it"
UNHCR must be a pioneer in gender equity and concerns for women, children and other vulnerable groups
Three urgent choices:
- "make transparency and accountability the cornerstone of our action": IGO to be strengthened and its independence guaranteed
- Changing nature of protection: "My vision for protection at UNHCR is to erase the separation between protection and operations"
Creation of Assistant HC for Protection aims to close gap between protection and operations and also gap between HQ and field
- Internal displacement
Also need to reform, and improve capacity to respond to emergencies
Wants to broaden funding base, including private sector
Shocked by learning that some camp refugees are not receiving enough food
Concerned too by recent forced returns between countries with bilateral agreements, under UNHCR protest
Commitment to the most important people to UNHCR - refugees - underscored by spending World Refugee Day in Uganda