World Refugee Day commemorative event at the National History Museum of Moldova: Photo: UNHCR
World Refugee Day was marked on Tuesday in Chisinau with an art exhibition and a concert given by several artists from Moldova and Ukraine. Among the performers were Pasha Parfeni and Adrian Ursu from Moldova and saxophonist Igor Znatokov and singer Olga Gornyh from Ukraine. Olesya Shevchenko, the wife of His Excellency the Ambassador of Ukraine to Moldova, gave an enthralling performance in Romanian, sending a message of gratitude to the Moldovans for hosting Ukrainians in their time of need.
The event was organised by the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) at the National Museum of History and brought together Ministers, Ambassadors, heads of UN and international agencies as well as Ukrainians fleeing the war who have found safety in Moldova. Among them was Anastasia Ciorninkaia, who spoke about the suffering her compatriots have gone through and thanked Moldovans for their hospitality: “We were living in our homes, we were safe, drinking tea, making plans for the future, but one day at 5 am we heard an explosion, a terrible sound that changed our lives forever”, Anastasia said, adding, “Thousands of us left our homes and crossed the border into Moldova. You met us at border, fed us, sheltered us. I promise from this stage that I will pass on to the next generations how you helped us!”.
Francesca Bonelli, UNHCR representative in Moldova, also expressed her gratitude to the people and government of the Republic of Moldova, donors, humanitarian partners and all others who helped respond to the refugee crisis. “In my few months in the Republic of Moldova, I have witnessed the great hospitality Moldovans have accorded to refugees. And I discovered that this is rooted in the CASA MARE tradition which reserves the best room in the house for guests,” Ms. Bonelli appealed for increased international support for refugees and the local population.
The event was also attended by Marcel Spatari Minister of Labour and Social Protection and Jana Costachi, State Secretary of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. The two senior officials commended the efforts of all those involved in responding to the refugee crisis. “The greatest credit goes not to the Ministry, not to the Government, but to the community and volunteers. Today, more than 95% of refugees are hosted by Moldovan families or have found housing on their own. We can have the best ministers, the best development partners, the best action plans, but we won’t achieve anything if we don’t have the most important thing of all – Peace!” Mr. Spatari said.
The head of the Joint Refugee Crisis Management Cell, Colonel Adrian Efros, said that since February more than half a million Ukrainian refugees have transited through Moldova and more than 80 thousand were still in the country, half of them children.
According to Colonel Efros, more than 100 Ukrainian babies were born in the Republic of Moldova since February and more than 6,000 children have been enrolled in schools.
World Refugee Day was first celebrated on 20 June 2001 and was created by the United Nations to honour refugees around the world. Each year, the event celebrates the strength and courage of people who have been forced to leave their homeland to stay alive because of conflicts or persecution. While it is important to protect and improve the lives of refugees every day, World Refugee Day helps focus global attention on the plight of these people and creates opportunities to support them. Currently, more than 85 thousand refugees are in the Republic of Moldova, including more than 80,000 Ukrainians and more than 3,700 people from other nationalities.
For further information, please contact:
Kisut Gebreegziabher
Communicatios Officer & Spokesperson
UNHCR Moldova
Mobile: +37367722468
WhatsApp: +254712856340
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