The rights and health of refugees, migrants and stateless must be protected in COVID-19 response
Geneva, 31 March 2020.
In the face of the COVID-19 crisis, we are all vulnerable. The virus has shown that it does not discriminate – but many refugees, those forcibly displaced, the stateless and migrants are at heightened risk.
Three-quarters of the world’s refugees and many migrants are hosted in developing regions where health systems are already overwhelmed and under-capacitated. Many live in overcrowded camps, settlements, makeshift shelters or reception centers, where they lack adequate access to health services, clean water and sanitation.
The situation for refugees and migrants held in formal and informal places of detention, in cramped and unsanitary conditions, is particularly worrying. Considering the lethal consequences a COVID-19 outbreak would have, they should be released without delay. Migrant children and their families and those detained without a sufficient legal basis should be immediately released.
This disease can be controlled only if there is an inclusive approach which protects every individual’s rights to life and health. Migrants and refugees are disproportionately vulnerable to exclusion, stigma and discrimination, particularly when undocumented. To avert a catastrophe, governments must do all they can to protect the rights and the health of everyone. Protecting the rights and the health of all people will in fact help control the spread of the virus.
It is vital that everyone, including all migrants and refugees, are ensured equal access to health services and are effectively included in national responses to COVID-19, including prevention, testing and treatment. Inclusion will help not only to protect the rights of refugees and migrants, but will also serve to protect public health and stem the global spread of COVID-19. While many nations protect and host refugee and migrant populations, they are often not equipped to respond to crises such as COVID-19. To ensure refugees and migrants have adequate access to national health services, States may need additional financial support. This is where the world’s financial institutions can play a leading role in making funds available.
While countries are closing their borders and limiting cross-border movements, there are ways to manage border restrictions in a manner which respects international human rights and refugee protection standards, including the principle of non-refoulement, through quarantine and health checks.
More than ever, as COVID-19 poses a global threat to our collective humanity, our primary focus should be on the preservation of life, regardless of status. This crisis demands a coherent, effective international approach that leaves no-one behind. At this crucial moment we all need to rally around a common objective, fighting this deadly virus. Many refugees, displaced, stateless people and migrants have skills and resources that can also be part of the solution.
We cannot allow fear or intolerance to undermine rights or compromise the effectiveness of responses to the global pandemic. We are all in this together. We can only defeat this virus when each and every one of us is protected.
ENDS
For more information on this topic, please contact:
OHCHR: Rupert Colville, +41 22 917 97 67, [email protected]
IOM: Leonard Doyle, +41 79 285 71 23, [email protected]
UNHCR: Cecile Pouilly, + 41 79 108 26 25, [email protected]
WHO: Tarik Jašarević, +41 793 676 214, [email protected]
Page 19 of 21
-
UNHCR opens the mural “Little Citizen” in Kyiv
7 Nov 2019The mural attract attention to the importance of combating statelessness in Ukraine
-
UNHCR to launch first Global Refugee Forum
27 Oct 2019UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, has announced the first ever Global Refugee Forum, which will take place on 17 and 18 December 2019 in Geneva, Switzerland.
-
UN High Commissioner for Refugees warns of risks to the fight against statelessness
7 Oct 2019Rise in damaging forms of nationalism endangers advances in the battle to end statelessness
-
Cities of Solidarity Forum took place in Kharkiv
4 Oct 2019Participants have developed recommendations to improve long-term housing solutions for displaced persons
-
Millions in eastern Ukraine endure invisible wounds of war
4 Oct 2019After five years of conflict, aid agencies are striving to meet the mental health needs of those affected.
-
“Kidslandia” centre will brighten lives of children living close to the contact line
15 Aug 2019New friendly space for children and youth opened its doors in August in Novotoshkivske village in the east of Ukraine with support of the UNHCR in Ukraine and humanitarian mission Proliska.
-
World Refugee Day 2019 in Ukraine
24 Jun 2019Thousands of people all over Ukraine demonstrated solidarity with refugees and internally displaced people.
-
UNHCR Annual Global Trends Shows Highest Level of Forced Displacement In The World
21 Jun 2019The number of people fleeing war, persecution and conflict exceeded 70 million in 2018. This is the highest level that UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, has seen in its almost 70 years.
-
A House Alive with Hope
29 May 2019After shelling in 2014, the roof of Liudmyla’s house was damaged by shrapnel., one corner of the house was virtually destroyed and a wall of the house was on the verge of collapse.
-
“Chestnut Run” participants joined a global solidarity campaign with refugees and IDPs
27 May 2019105 participants dedicated their 5-kilometer run in a symbolic solidarity act with refugees and IDPs, cumulatively gaining 525 km as part of UNHCR campaign “2 billion kilometers to safety”