Refugees International
Refugees International, a U.S-based aid agency, generates lifesaving humanitarian assistance and protection for displaced people around the world, and works to end the conditions that create displacement. The organisation was founded in 1979.
Central African Republic: Traffic Takes on New Meaning
Author: Refugees International
While riding down the roads in the northwestern region of the Central African Republic (CAR), I felt like a celebrity. Children repeatedly rushed out of their homes when they heard our pickup truck rumbling through the dusty, bumpy roads and drowned us in a chorus of Bonjours and Baraallahs (the local greetings in CAR), while waving fervently. Hours into our drive and after passing several villages it became clear that the joy that the children and even some adults expressed went beyond simply wishing us a safe journey They were expressing genuine appreciation for our presence in their community. The Refugees International flag, hoisted on the top of the truck, was seen by the community as a sign of good to come. The people of Northern CAR have been displaced for much of this past decade as a result of protracted political unrest. Besides overwhelming neglect from the national government, the situation in northern CAR was largely overlooked by the international community. It wasnt until after an RI mission highlighting the hundreds of thousands displaced people, that the number of aid agencies in this region, rose from 5 to 19 in 2007. ...
Author: Refugees International
While riding down the roads in the northwestern region of the Central African Republic (CAR), I felt like a celebrity. Children repeatedly rushed out of their homes when they heard our pickup truck rumbling through the dusty, bumpy roads and drowned us in a chorus of Bonjours and Baraallahs (the local greetings in CAR), while waving fervently. Hours into our drive and after passing several villages it became clear that the joy that the children and even some adults expressed went beyond simply wishing us a safe journey They were expressing genuine appreciation for our presence in their community. The Refugees International flag, hoisted on the top of the truck, was seen by the community as a sign of good to come. The people of Northern CAR have been displaced for much of this past decade as a result of protracted political unrest. Besides overwhelming neglect from the national government, the situation in northern CAR was largely overlooked by the international community. It wasnt until after an RI mission highlighting the hundreds of thousands displaced people, that the number of aid agencies in this region, rose from 5 to 19 in 2007. ...
President's Corner: President Bush Could Repeat His Father's Mistake in Somalia
Author: Refugees International
At the end of his presidency in 1992 President George H.W. Bush deployed U.S. troops to Somalia as part of a United Nations operation that ended in disaster for America. His son, President George W. Bush, could make a similar mistake. The current Bush administration is rightly concerned about escalating violence and humanitarian tragedy in Somalia, Somali piracy in the Indian Ocean, and the increasing fragility of the U.S.-backed government in Somalia. In response it is proposing a plan that could lead to greater military involvement in Somalia by the United Nations and most likely by the U.S. and its allies. ...
Author: Refugees International
At the end of his presidency in 1992 President George H.W. Bush deployed U.S. troops to Somalia as part of a United Nations operation that ended in disaster for America. His son, President George W. Bush, could make a similar mistake. The current Bush administration is rightly concerned about escalating violence and humanitarian tragedy in Somalia, Somali piracy in the Indian Ocean, and the increasing fragility of the U.S.-backed government in Somalia. In response it is proposing a plan that could lead to greater military involvement in Somalia by the United Nations and most likely by the U.S. and its allies. ...
Presidentâs Corner: Celebrating a Week Meant to Change the World
Author: Refugees International
Sixty years ago this week, the United Nations General Assembly adopted two documents that were meant to change the worldthe Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. We are still working to realize the promise of those two seminal commitments to human security and dignity. Today we moved one step closer. The Genocide Prevention Task Force released a report that recommends a top-down government focus on preventing genocide and mass atrocities. Preventing Genocide: A Blueprint for U.S. Policymakers asserts that genocide is a preventable crime if the U.S., working with its allies and the United Nations, moves quickly and early to marshal intelligence, diplomatic, economic, and, if necessary, military assets to head off mass atrocities. ...
Author: Refugees International
Sixty years ago this week, the United Nations General Assembly adopted two documents that were meant to change the worldthe Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. We are still working to realize the promise of those two seminal commitments to human security and dignity. Today we moved one step closer. The Genocide Prevention Task Force released a report that recommends a top-down government focus on preventing genocide and mass atrocities. Preventing Genocide: A Blueprint for U.S. Policymakers asserts that genocide is a preventable crime if the U.S., working with its allies and the United Nations, moves quickly and early to marshal intelligence, diplomatic, economic, and, if necessary, military assets to head off mass atrocities. ...
Southern Sudan: Struggling towards Recovery
Author: Refugees International
Today, nearly four years after the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement that ended over 26 years of brutal civil war, southern Sudan continues to be a place of acute poverty and underdevelopment. Juba, the capital of the south, is a town consisting of ramshackle, hastily put together homes and a steady stream of goats and dust through what could charitably be considered streets. With just 10 miles of paved roads in an area roughly the size of France, movement is difficult and development is slow to materialize, as we saw during our assessment mission to the region in November. Despite the lack of roads or other infrastructure, hundreds of thousands of people are returning to southern Sudan after decades of war. They are not finding much to come home to. Refugees International has already documented the needs of returnees. But on my recent mission, I learned more about increasing gender based violence as families return to Sudan under extremely stressful conditions. Women in southern Sudan endure extreme restrictions on their freedom of movement, a constraint often imposed by husbands or fathers in a society where the male head of the household has the final say. Domestic violence is also highly prevalent, and rarely challenged. ...
Author: Refugees International
Today, nearly four years after the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement that ended over 26 years of brutal civil war, southern Sudan continues to be a place of acute poverty and underdevelopment. Juba, the capital of the south, is a town consisting of ramshackle, hastily put together homes and a steady stream of goats and dust through what could charitably be considered streets. With just 10 miles of paved roads in an area roughly the size of France, movement is difficult and development is slow to materialize, as we saw during our assessment mission to the region in November. Despite the lack of roads or other infrastructure, hundreds of thousands of people are returning to southern Sudan after decades of war. They are not finding much to come home to. Refugees International has already documented the needs of returnees. But on my recent mission, I learned more about increasing gender based violence as families return to Sudan under extremely stressful conditions. Women in southern Sudan endure extreme restrictions on their freedom of movement, a constraint often imposed by husbands or fathers in a society where the male head of the household has the final say. Domestic violence is also highly prevalent, and rarely challenged. ...
Malaysia: Rohingya Women Find Their Voice
Author: Refugees International
Sean and I just returned from our mission to Bangladesh and Malaysia, where we focused on the situation for Burmese Rohingya refugees in both countries. I last conducted an assessment mission to Malaysia in April 2007. Its distressing to see that the Government of Malaysia continues to target refugees for arrest, detention and deportation, including pregnant women and children. However, despite the difficult situation facing Rohingya in Malaysia, one very positive development that I learned about on this trip is the recent creation of a Rohingya womens group. ...
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Author: Refugees International
Sean and I just returned from our mission to Bangladesh and Malaysia, where we focused on the situation for Burmese Rohingya refugees in both countries. I last conducted an assessment mission to Malaysia in April 2007. Its distressing to see that the Government of Malaysia continues to target refugees for arrest, detention and deportation, including pregnant women and children. However, despite the difficult situation facing Rohingya in Malaysia, one very positive development that I learned about on this trip is the recent creation of a Rohingya womens group. ...
