Issue 15: August 2, 2021
In this issue...
We're covering the dangers of this year's Atlantic hurricane season to refugees, hunger strikes in Austrailia, and how refugees are financially excluded by world governments. Read about how the UN is determined to help Pakistan better their host efforts for Afghan refugees.
Monthly U.S. Policy Update
By Marin Theis
Beginning even before his first day in office, President Biden supported the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (DACA), a policy which allowed immigrants who were brought to the United States as children to live, work, and get educated in the country legally. This program was established in 2012 by the Obama administration.
However, on July 16, a federal judge in Texas deemed DACA illegal. The case is being appealed and the ruling will only affect new applicants to the program currently being processed, but this loss could result in deportations of these individuals if the appeal loses.
President Biden recently released a new plan to reform the United States immigration system. It will include changes to the processing of asylum applications, the strengthening of initiatives of collaborative migration management with Central American partners, and new investments in Central America in an effort to prevent immigration from its start.
Under the new plan, Asylum officers will now have complete authority to make decisions about asylum claims for migrants crossing the border, thus allowing asylum seekers to bypass the heavily backlogged immigration courts. Cases that do end up going to immigration courts will, according to the plan, be prioritized by being sent to a docket dedicated to asylum applications. However, the Biden administration continues to maintain several Trump-era restrictions to prevent the spread of COVID-19, and the plan does not say when those restrictions may be lifted. The Biden administration has received criticism from immigration groups for maintaining these restrictions.
The United States, as one of the most powerful countries in the world, and its leaders must act in the best interests of both their own citizens and refugees from other nations. The country and its leaders have a moral obligation to uphold refugee rights.
Atlantic Hurricane Season Poses Unique Dangers to Refugees in Central America
By Julie Chen
The Atlantic Hurricane Season poses significant risk to refugees in Central America, South America, and the Caribbean Islands each year. The Season lasts from June 1 through November 30 and takes place in the Northern Hemisphere. The official season outlines when tropical storms are most likely to develop during the year, but the formation of hurricanes is not confined only to this time period as Tropical Storm Ana appeared off the coast of Bermuda as early as May 22, 2021.
The hurricanes during the Atlantic Hurricane Season were capable of flooding entire camps in 2020 and will certainly be able to produce more similar catastrophes in 2021. Although the government and aid organizations tried to provide enough protection and supplies for refugees in the past, the lack of trust between them and the migrants obstructed the groups from ensuring the camp’s safety.
In 2020, Matamoros, Mexico suffered from the impact of Hurricane Hanna during the Atlantic hurricane season. Hundreds of refugees seeking asylum in the U.S. resided in tented areas along the border of Texas and Mexico and faced the threat of rising rivers of the Rio Grande. Hurricane Hanna increased the Rio Grande’s water level by 12 feet, forcing communities, which already occupied unaccommodating tents, to retreat to higher ground.
A 22-year-old mother of two who lived in the camp said in an interview to Humanitarian Web, “There was no warning. The first thing we noticed was that the river had arrived at the edge of our tent.” Another refugee reported to the organization that “nobody wanted to leave” since “people were afraid that if they went, they wouldn’t be able to come back.”
The lack of trust between the camp and the inhabitants further interfered with efforts to provide protection from Hurricane Hanna and efforts to recover from the destruction. Norma Pimental, the executive director of Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley, recommended an evacuation after the river banks started to flood the camp but pointed out that the refugees, refusing to leave, were skeptical of Mexican authorities. She acknowledged to Humanitarian Web that cooperating with asylum seekers in Mexico is often like an “elaborate dance weaving all kinds of people together.”
The refugee camp lacked enough free space as the banks of the river encroached into the camp’s territory. As a result, the residents relocated themselves to higher ground where it was more crowded and simultaneously, put themselves at a greater risk for contracting COVID-19, according to Dr. Dairon Elisondo Rojas, a volunteer doctor at the camp. Furthermore, Pimentel explained that when aid organizations started evacuating asylum seekers, the camp’s authorities removed most of its 50 portable toilets in the process.
“We were left without enough toilets,” said Carolina, a Nicaraguan refugee at the camp, to Humanitarian Web. “We had to go to the toilet in the open air.
As climate change continues to make storms stronger, the danger the Atlantic Hurricane season poses to refugees and immigrants will only get worse. Solutions to climate change are vital in order to protect vulnerable refugees.
Hunger Strikes in Australia Reveal Flawed Refugee Detention Plans
By Diya Britto
On July 16, refugees detained in Melbourne, Australia began their second hunger strike. According to an article from Refugee Voices, an Australian-based organization, the men detained in Melbourne Immigration Transit Accommodation (MITA) were going on strike to make the government aware of their frustration with being detained for so long. The men questioned the Australian government and claimed, “We are suffering physically and mentally and wonder why you continue to keep us like caged animals when there are solutions.”
Their first hunger strike began on June 20th and lasted for 15 days until seven refugees had to be hospitalized. Despite the health risks that the refugees faced following the first hunger strike, they believe that this is the only way they can get the government to pay attention. According to Refugee Voices, the men believe that “hunger strike action is the only tool they have to raise awareness of their suffering and despair.”
This isn’t the first time refugees detained in Australia have resorted to hunger strikes and gotten no response from the Australian government.
According to a Press Release from The New Humanitarian released on January 25, 2012, at least 34 asylum-seekers being detained in Australia had been on a hunger strike for a week. The hunger strike was a response to a policy shift issued by the government the previous November.
The policy stated that priority would be given to those who had spent the longest time in detention. However, the policy pace was so slow that many detainees grew frustrated. According to the government’s own statistics, 38% of asylum seekers had been in detention for over a year and nothing had changed. The hunger strike resulted in the hospitalization of three refugees.
In 2015, asylum seekers being detained on the Manus Island detention center went on a hunger strike to protest their detention conditions. According to a local newspaper, the conditions were so poor and the strike was so violent that at least 10 refugee men sewed their mouths closed in protest, and one even swallowed several razor blades.
According to a report from the Refugee Action Coalition, the detainees wanted to be relocated by the United Nations, as they felt that Australia was unwilling to host them. Laws created under the Australian government stated that refugees who arrived on boats were to be processed, and then resettled in PNG or Cambodia, but never Australia. All of these laws and policies have always been a threat to the safety and well-being of asylum-seekers.
Throughout history, refugees detained in Australia have either been detained for an outrageous number of years, or forced to resettle elsewhere. This has been the government’s pattern of behaviour for over eight years, and despite the rise of hunger strikes and the loss of many lives, they continue to follow through with policies like their abusive off-shore asylum processing.
On July 19, the Australian Government maintained this policy and it has already harmed many people. According to a Press Release from Human Rights Watch on July 15, since 2013 over 3,000 refugees have been forced to be held in detention centers in Papua New Guinea and Nauru. While in the centers, families and children face horrible conditions such as medical neglect and inhumane treatment. Most refugees spend their lives trapped in these detention centers. By allowing this to happen, the Australian government has ignored international law which states that “adult migrants should be detained for the shortest time necessary. Children should not be placed in immigration detention.”
The Australian government is aware of the injustices and suffering its policies are perpetuating. In fact, according to a report by Amnesty International, in 2017, the government chose to pay $70 million dollars in compensation rather than let a court hear the appealing details of the medical neglect and abuse refugees face on Manus Island.
The following year, all counseling services provided to the refugees on the island had been paused. There were a number of refugees who tried to record their experience on the island, but much of it was destroyed. Now, hunger strikes and sacrificing their lives seem to be the only ways the detainees can share what they are going through and urge the government to do something.
Over the years, a number of human rights organizations have criticized the Australian government’s policies when it comes to refugees and immigration. Refugee Voices states that they will support the refugees with their hunger strike and continue to question the government’s actions. Amnesty International is determined to make the world aware of what the detainees under the Australian government go through, and why they must resort to such measures.
Following the maintenance of the off-shore policy, the UNHCR made a statement urging the Australian government to put an end to this policy, an end to long detainment times, and an end to the abuse refugees face when they’re being detained.
To help and support these refugees as they speak out against the government, you can donate to Australian-based organizations such as Refugee Voices, Amnesty International Australia, and Save the Children Australia. You can also contact the Australian Minister of Immigration as well as the Minister for Home Affairs to demand an end to this cruel treatment. And remember to spread awareness on social media by keeping up with our posts and subscribing to our monthly newsletter.
Unique Economic Barriers Harm Refugee Populations in Host Countries
By Jade Xiao
Migrants and refugees face economic exclusion after arriving in their host countries due to language barriers, underemployment or unemployment, and incompatible jobs to their pre-migration specialties, causing consistently higher rates of poverty and unemployment than the native population.
Foreign workers, both immigrants and refugees, are always more at risk of poverty and unemployment than native citizens. According to data from Eurostats by the European Commission, in 2019, 45% of non-European Union citizens living in the EU risks poverty and social exclusion, in contrast with a rate of 20% for citizens. Furthermore, non-EU citizens face a 32% monetary poverty rate, while the rate for citizens is less than half, at 15%.
However, the refugees face further struggles than immigrants. The “Refugee Gap”, as defined by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), is when “refugees perform poorer than both citizens and other immigrant groups.” According to an article from the UNHCR, the gap is a common and worrisome issue in many countries including Australia, Canada, Norway, and Sweden.
According to the article “Promoters and Barriers to Work: a Comparative Study of Refugees Versus Immigrants in the United States,” 65.1% of refugees are unemployed compared to only 39.9% of immigrants; if the data is modified to take into account of age, gender, and education, then refugees face double the risk of unemployment than immigrants. In the United States, refugees are less successful in obtaining a job, especially a professional position suited to their previous studies and occupations.
Language, education. and incompatible professions are the major causes of this significantly larger risk for refugees. According to self-reported data from the same study, poor language is a more influential barrier to refugees than immigrants. Refugees also face more frequent underemployment, meaning the position is underutilizing the worker’s skillset or resources. Of all the refugees reported in the study, no one with a doctoral degree was able to secure a job in the 1.8 years after migration in medicine, pharmacy, or dentistry despite their qualifications.
In an article from the UNHCR, even after obtaining a job, refugees still have significantly lower status and wage than immigrants; the average hourly wage for the general population in 2010 was $21.29, and the average for refugees in 2012 is $9.27.
There are also restrictions to refugee’s opportunities to work. According to the article from the UNHCR, 66% have restricted freedom of movement, so they cannot travel outside of the camps or far distances to work. 70% have restricted rights to work due to policies of their residing country, even though Articles 17, 18, and 19 of the 1951 Refugee Conventions granted access to the labor market.
To ameliorate the unemployment and poverty crises, many non-governmental organizations have developed policies and plans for economic inclusion. Through economic inclusion, NGOs coordinate between the refugee workers and companies for work and entrepreneurial opportunities. In a statement, UNHCR proclaims their mission is to “promote economic inclusion and advocate for their RIGHT to work.” Some of the projects of the UNHCR create Inclusive market systems, ensure financial inclusion, and eliminate food insecurity. The United Nations likewise partners with organizations such as the Partnership of the Urban Agenda for the inclusion of migrant and refugee workers in major European cities, and establishes policies such as the Action Plan on Integration.
United Nations Determined to Help Pakistan Become a Better Host Country for Afghan Refugees
By Maya Britto
For four decades, Pakistan has hosted one of the highest numbers of Afghan refugees. Though the Pakistani government has not been consistent in its efforts to protect the country’s refugee population in the past, the United Nations (UN) is helping it take steps to better the treatment of asylees and assist conflict resolution in Afghanistan.
With the UN’s help, Pakistan could become a model host country, and prove that it can combat its economic and political challenges while still embracing refugees.
UNHCR Solutions Strategy in Pakistan
Today, more than 2.6 million registered refugees are from Afghanistan, and Pakistan hosts more than 1.4 million of them. According to a report from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), 69% of the Afghan refugees in Pakistan live in urban and rural areas in host communities alongside their Pakistani counterparts.
The Government of Pakistan allows refugees access to local health and education services, despite the existing strain on resources and infrastructure. Though Pakistan has lacked a national refugee legal framework, the Proof of Registration (PoR) cards it provides Afghan refugees with allowing for temporary legal stay in Pakistan, freedom of movement, and exemption from the application of the 1946 Foreigners Act. The act was created to give the Pakistani government the right to prohibit, regulate, and restrict the entrance and departure of foreigners. As of 2017, approximately 1.34 million of the 1.4 million Afghan refugees in Pakistan are currently holding PoR cards.
The government plans to verify refugees with proof of registration and provide them with biometric documentation in the form of “smartcard IDs” through a process known as Document Renewal and Information Verification Exercise (DRIVE). It seeks to expand the PoR cardholder dataset to encourage refugee protection and assistance and allow for sustainable reintegration in Afghanistan. If this initiative is successful, Afghan nationals can stay in Pakistan and up to 58,000 refugees could return home safely this year.
All of this is part of the larger Solutions Strategy for Afghan Refugees (SSAR) program by the UNHCR, which has already started helping Afghan families in the country. In January, 75,000 refugee families received emergency cash to help cope with losses incurred by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Past Treatment of Afghan Refugees
Though new plans are being introduced and tested for its refugee community, Pakistan’s attempts to facilitate the protection and ultimately the safe, voluntary return of Afghan refugees are relatively new and have only started to take place in the past year.
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In 2016, the combined expulsion of refugees from Europe, Iran, and Pakistan contributed to the return of almost 1 million Afghans. Around 500,000 of these were forcibly returned home by the Pakistani government, as reported by the Human Rights Watch. This came as political relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan grew tenser. Civilian casualty rates remained high in Afghanistan, and Afghan refugees still in Pakistan were marginalized and pressured to leave. No country was secure.
According to a report from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the reintegration of those returning posed significant challenges for both the Afghan government, still fighting humanitarian challenges, and the refugees themselves, many of whom had never even lived in Afghanistan before.
Escalating violence and a lack of resources, basic services, and job opportunities coupled with the relatively new impacts of COVID-19 in Afghanistan resulted in the fewest number of voluntary refugee returns since 2002.
Improving for the Future
During a press conference in Islamabad earlier in February of this year, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres praised Pakistan’s “outstanding generosity and solidarity” and went on to acknowledge the South Asian country’s contribution to UN peacekeeping efforts. According to statements from the United Nations Peacekeeping Service, Pakistan has provided them with more than 6,000 military and police officers.
Pakistan is poised to become a leader for host countries around the world. Whether UNHCR aid will assist in making this possible, however, is still uncertain. To aid the UNHCR and other non-governmental organizations currently working in Pakistan, you can donate here: