Global Issues: Water
Introduction
As defined by the UN, a refugee is someone who:
"owing to well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality and is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country; or who, not having a nationality and being outside the country of his former habitual residence, is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to return to it."
At the end of 2019, there were 79.5 million persons who had been forcibly displaced worldwide. 26 million of them were refugees, with half of them being minors (20.4 million were under the UNHCR's mandate and 5.6 million were Palestine refugees under UNRWA's). Additionally, there were 4.2 million asylum seekers, 45.7 million individuals who were internally displaced, and 3.6 million Venezuelans who were displaced overseas. Millions of people also lack a nationality and are denied access to fundamental freedoms like education, healthcare, employment, and mobility.
When it comes to the likelihood that their struggle will end quickly, the prospects for refugees are deteriorating. Around 1.5 million refugees were able to go home annually in the 1990s. Since that number has decreased to about 385,000 over the last ten years, the growth in displacement now significantly outpaces available remedies.
The UN agency that helps refugees is UNHCR (also known as the UN Refugee Agency)
For thousands of years, individuals escaping persecution and armed conflict have been granted sanctuary in other countries. The UNHCR, usually referred to as the UN Refugee Agency, is the UN organization that aids refugees. It was established after World War II to assist Europeans who had been uprooted by the battle.
The UN General Assembly founded UNHCR on December 14, 1950, with a three-year mandate to finish its mission and then disband. The United Nations Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees was ratified on July 28 of the following year, laying the groundwork for aiding refugees and serving as the fundamental law governing UNHCR's operations. UNHCR has therefore continued to assist refugees after the three-year mark instead of ceasing its efforts.
The first of the numerous refugee crises on that continent that required UNHCR assistance emerged in the 1960s as a result of Africa's decolonization. UNHCR had to assist with refugee crises in Asia and Latin America over the ensuing 20 years. By the turn of the century, there were new issues with refugees in Africa and, in a full cycle, new waves of refugees from the ongoing hostilities in the Balkans arrived in Europe.
The work of UNHCR is more crucial than ever in a world where over 82 million people have been forcefully displaced due to conflict or persecution.
Although the UN Refugee Agency's headquarters are in Geneva, most of its employees work in the field. Today, approximately 59 million refugees, returnees, internally displaced people, and stateless people are protected and assisted by a team of more than 18,000 individuals working in 132 countries. The majority of UNHCR employees are stationed in Asia and Africa, the continents that both receive and produce the greatest number of refugees and internally displaced people. Many are in remote areas where employees must work under challenging and frequently hazardous circumstances. Afghanistan, Colombia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mali, Pakistan, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, and Iraq are among the countries where UNHCR has the largest operations.
On 17 December 2018, the United Nations General Assembly approved the Global Compact on Refugees
The Global Compact on Refugees, a framework for more predictable and equitable responsibility-sharing, was agreed by the UN General Assembly on December 17, 2018, acknowledging the need for international cooperation to find a lasting solution to refugee problems.
United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA)
The UN General Assembly authorised the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) to provide assistance to recognized Palestine refugees in the Middle East in 1949. In 1950, when the Agency first started operating, it was serving the needs of around 750 000 Palestinian refugees. With 5 million Palestine refugees living in its five designated operational areas—the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria—UNRWA provides direct services such as primary and secondary education, health care, relief and social services, camp infrastructure and improvement, microfinance, and emergency aid.
UNRWA’s mandate
The 1951 Refugee Convention's definition of refugees and the UN General Assembly's definition of Palestinian refugees are complementary.
For the purposes of UNRWA's mandate, a "Palestine refugee" is a person who had Palestine as their usual place of abode between 1 June 1946 and 15 May 1948 who had lost both their home and their source of income as a result of the 1948 conflict. In order to receive services in UNRWA's designated service zones, Palestine refugees and their ancestors can register with the agency.
The mandate of UNRWA has not changed and cannot change. The UN Member States are accountable for that. Through the UN General Assembly, these Member States have charged UNRWA with helping and protecting Palestine refugees up until a fair and long-lasting political solution that solves their predicament is discovered.
Political solutions are challenging, which is why there are still several protracted refugee situations around the world where new generations are still labeled as refugees. In the absence of a fair solution to the refugee problem in Palestine, the General Assembly continues to decide the necessity of UNRWA's operations. Palestine refugees would still exist if UNRWA didn't exist.
Refugee status is maintained for descendants of refugees.
The children of refugees and their descendants are also regarded as refugees until a lasting solution is found in accordance with international law and the concept of family unity. This is the basis for the recognition of descendants as refugees by UNRWA and UNHCR, a practice that has received widespread support from the international community, including donors and nations that host refugees.
The refugees from Palestine are not unique from other long-term refugee situations, such as those from Afghanistan or Somalia, where there are several generations of refugees who are sponsored as such by UNHCR. The failure to find political solutions to their underlying political issues is the cause of protracted refugee situations.
Assistance with refugee camps
UN forces are frequently stationed to guard the camps where refugees are compelled to dwell. The UN family gives it when they are left without access to such basic essentials as food, water, sanitation, and healthcare. A large portion of this assistance is given through the United Nations' system for humanitarian intervention. Through its "cluster strategy," the Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) brings together all significant humanitarian organizations, both inside and outside the UN system, for coordinated action.
When it comes to the protection of refugees and internally displaced people, UNHCR is the leading organization. It serves as the primary organization for organizing and managing camps, together with the International Organization for Migration (IOM). Additionally, it co-leads with the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in terms of emergency shelter.
In 1954 and most recently in 1981, the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize twice.
Natural catastrophes, climate change, and displacement
In addition to persecution and armed warfare, environmental disasters can also drive individuals to seek safety abroad in the twenty-first century (often as a result of climate change). The frequency and severity of these catastrophes—floods, earthquakes, storms, and mudslides—are rising. Even though these events primarily result in internal displacement, they can also push people over international boundaries. However, the predicament of such individuals is not particularly addressed by any of the existing regional and international refugee law frameworks.
The slow-onset consequences of climate change also contribute significantly to internal displacement. However, climate change can also play a role in the movement of people across international borders by accelerating desertification, drought, salinization of groundwater, and soil.
People may cross borders to escape other man-made disasters, such as extreme socioeconomic hardship. While some may be fleeing persecution, the majority depart because they have no real choice but to go. A refugee claim under the 1951 Convention would not typically and by themselves be sustained by a lack of food, water, education, healthcare, or a means of subsistence. However, some of these people might require some kind of safety net.
Conflict, natural disasters, and climate change all provide significant difficulties for the global humanitarian society.
Events
The General Assembly declared June 20 to be World Refugee Day, which is celebrated every year on that date.
On September 19, 2016, the UN General Assembly conducted a high-level discussion to discuss massive refugee and migration movements, with the goal of uniting nations behind a more compassionate and organized approach.
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