| UN chief urges accountability for Rohingya atrocities. Briefing the UN Security Council on Tuesday, one year after a military crackdown in Myanmar’s Rakhine State sparked an exodus of Rohingya refugees into Bangladesh, Secretary-General António Guterres said it was clear that conditions were still not suitable for the Rohingya to return home safely and voluntarily . He called for accountability for the “horrendous persecution” of the Rohingya in Myanmar, while Sweden and the Netherlands urged the Security Council to refer the crimes to the International Criminal Court. China’s deputy UN ambassador, Wu Haitao, said Myanmar and Bangladesh should resolve “the Rakhine issue” bilaterally and start repatriating Rohingya refugees as soon as possible, but Bangladesh’s UN ambassador, Masud Bin Momen, said repatriations could not start until the Rohingya received guarantees that they can return in safety, enjoy freedom of movement, “and a clear pathway to their legitimate demand for citizenship in Myanmar”. UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador Cate Blanchett opened the Security Council session with a plea to step up international support to the refugees and their host communities in Bangladesh. | | |
| Four million refugee children missing out on school. In a report released today, UNHCR says the number of out-of-school refugee children has risen by half a million in just one year and that refugee enrolment in schools is failing to keep pace with growing displacement worldwide. ‘Turn the Tide: Refugee Education in Crisis’, which is the third annual education report from UNHCR, urges host countries to enrol refugees in national education systems and calls on the international community to increase funding for refugee education. “Education is a way to help children heal, but it is also key to rebuilding their countries,” said Filippo Grandi, UN High Commissioner for Refugees. UNHCR Special Envoy Angelina Jolie writes for CNN about the contrasting lives of two Syrian refugee girls she met. One was able to attend school in Iraq and is now studying dentistry, while the other had to work to support her family in Lebanon and later married at the age of 14 and became a mother. | | |
| UN Security Council urged to avoid “humanitarian catastrophe” in Syria’s Idlib. John Ging, the UN’s director of humanitarian operations, told the Council that “a worst-case scenario in Idlib will overwhelm capacities and has the potential to create a humanitarian emergency at a scale not yet seen”. The Syrian government appears to be preparing to retake north-west Syria from rebel groups. Ging said intense aerial bombardment and shelling in the region in recent weeks had already resulted in civilian deaths and the destruction of schools and hospitals. He said aid partners are finalizing a six-month humanitarian plan to respond to the potential crisis. | | |
| Peru declares health emergency at border. The government declared a 60-day emergency in two provinces on Peru’s northern border, citing “imminent danger” to health and sanitation as Venezuelans continued to enter the country in large numbers, despite a tightening of entry requirements. At the end of a two-day summit in Bogota on Tuesday, Colombia and Peru said they will share information about new arrivals from Venezuela in a joint database and invited other countries in the region to join the initiative. | | |
| Hungarian university pulls courses for refugees due to new tax. The Budapest-based Central European University, founded by Hungarian-American billionaire and philanthropist George Soros, says it has been forced to suspend programmes for refugees and asylum-seekers due to a new government tax on groups deemed to support migration. In a statement, the university said it was awaiting clarification on how it would be affected by the 25 per cent levy, which came into effect on Friday as part of a package of anti-migration measures approved by Hungary’s parliament in June. | | |
| Growing lawlessness and new displacement in DR Congo’s Kasai region. IRIN reports that the conflict that started in the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s southern Kasai region in late 2016 has given way to general insecurity that continues to empty villages and drive hunger. While some of those who fled last year’s violence have begun to return, IRIN reports that armed robberies and banditry are on the rise and the few operational health centres lack the supplies to treat a growing caseload of malnourished children. | | |
| There is no radio reception at Kutupalong settlement, home to nearly 600,000 Rohingya refugees. As a reporter for Radio NAF, a community radio station, 18-year-old Abdullah roves the camp to record interviews with his fellow refugees and to play the station’s weekly broadcasts at so-called “listening clubs”. “I’m sharing a lot of important information with my community,” he says. “My parents are proud of the work I’m doing.”red lives and support what is left of their families. | | |
Only 61 per cent of refugee children attend primary school, compared to 92 per cent of children globally.
| | |
| |
No comments:
Post a Comment