COMMEMORATION OF WORLD REFUGEE DAY, 20TH JUNE 2016

TSORE REFUGEE CAMP

H.E Dr. Aisha Abdullahi, Commissioner for Political Affairs celebrates World Refugee Day with the refugees in Tsore Refugee Camps, Asosa, Benishangul - Gumuz region in the Western part of Ethiopia. The World Refugee Day is commemorated on 20th June of every year. Since 1974, 20th June used to be commemorated as Africa Refugee Day, when the then Organization of African Unity (OAU), the predecessor of the African Union, took the lead to draw the public's attention, in celebrating the courage and resilience of refugees, asylum seekers, and the internally displaced in Africa who have left their homes due to war, conflict and persecution.

Later in 2001, while marking the 50th anniversary of the 1951 UN Convention on Refugees, the Organization of African Unity agreed to have the international Refugee Day to coincide with the Africa Refugee Day, and 20th June was then adopted by the UN as World Refugee Day. 20 June 2016 marks the 42nd commemoration and is celebrated under the theme “we stand together #withrefugees” in more than 100 countries in the world, involving government officials, humanitarian aid workers, celebrities, civilians and the forcibly displaced person’s themselves.

Africa today hosts around 16.9 million displaced persons in its territory, with Ethiopia hosting the largest number of 734,931, followed by Kenya with 593,529 and Uganda with 511,000 refugees. The majority of the displaced populations are women and children that are experiencing a greater risk of violence, exploitation and human trafficking. In particular, many children carry the additional burden of separation from their families, abuse, neglect and forced military recruitment and may also have witnessed or experienced violent acts.

In her speech, the Commissioner on behalf of H.E Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, Chairperson of the African Union Commission thanked the government and the people of Ethiopia for the open door policy towards refugees, which has continued to welcome displaced persons from Sudan, South Sudan Eritrea, Kenya and Yemen inspite of funding shortfalls. She also extended special gratitude to the local community for hosting refugees in Asosa region despite of their own limited resources. Ethiopia does not only bear the burden of large numbers of refugees but has also experienced the effects of Elnino that has devastated the environment and the people’s livelihood. To this end, the Commissioner joined the refugees and other partners in planting trees in order to protect the environment.

The Commissioner also thanked the UNHCR and other partners involved in assisting refugees in Ethiopia and other parts of the world for their continued commitment and support in alleviating the suffering of the refugees and internally displaced persons and encouraged them to continue to do so.

She reinstated the commitments of Member States in supporting refugees, and encouraged all stakeholders to continue seeking for durable solutions to the plight of refugees as stipulated in the Common African Position, which was also shared with the rest of the world at the World humanitarian Summit that took place in May 2016, in Istanbul, Turkey.

She expressed concern over the many African migrants dying at the Mediterranean Sea and the Gulf of Aden as well as in the Sahara desert on their way to Europe, many falling prey to criminal networks with trafficking along the main migratory routes in and from Africa. She indicated that the situation was unfortunate, but the solution lies in implementing the AU Agenda 2063, and putting mechanisms in place to silence the guns by 2020 and remaining faithful to the implantation of the sustainable development goals. She further informed that 2016 is the year of human rights with specific focus on the rights of women. To this end, refugee women continue to bear the brunt of displacement and hence need special support and assistance.

H.E Dr. Aisha Abdullahi announced a donation of USD 20,000 to contribute towards educational materials for refugees, aimed at keeping refugee children especially the girl child in school. She highlighted that education is the only way of acquiring knowledge and skills that will be useful to the refugees and for their future.