Refugee Newsletter - unhcr

Australia’s ResettlementProgrammeRegional Representative Neill Wright haswelcomed the Immigration Minister’sannouncement that Australia haddelivered on its promise to increaseAustralia’s refugee intake.Senator Amanda Vanstone announcedin late July that the Government had fullydelivered on its increased Refugee andHumanitarian Programme for 2004-2005by granting more than 13,100 visas,including some 6,000 places for refugeesreferred by UNHCR.Millions of refugees around the worldpresently require timely and durablesolutions to their plight. Effective use ofresettlement, both as a protection tool andas a durable solution, is a key way to helprefugees most in need. Australia is one ofthe top three resettlement countries in theworld, with a quota of around 6,000 placesfor refugees every year.Resettled refugees receive excellentsupport upon arrival, through thegenerosity and commendable efforts ofthe Australian Government, NGOs andconcerned members of the community.The Australian Government's IntegratedHumanitarian Settlement Strategy helpsrefugees become self-sufficient andparticipate in the community as quickly aspossible. Assistance includes culturalorientation training prior to departure,escorts to Australia and intensivereception and case management serviceson arrival.In the Agenda for Protection, UNHCRcalls on resettlement countries to giveincreased attention to gender-relatedprotection needs in their resettlementprogrammes, in addition to the women-atriskcategory. Australia has demonstrateda commitment to providing solutions forwomen-at-risk, exceeding its quota of10.5% in the 2004-2005 program andaccepting 15.3% women-at-risk cases.The group resettlement this year ofLiberian women from Laine RefugeeCamp in Guinea Conakry contributedsignificantly to the women-at-risk quota.Many of the group fled twice or more frompersecution. Typically, the refugees hadfled the civil war in Liberia between 1990and 1996 and settled in the Dananeregion of Côte d'Ivoire, until rebels fromLiberia and Côte d'Ivoire attacked thatregion in November 2002, so the refugeesfled to Guinea and elsewhere.Liberian refugees in Guinea are among38 caseloads of refugees determined byUNHCR to be in protracted refugeesituations. Such refugees find themselvesin a long-lasting and intractable state oflimbo. Their basic rights and essentialeconomic, social and physical needscannot be met after years in exile. It hasbeen estimated that approximately 6.3million refugees are stuck in protractedsituations, 2.3 million of which areconcentrated in Africa.In 2005-2006, Australia has committedto maintain its newly-increased quota of6000 places for refugees, with a focus onAfrica. UNHCR works closely with theAustralian government to find solutions forrefugees most in need of durablesolutions, including those in protractedsituations.Liberian refugees arrive in Australia.Photo: DIMIAJoin in White Ribbon Day“wearing a white ribbon is a personal pledgenot to commit, condone or remain silentabout violence against women andchildren.”November 25th marks the third anniversaryof UNIFEM’s White Ribbon Day – the largesteffort by men across the world, working inpartnership with women, to end men'sviolence against women. The day wasdesignated by the United Nations in 2002as the International Day for the Eliminationof Violence Against Women (IDEVAW).“This year we hope to encourage an evenbroader range of diverse organisations tojoin together and mark this importantevent,” said LibbyLloyd President ofUNIFEM Australia.UNHCR’s RegionalRepresentative NeillWright has agreed tobe an ambassador forthe event.Refugee Newsletter No. 2/20053