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Millions of refugees are neither seen, nor heard. They receive little or no aid and often minimal protection. On World Refugee Day, the Norwegian Refugee Council releases the list of the ten most neglected displacement crises in the world. Central African Republic tops the list.
“Displacement puts people in a very vulnerable position, and many of the world’s refugees and internally displaced people are dependent on humanitarian assistance and protection. Yet, millions of displaced people in need are being neglected and receive limited or no support. Every year this neglect costs thousands of lives that could have been saved”, says Acting Secretary General of The Norwegian Refugee Council Toril Brekke.
Although there are no universal criteria for defining neglected displacement situations, several characteristics recur: Very limited or no humanitarian presence, low media visibility, lack of funding, difficult security situation or deliberate neglect by political and armed actors are all factors that come into play.
“The lack of correlation between the actual humanitarian needs and the help that is given is often striking in neglected displacement situations. The media's role cannot be overstated when it comes to influencing public opinion and politicians. Unfortunately, the public’s attention is often limited to one or very few crises”, says Brekke.
45. 2 million people were in situations of displacement at the beginning of 2013, the highest figure since 1994.
“Human rights are universal, but must often give way in the face of political realities. It is unfortunately very hard to raise money to help people in protracted crises situations like the Central African Republic, which tops this year’s list of neglected displacement crises. The humanitarian appeal for the Central African Republic is for example only about 30 per cent funded”, says Brekke.
Neglect can affect an entire country, as the Central African Republic, or it may affect certain groups, such as indigenous groups (Colombia, Bangladesh, West Papua), women and children or those seeking refuge in big cities and disappears in the slums. These people are often not even recorded and lose access to the assistance and protection they are entitled to.
Neglected displacement crises 2013:
1. The Central African Republic (CAR)
The number of people forced to flee from their homes has continued to rise after the rebel movement Seleka captured the capital Bangui in March 2013. The displaced are caught in an extremely vulnerable situation, they lack almost all basic services and are without any protection. According to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), 88 per cent of refugees live in constant fear.
2. Iraq
March 19 2013 marked the tenth anniversary of the US invasion into Iraq. The past ten years have been characterised by political instability and a very challenging security situation. Iraqi authorities report that there are 1.1 million internally displaced persons in the country. These people are largely forgotten, and about half of them live under very difficult conditions. Meanwhile, Iraq has received 140,000 refugees from Syria, a number that is expected to increase to 350,000 by 2014. *
3. Western Sahara
Ever since the Moroccan occupation in 1975, the 165,000 Sahrawi refugees in Algeria have lived without the world's attention. Their patience is stretched to its limit. The humanitarian assistance they have received has been very limited. Most striking is the lack of international political will to find a solution.
4. Myanmar
The Muslim Rohingya minority in Myanmar has been subjected to discrimination and abuse for years. In 1982, they were deprived of their citizenship. Around 230,000 are now in Bangladesh – 28,000 of these in refugee camps, while the rest are considered immigrants without legal residence. In practice, they are virtually without rights.
5. DR Congo
In 2012 the level of conflict in Eastern Congo escalated, and around one million people were displaced from their homes. The conflict has been going on for two decades, claiming millions of lives and forcing the people of Eastern Congo to flee over and over again. The complexity, scale and duration of the conflict have led to resignation within the international community.
6. India
The official figure of 540,000 internally displaced persons include mainly those living in camps. All estimates suggest that the number of people residing outside of camps is even higher. The Indian government has no legislation or policies aimed at addressing the needs of internally displaced persons.
7. Indonesia (West Papua)
West Papua was annexed by Indonesia in 1969 and is the only province in Indonesia where there is still on-going armed conflict. Since 2001, tens of thousands of Papuans have been displaced by military operations. The displacement continued in 2012.
8. Sudan (Darfur)
There were new clashes and more people forced to flee from Darfur in 2012. The conflict between the government and armed groups remains unsolved. 1.7 million people are internally displaced and a large number of people are refugees in neighbouring Chad – with no durable solutions in sight.
9. North Korea
The fact that the number of North Koreans who fled to South Korea through China or other Southeast Asian countries went down from 2700 in 2011 to 1500 in 2012 is not positive news. The reason is not that the humanitarian crisis is over or that the human rights situation in North Korea has improved, but rather that control measures along the border rivers with China were tightened. China regards all North Korean refugees as economic migrants and practices forced return.
10. Nigeria
Since the late 1990s, people have been driven from their homes in Nigeria because of armed conflict and human rights violations. Lack of information, registration and attention, along with neglect from national governments and the international community, has resulted in the displaced receiving very little or no humanitarian assistance.
Read more at www.nrc.no
