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Guterres visits refugees resettled in NYC, urges world to ‘stand together in solidarity’

According to UNHCR, Afghans make up one of the largest refugee populations globally. 

“The global refugee population is at a record high,” he continued, noting that the Ukraine war has triggered “the largest and fastest displacement in Europe since World War II”.

Living ‘in limbo’

Like millions of refugees worldwide, they are helping bring new life, prosperity & rich diversity to their host communities. We must continue supporting them. pic.twitter.com/Zew5oV8RP6
The couple agreed that they had “peaceful years” in the country until 2018.
Mr. Guterres, who was the UN High Commissioner for Refugees from 2005 to 2015, stressed the vital role of developed nations in receiving refugees and providing them with opportunities, whoever they are and wherever they come from.
In 2021, 86 per cent of all resettlement cases submitted by UNHCR were for survivors of torture or violence and people with legal and physical protection needs.

Second chance

He argued that no refugees are “happy to leave their countries,” but do so under threat of violence or persecution.

People escaping violence or persecution must be able to cross borders safely – UN chief

Chatting over their cups, Mr. Alif revealed that in 1992 when he was five months old, his family walked for 40 days to seek asylum in Pakistan – where they remained for over 10 years.
A Ukrainian woman who was forced to flee overnight searches online for a job.
According to international law, the right to seek asylum is a fundamental human right.

After hearing these compelling stories, Mr. Guterres appealed to developed nations do more.

He upheld that the day affirms a basic tenet of our common humanity: “Everyone has the right to seek safety – whoever they are, wherever they come from, and whenever they are forced to flee”.

Displaced in Iraq

But safety is just the first step. When resettled, refugees must be given opportunities to heal, learn, work, thrive, return home if they choose, or rebuild their lives elsewhere, in safety and dignity, Mr. Guterres said.
In commemorating World Refugee Day, Secretary-General António Guterres visits with an Afghan refugee couple who resettled in Queens.

Settled in the US

“People escaping violence or persecution must be able to cross borders safely… not face discrimination…be unfairly denied refugee status or asylum due to their race, religion, gender, or country of origin…[or] be forced to return if their lives or freedom would be at risk,” stressed the UN chief.
He advocated for “more resettlement places” and help with basic needs – like housing – to better contribute to their new communities.
Mr. Guterres’ first stop was in Brooklyn, where he visited Suzan Al Shammari, an Iraqi refugee who in 2010 fled with her family from Baghdad to Cairo, Egypt.
“Together with the women, children, and men fleeing conflict elsewhere in the world, the total number of forcibly displaced people has reached 100 million – a grim indictment of our times,” the UN chief said in his message commemorating World Refugee Day.
Let us stand together in solidarity… defend the integrity of the international protection regime..and let us never lose sight of our common humanity,” concluded the Secretary-General.

Meanwhile, Iraq has been hosting more than 290,000 refugees from Syria and other countries – mostly in the Kurdistan region, which in early 2020, housed 25 of the country’s 26 camps.More than half the Afghan population, or 24 million people, face acute food insecurity and 97 per cent are estimated to be living well below the poverty line.

Family who stayed

He reminded them of their role in welcoming and giving refugees the chance to safely start over, away from degrading camps or poor housing conditions.
Registered with the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, they were later able to resettle in California and from there, with further assistance, they made their way to New York.
She believed that it would help “if businesses took more initiative, hired refugees, and created more opportunities for immigrants”.
“Across the world, refugees have brought new life, prosperity, and rich cultural diversity to their host communities” and their protection is “a responsibility we all share”.
“Bringing refugees in is a life-saving measure and it is something that each leader, each country, should contribute to and be accountable for,” she said.

He encouraged everyone to pledge to do more for both refugees and the countries that host them.

Struggling Afghans

Every day you think it is going to be the last – resettled Iraqi refugee

Resettling provides the opportunity of a “second chance” for those forced to flee, said Ms. Al Shammari.
According to the UN, the world reached a dramatic milestone in May, 10 weeks after Russia invaded Ukraine.

Appeal to open borders

Mr. Shafi is also working to help newcomers as an NGO caseworker, where he supports arriving Afghan evacuees and parolees.
Ms. Al Shammari told the Secretary-General that having grown up in war, she wants to be able to support other refugees. In that spirit, she is currently a caseworker with a non-governmental organization (NGO) – having recently graduating with a university master’s degree.
The top UN official urged everyone to reflect on the “courage and resilience of those fleeing war, violence, and persecution” while recognizing “the compassion of those who welcome them”.

Fleeing for safety

A Ukrainian woman who was forced to flee overnight searches online for a job. The Secretary-General recalled that when he headed UNHCR, there were twice as many resettlement opportunities available for refugees and urged more States to open their borders to asylum seekers.
“I can tell from my personal experience… it is not easy to come to a country you don’t know, to a language you don’t speak. Both my parents were engineers back in Iraq and [now] they cannot work with their degrees,” Ms. Al Shammari explained.
Working with the US Embassy in Kabul, Ms. Sofizada received a special visa to resettle in the US and Mr. Alif, who worked with the Polish Army in the Afghan capital, joined her later, on a special immigrant visa.
Ahead of #WorldRefugeeDay, I visited refugees from Iraq & Afghanistan currently living in New York.

Having been afforded the opportunity of a good education, a safe new home and fluency in her host country’s language, the Iraqi refugee acknowledged that she was “one of the lucky ones”.
We still worry about our relatives – resettled Afghan refugee

Right to safety

“Every day you think it is going to be the last. And it is not just one of those things… it literally could be your last. When I went to Egypt with my family it was also hard being there as a refugee in limbo. So, moving to the US, as big a blessing as it was, it took me some years to adjust that ‘I am not going to die tomorrow’,” Ms. Al Shammari said.
“And like every human being, they should be treated with respect”.
According to the latest UN data, currently some 1.2 million internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Iraq from among more than six million initially displaced by violence involving the ISIL terror network from 2014 to 2017.
Though happy they could make it to the US, they are concerned about their family in Pakistan, who again left Kabul after the Taliban took over last August.

Most were vulnerable women and girls and just over half concerned children.

There are 2.6 million registered Afghan refugees around the world, of whom 2.2 million are registered in Iran and Pakistan alone. And another 3.5 million are internally displaced.

Shared responsibility

Mr. Guterres then headed to Queens to visit an Afghan refugee couple, Shafi Alif and Rohina Sofizada, who welcomed him with spiced green tea and traditional Afghan treats.
They registered with UNHCR, which later helped them voluntarily returned to Afghanistan in 2002. The UN agency provided financial support as they settled back in Kabul, including for transportation and a cash stipend.
“Like millions of refugees worldwide, they are helping bring new life, prosperity and rich diversity to their host communities. We must continue supporting them,” the UN chief said on Twitter following the visit.

In commemorating World Refugee Day, Secretary-General António Guterres visits with an Afghan refugee couple who resettled in Queens.

UN Photo/Eskinder Debebe

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