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Title:Refugees: who, where, and why
Author(s):Catherine Gevert
Source:Faces: People, Places, and Cultures. 19.1 (Sept.
2002): p8.
Document Type:Article
Full Text: COPYRIGHT 2002 Cobblestone Publishing, a
division of Carus Publishing Company
www.cobblestonepub.com/
Full Text:
Attila the Hun invaded western Europe, pillaging the Italian
peninsula in A.D. 452. Thousands of inhabitants of the Italian
countryside fled their homes and sought refuge on neighboring
islands in the Adriatic Sea. This was certainly not the first example
of people forced to flee their homes, and, unfortunately, it was not
the last. Today, more than 14 million men, women, and children
have been forced to flee their homes, towns, and countries because
they are afraid to stay. We call these people refugees.
In 1951, the United Nations defined a refugee as a person who,
"owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of
race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group,
or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality, and is
unable to or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the
protection of that country." Refugeesare also people just like us:
grandparents, mothers, fathers, children, students, secretaries,
store clerks, teachers, accountants, and doctors.
Refugees are protected by international law and have special
rights, such as the right to safe asylum. In ancient times, churches
and temples were often used as places of asylum; today, asylum is
typically another country. In a country of asylum, refugees have
the right to be treated the same as legal residents, and as such are
entitled to basic civil rights, medical care, and schooling.
Today, half of all refugees worldwide come from three locations-Afghanistan, Iraq, and Palestine, currently occupied by Israel. Asia
is the number one source of refugees, followed by Africa and
Europe.
Many countries are hosts to large numbers of refugees. The
largest numbers of refugees are found in Iran and Pakistan, with
more than
one million each. Germany shelters nearly one million refugees,
and Tanzania hosts more than 620,000. The Palestinians, who
represent one of the largest groups of refugees, are found in host
countries throughout the world.
Once inside a host country's borders, refugees must find shelter,
sometimes within another family's home, but more often in
a refugee camp. Refugee camps are typically located outside
cities or towns along the border of the host country.
Kakuma Camp, on the hot, dry border of Kenya, Sudan, and
Ethiopia, provides shelter for more than
80,000 refugees.Refugees share small huts that are made of
tree branches, mud, and plastic sheeting. Food and water are
provided, but they are rationed. A hospital and several clinics
provide health care, but these are overburdened with many
patients; mostrefugees are sick and malnourished when they
arrive. Schooling is provided for children, but classes are very
overcrowded. Refugee camps are not meant to be permanent
shelters, but they do provide asylum and protection, and take care
of the basic needs of refugees.
Most refugees hope to return to their homes. As conflicts are
resolved, many refugees undergo repatriation. During the 1980s,
civil war erupted in Central America, causing more than two million
people to flee their homes. In 1987, a regional peace agreement
was signed ending the war and allowing thousands of people to
return to their homes.
Some refugees cannot return home, nor can they stay in their
country of asylum. They must resettle in a new country. Since
World War II, millions of refugees have been successfully resettled
in ten established resettlement countries, including Canada and the
United States.
The United States has traditionally been a sanctuary forrefugees.
One of the first groups of refugees to arrive were the Pilgrims. In
1620, the Mayflower sailed into what is now Plymouth harbor
carrying refugees from England. They had fled to America because
of religious persecution in their homeland. Since then, millions
of refugees have resettled in the United States. From 1975 to
2001, more than two millionrefugees were offered resettlement.
People become refugees for many reasons. The number one
reason is war. Perceptions of unfairness, such as unequal treatment
or denial of rights based on race, religion, economic status, or
political thought, instigate war; so does unequal access to land,
food, water, and other necessary resources. Another important
trigger is the feeling of superiority over others; some individuals
feel their system of belief, country, or ethnic background is superior
to that of others. In 1991, Yugoslavia splintered into several
independent states. One of these states, Bosnia, was an ethnic mix
of Muslims, Serbians, and Croatians. The Serbians, who were
predominantly Christian, decided that Muslims should not be
allowed to live in their new country. They began an "ethnic
cleansing" campaign, which killed thousands of innocent men,
women, and children, and forced hundreds of thousands of people
to seek refuge in neighboring countries.
Others are forced to flee their countries because of natural disasters
such as floods, fires, and drought, although they are not
considered refugees by the United Nations.
In January 2002, Mt. Nyiragongo in the Democratic Republic of the
Congo erupted, sending tons of red-hot lava through the city of
Goma. As buildings and villages burned, 400,000 people fled into
neighboring Rwanda.
In Ethiopia, crop failures and livestock loss caused by drought
conditions over the last several years have caused widespread
famine. Thousands have fled into neighboring countries in search of
food and water.
Since early times, large groups of people have been forced to leave
their homelands because of persecution and the devastation of their
lands. In today's world, we have the knowledge and tools to seek
solutions to some of these issues. We must also consider and
respect the human rights of every man, woman, and child. It may
seem like an enormous task to some, but it is one we can all
achieve.
Persecuted means Oppressed or harassed, especially because of
race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, or beliefs.
Repatriation is the process of returning to one's country of birth,
citizenship, or origin.
Through Time
Refugees
1950 The United Nations High Commissioner
for Refugees(UNHCR) is set up to help the more than one million
Europeans displaced after World War II.
1956 Uprisings in Hungary force more than 200,000 people to
become refugees.
1959 Algeria fights for its independence and 200,000 people flee
the country.
1964 Rwanda, Mozambique, and Tanzania explode in conflicts for
independence and thousands become refugees.
1971 More than ten million Bengalis flee to India, as Bangladesh
becomes a nation.
1974 Nearly 400,000 refugees become homeless as the Greeks
fight the Turks in Cyprus.
1978 About three million Asians escape to neighboring countries,
including Thailand and Malaysia, during conflicts throughout
Indochina.
1979 Six million Afghans flee their country.
1980s Violence in Central America results in more than
300,000refugees. In Africa, many Ethiopians try to escape drought
and war in Sudan.
1990s During the Gulf War, 1.5 million Iraqi Kurds
becomerefugees. Civil war in West Africa causes 800,000 West
Africans to flee their homes. War in the Balkans forces thousands to
leave their homes as Yugoslavia breaks apart.
1991 Fighting in Somalia forces about 750,000 Somalis to seek
shelter in Ethiopia.
1992 More than 1.5 million refugees return to their homes in
Mozambique as part of a repatriation program.
1993 Thousands of Cambodian refugees return home as part of a
repatriation program.
1994 Widespread killing in Rwanda sends thousands to neighboring
countries.
1999 More than one million people from Kosovo are forced to leave
their homes.
2001 Thousands of people flee Afghanistan.
Catherine Gevert is a science and social studies teacher living in
Sparks, Nevada. She served in the United States Air Force and
Nevada Air National Guard.
Gevert, Catherine
Source Citation (MLA 7th Edition)
Gevert, Catherine. "Refugees: who, where, and why." Faces: People,
Places, and Cultures Sept. 2002: 8+. General OneFile. Web. 5 Sept.
2013.
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