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UNHCR Israel

UNHCR Israel. Who is a refugee?. According to the International Refugee Law (1951 Refugee Convention), a refugee is someone who: Is outside his/her country of origin Has a well-founded fear of persecut ion for reasons of: nationality ; religion ; political opi nion; race; or

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UNHCR Israel

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  1. UNHCR Israel

  2. Who is a refugee? According to the International Refugee Law (1951 Refugee Convention), a refugee is someone who: • Is outside his/her country of origin • Has a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of: • nationality; • religion; • political opinion; • race; or • membership in a particular social group. • Does not have national/state protection.

  3. Concepts: refugee, asylum seeker, temporary protection, non refoulement An Asylum seeker is not necessarily a refugee. The terms asylum-seeker and refugee are often confused: an asylum-seeker is someone who says he or she is a refugee, but whose claim has not yet been definitively evaluated. Temporary protection In Israel, certain groups of asylum seekers benefit from a regime of “temporary protection”: • Sudanese and Eritreans • In the past: Liberians, Ivorians

  4. Concepts: refugee, asylum seeker, temporary protection, non refoulement (2) As a party to the 1951 Refugee Convention, Israel has agreed to ensure that people who meet the definition of refugee under the Convention are not sent back to a country where their life or freedom would be threatened. This is known as the principle of non-refoulement.

  5. About UNHCR UNHCR’s mandate Lead and co-ordinate international action to protect refugees and resolve refugee problems worldwide. Ensure that everyone can exercise the right to seek asylum and find safe refuge in another state. Mandate differs from one country to another depending on willingness and ability of the asylum states to protect refugees and provide asylum procedures

  6. About UNHCR (2) • Role of UNHCR in Israel in the past: Full Refugee Status Determination (RSD) process done by UNHCR, final decision by government. Since 2008, gradual handover of responsibility to MoI • Role of UNHCR in Israel today: Monitoring, providing guidance and expertise to government, protection, capacity-building • Durable solutions: 1) Voluntary repatriation to country of origin 2) Local integration in country of asylum 3) Resettlement in a third country

  7. Asylum seekers in Israel • Main countries of origin: Sudan, Eritrea, Ivory Coast, DRC, Ethiopia, Colombia, Ghana, Nigeria, Georgia, Turkey • Over 21 000 asylum seekers/refugees in Israel today • Around 17 000 benefiting from temporary protection • Around 4 000 in the RSD process • Around 100 benefiting from refugee status obtained individually • Mostly young adults • Majority of men

  8. Sudan is bordered by Egypt to the north; the Red Sea, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east; Kenya, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo to the south; and the Central African Republic, Chad and Libya to the west. Estimated population: 41,087,825 State religion: Islam, although only around 60% of Sudanese are Muslims. Most northern Sudanese are Muslims, most Southerners are animists or Christians. Why do people leave Sudan?

  9. Why do people leave Sudan (2)? • North-South civil war : 1956-1972 and 1983 – 2005 More than 2 mil deaths and 4 mil southerners displaced, inside Sudan and in neighboring countries, including Egypt. Peace treaty between southern rebels and government signed in January 2005. Referendum planned for January 2011. Around 300 000 south Sudanese returned since 2005 • Darfur : 2003 – ongoing New rebellion in the western region of Darfur. More than 400 000 deaths and 2.5 mil Darfurians displaced.

  10. A dangerous journey through Sinai Why do people come to Israel?

  11. Why do people come to Israel (2)? Around 379 000 Sudanese refugees in neighbouring countries because of conflicts in the south and Darfur (USSD Report 2008, released Feb. 09) From Egypt, some Sudanese travel to Israel because of: • difficult conditions in Egypt • events of Dec 2005: excessive use of force by police to disperse around 2,000 Sudanese, including many refugees and asylum seekers, who had staged a sit-in protest near the offices of UNHCR for more than three months led to death of 27 Sudanese.

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