Crises

Syria

US, Russia, UN to meet Syrian opposition on Saturday< (AlertNet, 1 February 2013)

Senior officials from the United States, Russia, the United Nations will meet the Syrian opposition in Munich on Saturday to discuss a political transition in the country, Syrian opposition sources said.

Drowning in the flood< (The Economist, 2 February 2013 edition)

THE governments of countries abutting Syria have long worried that the civil war there may spill over the border, stirring strife across the region. Whereas refugees were leaving Syria last year in a steady trickle, now they have become a flood. In the past few weeks as many as 5,000 people a day have been coming over. Entire villages are emptying out. The office of the UN’s High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) previously said it reckoned 1m people would have fled Syria by June. But already more than 700,000 have done so—and that includes only those who have been registered. The UNHCR will have to reassess an already dire situation.

Drawing hope in Syria< (Aljazeera, 31 January 2013)

Nineteen-year-old Khalifa is on a mission: to camouflage signs of death and destruction in the war-torn Syrian city of Aleppo with expressions of hope.

The computer-programming student roams the battered streets in rebel-held areas with bottles of spray paint, looking for suitable canvasses for his art.

Syrian refugee women exploited in Egypt< (Irin, 31 January 2013)

A joint assessment of Syrian refugees carried out by UNHCR, the World Food Programme (WFP) and the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) identified severe harassment, survival sex and forced marriage as some of the protection concerns facing the community, alongside violence, security threats (theft and physical aggression), and deteriorating livelihoods.

Syrians Transition to Safety in Jordan <(U.S Department of State Official Blog, 30 January 2013)

On January 27 and 28, 2013, Assistant Secretary of State for Population, Refugees, and Migration Anne C. Richard, and USAID Assistant Administrator for Democracy, Conflict, and Humanitarian Assistance Nancy Lindborg visited Syrian refugees in Jordan. They visited the Zaatari refugee camp, a refugee processing center at a Syria-Jordan border crossing, and a food voucher distribution center.

Syria Says It Has Right to Counterattack Israel <(NYT, 31 January 201)

Tensions over the Israeli airstrike on Syrian territory appeared to increase on Thursday as Syria delivered a letter to the United Nations declaring its right to self-defense and Israel’s action was condemned not only by longstanding enemies, including Iran and Hezbollah, but also by Russia.

As more Filipina migrants return home from Syria, concern grows for those staying on <(IOM, 1 February 2013)

IOM believes that there may be as many as 100,000 foreign migrant workers still in Syria. Some 6,800 stranded migrants have already contacted their embassies and IOM directly to communicate their urgent need for repatriation assistance.

Aid Worker Diaries - VIDEO -Cold is the enemy for Syrian refugees in Jordan< (AlertNet, 31 January 2013)

The video below follows UNICEF's camp manager Konady Kone around the camp as he talks to refugees to assess their needs and addresses day-to-day problems such as the lack of hot water in the camp's toilets and hard living conditions caused by bad weather.

Mali

Mali: Civilians at risk from all sides of the conflict< (Amnesty International, 1 February 2013)

The Malian army has committed serious human rights breaches plus violations of international humanitarian law (IHL) during the ongoing conflict against armed groups in the country, including extrajudicial executions of civilians, according to evidence gathered by Amnesty International during a 10-day mission to the West African state.

Swiss tread carefully in Mali mediation efforts< (SwissInfo, 30 January 2013)

Switzerland is trying to leverage its 35-year history in Mali, a priority country for Swiss development aid, to mediate between the government in Bamako and the Tuareg of the Azawad National Liberation Movement (MNLA).

Sudan

Up to 100,000 people flee fighting in Darfur-UN <(AlertNet, 31 January 2013)

Fighting over a gold mine in Sudan's Darfur region has forced 100,000 people to flee and brought the closure of all public offices and schools in one town to accommodate the displaced, the United Nations said on Thursday.

Human trafficking

Traffickers attacking Eritrean refugees in Sudan - rights groups< (ReliefWeb, 31 January 2013)

Since 2009, human traffickers have snatched thousands of Eritrean refugees from camps in eastern Sudan for ransom, sexual exploitation, forced marriage and bonded labour.

More than 800 migrants and victims of human trafficking return home from Greece< (IOM, 1 February 2013)

Greece is a major transit country for thousands of irregular migrants trying to reach western Europe. But many decide to return home when they become stranded, jobless and are forced to sleep on the streets of Athens. In the course of the EEA project, IOM Athens registered over 1,000 third country migrants who asked IOM for help to return to their countries of origin.

Immigration

Sudden Agreement< (The Economist, 29 January 2013)

AFTER years of fruitless argument, America now has not one but two serious proposals for comprehensive immigration reform. The first came on Monday, from a bipartisan group of eight senators. The second came today, from Barack Obama, who flew to Las Vegas to give a speech on the subject; not a formal proposal, per se, but an expansion of his blueprint from May 2011. On the issues that were apparently too delicate to discuss in public a year ago, there's now broad agreement: there should be a path to citizenship for immigrants who are already here illegally, the country should issue more green cards for highly-skilled immigrants, and employers who deliberately hire unauthorised immigrants should be penalised for it.

Migrants fight for their rights as moving becomes part of normal life< (The Guardian, 31 January 2013)

It should be clear by now that economic migration is not exceptional, but, increasingly, part of normal life, linked in particular to the demand for labour in advanced economies and to globalisation. Not only do migrants contribute significantly to the GDP of their own countries through remittances, but they are indispensable to the economies and societies of wealthier countries. In the US, studies have shown that immigrants generate public wealth in excess of their cost in the long term to state and federal services.

The ins and the outs< (The Economist, 2 Feburary 2013 edition)

High immigration is threatening the principle of redistribution that is at the heart of the welfare state. Income inequalities in the Nordic countries are generally lower than elsewhere (see chart), but Matz Dahlberg, of Uppsala University, reckons that immigration is making people less willing to support redistribution. The decline is particularly marked among high-income earners. Immigration is also causing culture clashes. Nordics fervently believe in liberal values, especially sexual equality and freedom of speech, but many of the immigrants come from countries where men and women are segregated and criticising the prophet Muhammad is a serious offence.

Readers' voices: 'Migration is not always running away – it is a journey' <(The Guardian, 31 January 2013)

From fear of leaving home to embracing opportunities, readers share their migration experiences.

Equi-Health project to address Roma, migrant health issues in Europe< (IOM, 1 February 2013)

IOM is today (1/2/13) launching the “Equi-Health” project to improve access to quality health care services for migrants, Roma and other vulnerable ethnic minority groups, including irregular migrants, in the European Union (EU), the European Economic Area (EEA), and Croatia and Turkey over the next three years.

Global development podcast: the impact of migration< (The Guardian, 31 January 2013)

The scale of migration is striking: more than 215 million people are living and working outside the countries of their birth, with many more moving within their home country. What does this mean for developing countries?

Migrants' billions put aid in the shade< (The Guardian, 30 January 2013)

But now, the flow of migrant money around the world has shot up to record levels as more people than ever cross borders to live and work abroad. It's known as remittance money, and in 2012 it topped $530bn (£335bn), according to the latest World Bank figures.

The amount has tripled in a decade and is now more than three times larger than total global aid budgets, sparking serious debate as to whether migration and the money it generates is a realistic alternative to just doling out aid.

Government warned not to repeat 'folly' of Uganda anti-immigration adverts< (BBC, 30 January 2013)

Ministers have been reminded of the "folly" of Leicester council's 1972 attempt to curb Ugandan immigration with a negative advertising campaign.

Following reports that the government is considering a similar approach in Bulgaria and Romania, the Muslim Forum's Manzoor Mughal described the 1972 campaign as "an act of racism".

 Photocredit © UNHCR/ F.Noy / November 2012