Crises

Democratic Republic of Congo

DR Congo: Funding appeal to boost emergency aid in east <(ICRC, 7 May 2013)

With people in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo reeling from an upsurge in conflict and other armed violence over the last few months, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is stepping up its emergency humanitarian aid in the region.

Hundreds of Congolese villagers flee to Uganda as rebel group M23 talks up likelihood of war< (The Washington Post, 8 May 2013)

A spokeswoman for the United Nations refugee agency in Uganda says hundreds of Congolese are fleeing into Uganda to avoid being forcibly conscripted into the ranks of the rebel group M23.

South Sudan

The long road home to South Sudan< (IRIN, 6 May 2013)

George Malual Deng, 24, has spent two years stuck in a transit site waiting to return to his home in South Sudan’s Jonglei state. He is among 20,000 people who have made a home of sorts in the river port of Renk, waiting for a barge to take them further south.

Syria

A Lost Generation: Young Syrian Refugees Struggle to Survive< (NYT, 05 May 2013)

The parents were petrified the oldest of their seven children would be drafted into the Syrian Army. For their teenage girl, they feared rape and kidnapping. And the next oldest, verging on adolescence, had begun rabble-rousing at school and in the street against the government.

Aid convoys roll slowly in Syria despite urgent need - U.N.< (Reuters, 7 May 2013)

Bureaucratic hurdles still hamper delivery of aid in Syria where nearly one in three people need help, half of them children, the United Nations said on Tuesday.

Aid requirements have risen dramatically in the past year as the civil war has escalated, with some 6.8 million deemed in need now compared with 1 million in March 2012, the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said.

Pope, Lebanese president appeal for aid for Syrian refugees< (Catholic News Service, 9 May 2013)

Meeting at the Vatican May 3, Pope Francis and Lebanese President Michel Sleiman called on the international community to offer concrete aid to Lebanon and other countries hosting hundreds of thousands of refugees from Syria.<

Coffee and patience: a day in the life of a family hosting Syrian refugees< (IRIN, 8 May 2013)

Two years ago, as Syrian refugees began streaming across borders, Lebanese families opened up their homes. Unlike in Jordan, Turkey and Iraq, where hundreds of thousands of refugees are being housed in camps, at the beginning of the influx into Lebanon, the majority of refugees were hosted by families. Some Lebanese households took in as many as six refugee families.

What if the U.S. doesn’t intervene in Syria? <(The Washington Post, 9 May 2013)

OPPONENTS OF U.S. intervention in Syria are adept at citing the risks of a more aggressive U.S. effort to bring down the regime of Bashar al-Assad. Weapons given to rebel fighters might end up in the hands of extremists, the skeptics say. U.S. air attacks or the creation of a no-fly zone would be challenged by formidable air defenses. U.S. intervention might increase the risk that the regime would resort to chemical weapons.

Syrian refugees 'sold for marriage' in Jordan <(BBC, 10 May 2013)

Before the war began, Kazal was in love with her neighbour in Homs. "He was 20 years old and I dreamed of marrying him one day," she says. "I never thought I would marry someone I didn't love, but my family and I have been through some hard times since coming to Amman."

Immigration

Queen's Speech: Immigrants to face tougher rules< (BBC, 8 May 2013)

A fresh attempt to curb immigration is the centre piece of the government's planned new laws, set out by the Queen at the State Opening of Parliament.

Short-term migrants will pay for NHS care, landlords will be forced to check immigration status and illegal migrants will not get driving licences

Angolan refugee successfully integrates in Russia< (UNHCR, 6 May 2013)

Lema Dane was brought to Russia by his family as a one-year-old refugee, placed in an orphanage for six years, reclaimed by his mother and then left behind when she returned to Angola. He had a hard start to his life.

Human Trafficking

Nepal struggles to contain human trafficking problem <(The Guardian, 8 May 2013)

Raji speaks softly, her small, cross-legged frame fitting neatly into a plastic garden chair. "When we felt weak and couldn't work, they would beat us with metal rods," she says.

There is a cluster of rusty steel reinforcement bars sticking out of the concrete above us; it becomes clear those are the kind of rods she is talking about.

Analysis: Southeast Asia’s human trafficking conundrum< (IRIN, 6 May 2013)

Tens of thousands of people are vulnerable to being trafficked in Southeast Asia, with governments struggling to understand and respond collectively to the problem, say experts and government officials.

Video

Syrian Refugee Crisis Growing <(NYT, 9 May 2013)

Having just returned from a visit to refugee camps in Iraq and Turkey, Marc Hanson, a senior advocate for Refugees International, talks to The Times about what he saw on the ground.

Iraq: A Home for a Syrian Family <(UNHCR, 8 May 2013)

Kava and his family arrive at Domiz camp in northern Iraq, traumatized by the conflict in Syria. With the help of UNHCR and its partners, his family has found shelter and a glimmer of hope.

Modern Day Slavery< (Huffington Post, 9 May 2013)

Approximately 115 million children across the world are forced into child labor. We are joined by survivors and the head of the ILO's "Programme to Combat Forced Labour" to discuss the problem of modern-day slavery and how we can address it.

Podcast

A Syrian boy's story; a Burmese building with a past <(BBC, 9 May 2013)

Pascale Harter introduces personal stories, impressions and analysis from writers and correspondents around the world. In this edition: James Harkin learns some valuable lessons from one young resident of a refugee camp in Turkey. The story of a boy called Saleh, his pet turtle, and an unexpected visit from Angelina Jolie has plenty to tell about how - and why - the conflict in Syria has grown ever more complex. Vaudine England tunes into the echoes of a diverse past amid the decaying buildings of Rangoon. As Burma opens up to the outside world again, she wonders whether historic traces of the city's once-cosmopolitan mix - of migrants of all trades, religions and countries of origin - might pave the way for new understanding.

This Is Where I Am: Episode 13 of 15 <(BBC, 8 May 2013)

Unbeknown to Abdi, Debs is in the refugee camp in Dadaab searching for news of his wife Azira. She finds a woman who was with them on the day the bandits attacked - with surprising news.

Photocredit © UNHCR/ A.Akad/ April 2013