Migration

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| Press release

Hundreds receive aid as migrants cross into Guatemala

Geneva/Panama, 2 October 2020 – The Guatemalan and Honduran Red Cross Societies are providing assistance and care to hundreds of migrants who have crossed the border from Honduras to Guatemala. In Guatemala, Red Cross volunteers have been deployed to Entre Rios in the department of Izabal on the north east border with Honduras to support people as they arrive. In all, more than 2,300 people are believed to have crossed in recent days María Elena Ajpacaja of the Guatemalan Red Cross said: “We are seeing many vulnerable people crossing the border and they desperately need assistance. Among the crowd of migrants we are identifying pregnant women, children of different ages and elderly people. Many of the people we are treating are dehydrated or suffering from various injuries after having walked very long distances in recent days.” Guatemalan Red Cross volunteers are providing a range of services, including pre-hospital care, water, hygiene items, snacks, face masks, and information on COVID-19 prevention. In Honduras, three Red Cross humanitarian service points have been operational since the morning of 30 September, providing water and face masks, as well as information about safety, security and virus prevention.

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Dreams, hopes and fears in the Bangladesh camps

By Farid Alam, 21-year-old resident of Kutupalong camp, whose parents fled Rakhine, Myanmar nearly 30 years ago. Farid is a Bangladesh Red Crescent volunteer working alongside international Red Cross operations. When I was born in Kutupalong camp, Bangladesh, it was a very different place. I remember laughing and flying kites as a child with my friends. Kites are not flying around our camps anymore. There is little laughter. Just months ago, we lived in a different world. We used to go outside a lot, seeking freedom from our little bamboo and plastic homes. But now, due to COVID we cannot. Often we are told to stay inside. It’s hot and cramped as I have a big family, with nine of us living in one room. Physical distance is just not possible in our homes. It’s the same for most living here. We have hardly any masks and other protective equipment in the camps. We have no idea how we are surviving. Most people in the camps do not seem to care about much, certainly not COVID-19. Our main worries are our dignity, our safety and having hope for our future. We are not only fighting with the coronavirus here. We are fighting much more. I know about COVID-19 but most people in the camps have not heard of it. Many don’t know what a virus is. We have seen many organizations using loudspeakers to make people aware of coronavirus. It doesn’t work. They speak so fast and move past too quickly. Our community Bangladesh Red Crescent volunteers are doing a great job going door to door. I’m seeing people understand now. It helps a lot. I see this place full of suffering. From dawn to dusk, we endure challenges: finding food, repairing our homes, keeping safe or seeking water. Our lives are filled with limitations. Most of us do not have the opportunity to read and write. When I can, I pass the time reading. I love history and English literature. Ever since my childhood, I wanted to be a teacher. I studied up to my eighth year as we were not allowed more education than that. It was very difficult to accept. Since then I have been studying by myself. It would be my dream to become a teacher. But my life has become very difficult lately as my father is sick. For many years, my 48-year-old father volunteered with Bangladesh Red Crescent operations in the camps. Our whole family was dependent on his allowance and aid we received. He has developed heart problems and other health complications. Since I was 14, I have been volunteering with Red Crescent. I have been working as much as possible, around two weeks a month and I am paid a small allowance. This money is all we have. I want to support my family with all my heart. I am trying to protect my family from COVID-19. My parents came here after fleeing from Rakhine in Myanmar nearly 30 years ago. Every day I worry for my mother, who suffers from chronic kidney disease. Our shelters are getting old. The bamboo frames, plastic and tarpaulins are wearing out. When it rains, water often pours into our homes. It’s the monsoon season now and it’s raining a lot so it is very hard to sleep. We often wait in a queue to access a toilet and bathing area. It’s shared with 25-30 people. My mother and sister fear going out at night to use the toilet. There is no lighting and they must go in complete darkness. Often I go for support. Things are worse in the mud of the monsoon rains. Staring at the roof of our shelter, I hear the sound of people speaking nonstop. We have no personal space. No privacy whatsoever. As if life is not hard enough, there are mice and rats as big as cats. They often make more holes in our tarpaulins. I find time to help my neighbour’s children reading and writing. I teach them maths, Arabic and English. I love teaching them. I don’t want children in my community to lose their future. Since official teaching activities have been halted, I think the children will forget the lessons they have been taught by their teachers in the past. I also speak to them about the risks we face with COVID-19. If I were a citizen of any country, I could finish my education. I would love to pursue a higher education. If I could become a teacher and work, I would love to better support my family. But I am not that lucky person. I am stuck here. I do not know what will happen to me and my family in the coming days. Whatever happens, we will face it together. All I want is to forget everything and start a new life. Earn a little to survive and live a very simple life with my family.

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| Press release

Residents of Moria camp must be moved now – Red Cross head

Geneva, Budapest, Athens, 11 September 2020 – The President of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) Francesco Rocca said Moria camp in Greece is not fit for humans, and migrants and refugees staying there must be moved immediately to a safe place.Around 13,000 people are lacking food, water and shelter, after devastating fires on Tuesday and Wednesday this week. At the time of the first fire the camp was under lockdown due to more than 30 COVID19 positive cases.“The Moria camp was already unfit for humans before the fire, with four times as many people than it was built for. The situation was extremely unhealthy, with no ability to physically distance to avoid COVID19,” said Mr Rocca, who visited the camp in March.“Enough is enough. Now is the time to show some humanity and move these people to a healthy, safe and humane place. There are 4,000 children in Moria and no child should have to endure this,” Mr Rocca said.The president of Hellenic Red Cross Dr. Antonios Avgerinos said his organization had already sent staff and aid and stood ready to do anything it could to assist.“Our first truck has arrived on Lesvos with 6.5 tonnes of aid, including blankets, water and hygiene kits. We have disaster management experts on site as well as the Lesvos branch staff and volunteers who are skilled in first aid, psychosocial support (PSS) and restoring family links (RFL),” he said.“One of our mobile health units with 10 nurses trained in emergency health will arrive on Lesvos this afternoon. We also have 10 Samaritans trained in first aid giving assistance on the island already. And we will deploy more medical staff shortly.“We are ready to mobilise further support and are working in close consultation with local authorities and the Ministry of Migration and Asylum to help with the immediate and long terms needs on Lesvos,” Dr Avgerinos explained.400 unaccompanied children have already been flown to the mainland and 1,000 of the most vulnerable will be housed on a ship. But thousands more are sleeping on the roadside.Mr Rocca said evacuating migrants from the Greek islands was a humanitarian imperative and required concrete actions of solidarity by EU Member States.“This is a European crisis. Simply containing people is not the solution. EU member states’ solidarity with Greece and the people of Lesvos is needed now more than ever. Member States must also ensure that relocated individuals have prompt access to protection and fair asylum procedures, and that includes not carrying out pushbacks,” Mr Rocca said.Mr Rocca said states are too often using refugees and migrants as part of an unacceptable and immoral political game and said coronavirus had made things “an absolute disaster” for people on the move.Hellenic Red Cross is also actively responding to urgent migration needs in other camps and urban centres in mainland Greece. Services include mobile health units in several migrant camps, 5 centres for unaccompanied children, 2 multifunctional centres for migrants in Athens and Thessaloniki, educational health services, referral programmes and a national helpline.These activities were scaled up earlier this year with the support of IFRC’s emergency appeal  MDR65003 Turkey/Greece Population Movement.IFRC’s Emergency Plan of Action is currently being revised and will be adjusted to reflect any additional needs as a result of the fire. Those wanting to respond to the crisis on Lesvos should donate to this appeal.Photos are available here

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| Press release

Migrants and refugees “least protected, most affected” in COVID crisis, warns IFRC President

Geneva, 10 September 2020 – The COVID-19 pandemic has been a disaster for people from all walks of life, but an absolute “catastrophe” for the world’s vulnerable migrants, people seeking asylum and refugees. Already weak social safety nets are eroding, migrants are being stuck, stranded without access to support, in some cases unable to move or return, as well as exposed to increasing risks of unwarranted deportation and detention, and heightening stigma and discrimination. Speaking to journalists in Geneva, Francesco Rocca, the President of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), said: “COVID-19 has been cruel for all of us. It has been catastrophic for migrants. They face even more restrictions in terms of accessing basic services in ways that contribute nothing to public health. They are disproportionately impacted by border closures. They face heightened risk of detention and deportation. They are increasingly scapegoated for the pandemic.” National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies have seen a sharp increase in the vulnerability of migrants around the world. For example, in Central America, the closing of borders and the hardening of policies have seen thousands of migrants trapped at points along the isthmus, including in Darien Province in Panama, and on the Costa Rica side of the Nicaragua border. In Europe, thousands of migrants remain stranded in Bosnia and Herzegovina, in large part due to COVID-19 restrictions. In Greece, appeals to move vulnerable migrants from inadequate facilities on islands to the mainland have also stalled, in part because of the pandemic. IFRC President Rocca said: “Border closures and lack of political will have trapped tens thousands of migrants in Europe, North Africa and the Americas in an intolerable limbo, often without access to critical support to meet their most basic needs and stay safe.” In terms of economic impact, President Rocca warned that COVID-19 has caused “threadbare social safety nets for migrants and refugees to snap.” In Turkey for example, recent IFRC and Turkish Red Crescent polling has found that nearly seven out of 10 refugee families surveyed have lost employment while a staggering four out of five families have seen their household debts balloon to near intolerable levels. Mr Rocca was speaking at the launch of a new IFRC policy report that looks specifically at the impact of COVID-19 on migrants and refugees. The report – Least protected, most affected: migrants and refugees facing extraordinary risks during the COVID-19 pandemic – documents the rising vulnerabilities of these groups over the past six months, while noting that the existing challenges faced by migrants have been exacerbated and risks to health and safety increased as a result of the pandemic. The report contains a number of recommendations for governments on how COVID-19 responses can best keep everyone safe, including by ensuring the policies introduced to control the pandemic are not used to justify inhumane treatment of migrants and refugees. President Rocca said: “(These measures) must not impact the ability of people to seek asylum or force people to return to situations of danger and harm. In some countries, we have seen the principle of non-refoulement being discounted. Stopping the virus is in everyone's interest: how each country treats and supports the most vulnerable will affect how the virus spreads and how well the country recovers from the pandemic.” Download the report: Least protected, most affected: migrants and refugees facing extraordinary risks during the COVID-19 pandemic (PDF, 5.7 MB)

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Peru: Supporting migrants in the middle of a pandemic

By Melissa Monzon Luis Luis was born in Caracas, Venezuela. Two years ago, he decided to leave his country, seeking for a better quality of life. He started his trip by bus, because he didn’t have all the documents to travel by plane. “When I arrived in Cucuta, I found the Red Cross, they gave me a kit with help for the road, because the trip was very long; I was traveling to Medellin”. Once in Medellin, he worked there for eight months, and then started his way to Lima, Peru. The road was not what he expected, once in Ecuador he encountered a series of protests and when he couldn´t continue with his trip, he had to stay two days in the station waiting to be able to take the bus to continue his journey. “When I arrived in Guayaquil, I once again found a Red Cross tent, they help us all, they gave us a food kit, things for personal care and medicine”, says Luis. Then he continued his route until he arrived in Lima. Once in Lima, a friend offered him a job selling food. “I worked hard every day, we had several problems, but we persisted, working in an exhausting schedule”. However, due to the pandemic, he could no longer continue working. “As I worked on the streets, with COVID-19 we couldn´t work anymore. It hit us pretty hard, because that was our only income”. Luis has a bicycle, and now that Peru is opening up some economic activities, he is already looking for a job, offering his home delivery service. “As I am a migrant, I don´t have a subsidy from the government. For this reason, every day, I go to the markets, looking constantly for a job, I hope to find it soon”, says Luis. Yudi A year and seven months ago Yudi came from Venezuela to Peru with her family, seeking a better quality of life. In order to be able to make the trip, they sold everything they had. Peru was their destination since the beginning, as they heard that they were handing out the temporary residence permit, with which they could work and earn a living legally and honestly, as she tells us. “My daughter has epilepsy, this also made us take the decision to migrate. We needed to go to a place, to a country where they could offer her medical care and get the medicines that she so badly needs.” Before Yudi traveled, her brother and nephews had already arrived. After they proved that they felt Good here, Yudi traveled with her sister, her two sons and her two dogs, who are also part of the family. Once in Lima, Yudi worked as a tutor for online courses until November 2019. Due to the pandemic, her sister and son were also unemployed; her nephews, who had a food business, had to close it. “The situation is quite uncertain, we don´t know what will happen”, says Yudi. Jesus Jesus came from Venezuela to Peru four years ago. His trip was by bus, because he didn´t had enough money to travel by plane. He first arrived in Ecuador, where he stayed for two months, and then arrived in Peru in 2016. “When I arrived, everything seemed nice to me, although I didn´t knew many things, I felt out of place, I was only twenty years old. I lived in one room and shared a bathroom with sixteen people. I worked as a waiter in a restaurant; until today I am very grateful to those people because I didn’t have the documents at that time, and they always treated me well”, says Jesus, who already knows the city today, has Peruvian friends and colleagues, and tell us that thanks to them he has been able to learn more about the country’s culture. Eventually he moved to an apartment and went from waiter to manager of a restaurant. “I met very nice, spectacular people, they gave me a lot of support, I learned a lot of things, because when I left Venezuela, I was a student, I didn’t have work experience.” Due to the pandemic, Jesus no longer has a job because the restaurant where he used to work decided to close. “I lost my job; it was alarming because I lived alone. I was worried, but happily I had contact with some friends who decided to move in with me.” Jesus tells us that another great concern of not earning an income is not being able to send money back to his mom and dad who live in Venezuela. He, like so many other migrants, is a source of income for all those families who stayed in their countries. “I try to see the positive things in everything. When the quarantine begun, I tried to organize myself a little more, I sold some stuff, and I tried different things to distract myself, I tried to do exercise a lot, pray a lot, watch the news and communicate with my family in Venezuela.” Pedro* Pedro left from Venezuela to Colombia a year and a half ago searching for work, while his wife Maria, traveled to Peru. After two months, they met each other in the latter country. Once in Peru, Pedro worked in a restaurant. “It was very difficult because I have never worked in a kitchen before, but I did my best, my wife was pregnant at the time. I always tried to do my best, until I was stabled at my job. I worked hard, obtaining each of the things that I have today in my home, and helping my family in Venezuela, where I have two children. Fighting every day for the welfare of my family”, says Pedro. In the context of the pandemic, Pedro lost his job. In one of his wife’s pregnancy test, they test him for HIV, the result tested positive. “I have been very pleased with the treatment they have given me; I have received excellent attention and information. I am very grateful with the hospital, with its staff, with the help here in Peru, they have helped us a lot. They have given me pills, information, everything I needed”. Despite his degree of vulnerability, Pedro has gone out to work on the streets, as he is the livelihood of his family both in Peru and in Venezuela. “I have gone out but taking all the preventive measures, with my mask and my hand sanitizer. I need to go out to work, especially for the baby who needs food”. “I am very grateful to be in Peru, and I continue with great desire to continue working and fighting for my family, and for those we love the most, to help my children in Venezuela, and we will be here until God allows it, and then to be able to return to our country someday and to enjoy our people”, concludes Pedro. ------------- Luis, Yudi, Jesus y Pedro are some of the people who are part of the Cash and Voucher Assistance program implemented in Peru by the Red Cross with the support of the European Union. This program is aimed at families in a vulnerable condition, who have been left without financial support due to the pandemic. As part of the program, families receive a card with an economic amount to cover their basic needs. In the testimonies collected, the families have shared with us that the card has allowed them to cover expenses mainly for rent, food and health. *This name was changed to protect the person who kindly gave us his testimony.

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Peru: “Being a nurse allows me to share, talk and get to know the needs of migrants”

By Melissa Monzon Andres Yares has been a volunteer for the Peruvian Red Cross over seventeen years, and since 2019 he has been supporting as a nurse in health activities directed at migrants. “In 2019 I started working in this project, helping in the community health days. We visited many districts on the outskirts of Lima, where there were not only migrants, but also local people in great need, and we gave medical attention to everyone”, says Andres. “For me it is important to work with migrants because they are people who, in addition to not being in their country, have many unmet needs. Many of them do not have access to health care or have had to stop their treatments because a medical appointment was too expensive for them. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Peru has kept his borders closed from March 16 to date. Hundreds of migrants who were on transit have been unable to leave the country. Also, many of them who are already established in the country have run out of sources of income, so they cannot cover expenses such as rent. A large percentage of these migrants don’t have access to the Peruvian health system, and in a context such as COVID-19, they are left unprotected, increasing their health risks. For this reason, since April 03, the Red Cross has been providing health care in different shelters in various districts of Lima, the capital of Peru, which is home to approximately 80% Venezuelan migrants who are in the country. Since March, the community health days had to take a turn, since the country was quarantined for more than three months. So, Andres, together with the project team, began visiting different shelters where migrants and refuge applicants of nationalities stayed. “Something that stands out a lot of my work, beyond the medical care, is be able to share, talk with them, about their needs, concerns, and to understand the way how they see things and their customs. In my work I talk to many people and that has left a mark on me. In the shelters we have given medical attention to people from different countries such as Venezuela, Haiti, Nigeria. It’s incredible to see how, if you want, you can communicate with everyone, and get to know them. We communicated with people who didn’t speak Spanish by signs, or with a translation app from the cell phone. That way you could make them feel love and affection and they were very grateful”, says Andres who today works giving information about COVID-19 through the WhatsApp Line that the Red Cross has implemented in Peru. From April to date, the Red Cross, with the support of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has provided more than 500 health services in shelters located in six districts of Lima, Peru, as well as health information, with emphasis on preventive measures against COVID-19.

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Honduras: 500 migrants blocked in Choluteca due to movement restrictions

The situation in Choluteca, Honduras, near the border with Nicaragua, is extremely difficult for approximately 500 migrants who are blocked in the country due to movement restrictions in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many of them are from Cuba, Haiti and several African countries (such as Ghana, Kenya, etc.) and travel with their family for months, crossing different borders on their way to the United States. One of their main concerns is to maintain their anonymity and remain "invisible" to the institutions, agencies or governments, in order to avoid being detained and deported during their migration journey to the north. Each stage of their path poses new challenges depending on the countries they cross. Families grow along the journey with the birth of new members who, sometimes, cannot accompany their parents on their way to the north because of nationality laws of the countries where the children are born. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, these migrants have faced new risks in their migration journey. According to Alexei Gastro, Secretary General of the Honduran Red Cross: "They risk being stranded at the borders of different countries, as is the case in Choluteca, with limited health care infrastructure. They are also exposed to human trafficking, assaults, rapes, and payments to 'coyotes' to guide them on their route". According to Alexei Gastro, another fundamental challenge for migrants is to conserve their financial resources to complete their migratory journey: "For them it is vital to maintain the budget allocated to this migratory project, so they cannot afford long stays at any point along the route, because they could run out of resources to continue their journey to the north". The Honduran Red Cross is providing support to the migrants blocked in Choluteca to try to alleviate the basic needs of migrants who hope to be able to follow their route when the restrictions on movement imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic are lifted. The Honduran Red Cross is providing support to the migrants blocked in Choluteca in order to meet their basic needs. Those migrants continue to hope to be able to continue their journey up north when the movement restrictions imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic are lifted. The Honduran Red Cross identified the need to set up shelters to accommodate those migrants, who often have to stay with Honduran families, or in hotels in the area. Other services being provided to migrants include health assistance to prevent coronavirus and dengue; distribution of food, hygiene kits, drinking water, and biosecurity supplies; restoration of family contacts; access to the Internet; psychosocial support, etc. Language is an additional issue because most of the migrants barely speak Spanish or English, making it difficult for Red Cross teams to provide, for example, psychosocial support. According to Dunia Varela, Health Officer at the Honduran Red Cross: "The difficulty of language, the masks and the PPE (personal protective equipment) we have to wear during the COVID-19 outbreak, makes it even more difficult to empathize with migrants, because they cannot see our faces or expressions, although in most cases it is very gratifying when we manage to get them to open up to us and share what worries them". The Red Cross is particularly concerned about the situation of migrants and voluntary returnees to countries of origin in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, and is working hard to alleviate their suffering and meet their basic needs in transit countries and at the borders.

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| Press release

Red Cross Red Crescent alarmed at increase in migrant drownings in Mediterranean 

Beirut/Budapest/Geneva, 10 July 2020 – Red Crescent societies in Tunisia and Libya are seeing an increase in drownings on the shores of North Africa. Warmer weather and relaxed COVID-19 lockdowns are thought to be behind an increase in numbers of people attempting to cross the Mediterranean from North Africa to Europe. Many are not surviving the perilous journey, with 20 per cent more people estimated to have died in June this year as opposed to last year, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM). IFRC President Francesco Rocca said: “While Red Cross volunteers in Italy support those who have managed to survive the crossing, unfortunately on the other side of the Mediterranean, both Libyan and Tunisian Red Crescent volunteers are left to collect the bodies of those who didn’t.” Libyan and Tunisian Red Crescent volunteers have the difficult task of finding the bodies of those who perish along the shoreline and transferring them with dignity to local hospitals. In the month of June alone, Red Crescent teams recovered 26 bodies in Libya and more than 30 in Tunisia. President Rocca said: “Each person who dies trying to cross that deadly stretch of water is more than just a statistic. They are someone who was full of hope for a better future, with family and friends who loved them, who likely faced countless hardships along the way only to have their life ended, we cannot forget this.” More than twice the number of people have arrived on the shores of Italy this year compared to the same time as last year, according to the UN. However, this does not paint the full picture of the situation. The Italian government has declared its ports unsafe since April due to COVID-19 and any disembarkation of migrants has either been prevented until they can be rerouted to other countries or has been substantially delayed. This results in migrants being left on board for long periods of time with limited access to health, protection or any other type of assistance. When they do arrive, Italian Red Cross volunteers are the first people they see, providing first aid and psychosocial support, facilitating quarantine measures and sharing information. “Year after year the crossings continue. Our fear is that the situation will only get worse, with the deepening economic crisis caused by COVID-19,” said President Rocca. “We know that migrants already struggle with a lack of access to healthcare and hygiene facilities. They are too scared to seek help when sick and it is almost impossible for them to keep a physical distance from others in crowded refugee camps. These can all be contributing factors to people making the decision to attempt the crossing.” Saving lives at sea and providing migrantswith effective opportunities to access assistance and protection are collective responsibilities. EU Member States cannot face this alone. Across the sea, North and Central African countries also should not be left alone: humanity and solidarity are the only answers.

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| Press release

Isolation field hospitals open to prevent COVID crisis in Bangladesh camps

Kuala Lumpur/Geneva/Cox’s Bazar, 22 June 2020--Two new isolation field hospitals are opening to treat an alarming and growing number of COVID-19 patients in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh camps and adjacent host communities. The isolation and treatment centres help address a growing gap in critical medical care needed to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and mass deaths in the world’s biggest camps for displaced people from Rakhine state of Myanmar. More than 1500 cases of COVID-19 in the Cox’s Bazar region, including 37 confirmed cases and three deaths in the crowded camps, are putting immense pressure on existing government hospitals and health facilities established by international relief agencies. Syed Ali Nasim Khaliluzzaman, Head of Population Movement Operation, Bangladesh Red Crescent Society in Cox’s Bazar, said that the true extent of the outbreak may not be fully apparent yet due to limited testing and health facilities available in the camp. “Extremely overcrowded living conditions, the existence of chronic diseases, basic sanitation and hygiene facilities and limited access to healthcare make the displaced communities in Cox’s Bazar extremely vulnerable to the virus,” he said There are an estimated 1.24 million people in the Cox’s Bazar area, including more than 900,000 people living in the camps, with the existing healthcare system stretched to the limit even before the COVID-19 outbreak. As part of a coordinated humanitarian effort, Red Cross Red Crescent has already established 12 healthcare facilities in the camp and meeting the health needs remains a huge challenge for all aid organisations in Cox’s Bazar. “The two new field hospitals are a step to closing the gap in crucial medical care, but it is important to remember that COVID-19 is not the only health emergency for the people living in these camps,”saidSanjeev Kumar Kafley, Head of IFRC’s sub-office in Cox’s Bazar. “Whilst the virus is emerging as a massive threat to people living in the camp, there remain high levels of deadly diarrhoea, acute respiratory infections and clusters of measles, all placing ongoing demands on the healthcare system in and around the camps. “These communities now need even more support than ever, which can only be provided through a unified effort between national agencies, humanitarian organisations and the international community.” Photosavailable here

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| Press release

COVID-19: Red Cross and Red Crescent urge more support for displaced people in the Middle East North Africa region

Beirut, 19 June 2020– Ahead of World Refugee Day on 20 June, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) is increasingly concerned that migrants, refugees and internally displaced people are falling through the cracks. All people, regardless of their status, should be provided humanitarian assistance. “We know that migrants, refugees and internally displaced people are amongst the most vulnerable people in the region, and amongst that group especially women and children,” said Dr. Hossam Elsharkawi, head of the IFRC for the Middle East North Africa region. “They are particularly at risk for health complications and violence, their temporary accommodation can be crowded, often with inadequate sanitation and shelter or little access to medical care and good nutrition”. Red Cross Red Crescent National Societies across the region are working directly with authorities and international agencies to ensure that refugees, migrants and internally displaced people are included as part of all COVID-19 response operations. “Our Red Cross and Red Crescent teams on the ground are also seeing an increase in stigmatization towards displaced people,”said Elsharkawi. “We know that stigma as well as misinformation could prevent potentially infected people from seeking care – and this needs to be taken just as seriously as the virus itself.” Discrimination, language barriers and legal status can prevent people from accessing life-saving prevention and health information, and Red Cross and Red Crescent teams across the region are ensuring that people on the move can access information to keep themselves and their families safe – no matter their reading ability, dialect or country of origin. In Libya, the Libyan Red Crescent has done awareness campaigns targeting internally displaced people and migrants outside detention centres. They have also recently set up humanitarian service points to provide basic information to migrants and internally displaced people, distribute food and other basic necessities, as well support restoring family links activities. In Egypt, more than 200 migrant volunteers have been engaged in the response to provide support in local languages. In Iraq, the Iraqi Red Crescent Society has reached more than 50,000 people on the move and more than 6,000 Syrian refugees with health awareness sessions across 50 camps. In Jordan, the Jordan Red Crescent Society is targeting host communities as well as Syrian refugees with critical prevention messaging as well as distributing food baskets. In Tunisia, the Tunisian Red Crescent has been sharing COVID-19 health and hygiene information in migrant centres. “We know that many displaced people depend on humanitarian assistance for survival, and during this crisis we must continue to look for alternate and innovative ways to deliver assistance, in conditions that protect the health of both displaced people as well as staff and volunteers involved,”said Elsharkawi. “They must not be forgotten.” IFRC calls on all actors to ensure that migrants, internally displaced people and refugees are actively involved and considered in all response activities. They must have access to information about COVID-19 in a language they can understand as well as prevention measures and access to medical treatment in case of infection. The specific needs of women and children, the elderly and chronically ill, as well as those with disabilities among the displaced must also be addressed. World Refugee Day is marked on 20 June each year to celebrate the courage and resilience of the tens of millions of people forced to flee their homes due to war or persecution.

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Greece: “I’m halfway to reaching my dreams”

By Georgia Trismpioti, IFRC Somaya dreams of becoming a medical doctor and bringing relief to those who are suffering. Somaya and her family had to flee war-torn Afghanistan and sought refuge in Iran. She and her family have had a difficult life, but Somaya continues to chase her dreams of making a meaningful contribution to society. Somaya and her husband fled their home country - war-torn Afghanistan - in search of safety. "I left Afghanistan because there was always a feeling of being unsafe, anything could happen at any time," she says. ”For women in Afghanistan, there is no possibility for personal and professional growth.” Happy when helping others In early March 2020, Somaya and her family arrived on the Greek island of Lesvos after enduring more than 12 hours at sea in an unmanned dinghy. Two weeks later they were transferred to the Malakasa refugee camp in mainland Greece. “It is not what you might expect when you hear the words ‘refugee camp’, but life here is a privilege compared to Lesvos. I’m halfway to reaching my dreams for a better life,” she says with a radiant smile. Despite their uncertain situation, this optimistic and resilient woman is not one to sit idle. Somaya is volunteering as an interpreter with the Hellenic Red Cross at the Malakasa camp. “I want to help people and I’m happy when I am able to make people's life easier. It is gratifying work I’m doing here every day and when I sleep at nights I’m having sweet dreams,” Somaya says with a laugh.

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Colombian Red Cross supports thousands of migrants in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic

In the middle of the “Parque del Agua” in Bucaramanga, Santander, it is possible to watch Colombian Red Cross personnel providing primary health care to migrants during medical days. Entire families come here to be treated. As they wait their turn, standing about 1.5 metres apart, they receive material and advice from National Society volunteers on what COVID-19 is and how to prevent it. This is one of the many activities the Red Cross is carrying out to care for people on the move, one of the populations most affected by COVID-19.In Colombia, tens of thousands of migrants (especially of Venezuelan nationality) decided to return to their countries of origin to face the crisis. Since the closure of the borders, nearly 60,000 Venezuelans have moved within Colombia.“The migration scenario has become very complicated,” says Marilyn Bonfante, Director of the Social and Humanitarian Development Unit of the Colombian Red Cross. “There has been an increase in unsatisfied basic needs among migrants, and there has been a setback in social and economic inclusion processes that had advanced significantly prior to the pandemic.”In addition, Bonfante states that the current conditions of mobility are high risk."Irregular recruitment of migrants has been detected and there are risks associated with border crossing on informal routes, especially in Ipiales and Nariño with average flows of 250 people per day".Despite the complexity of carrying out humanitarian work in the midst of the pandemic, Colombian Red Cross volunteers have responded positively to this reality. The National Society actively works in primary health care, psychosocial support, protection, humanitarian assistance and water distribution. And like other National Societies in the region and the world, it has had to adapt to working in an unprecedented context.With the intense work carried out, especially in border areas, nearly 40,000 migrants have been reached. The Red Cross provides primary health care through the use of mobile units, at fixed points and by holding health days in public spaces. A telephone line and a WhatsApp line are also available for medical orientation and psychosocial support. Also, protection spaces have been created for children and families who have required emotional support. In these spaces, recreational activities are generated and awareness of the disease and forms of prevention are promoted. In addition, to help provide basic necessities, food kits and cash transfer vouchers have been distributed to nearly 30,000 people.Given the conditions of the pandemic, special emphasis has been placed on protecting volunteers who are carrying out front-line actions. The National Society has made a tele-assistance line available to its staff and their families. In addition, it has created spaces with its 29 branches to provide support for the mental health and well-being of volunteers. This action has been very effective through virtual links with which 287 members have been reached so far.In recent weeks, the Colombian Red Cross Society has been working on preparing its volunteers and technical staff to strengthen the response in the field and increase the safety of volunteers during their work.

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The IFRC and the Panamanian Red Cross are working together to support Panama in its response to COVID-19

With the support of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), the Panamanian Red Cross has been working on its institutional and operational strengthening in order to expand its service offerings to Panama not only in response to COVID-19 but also in attention to migrant populations, preparation for the rainy season as well as other actions at the community level. As part of the response to COVID-19, the Panamanian Red Cross initially received 25,000 Swiss francs in cash and more than 15,000 Swiss francs in protection equipment as part of the IFRC's International Appeal. Due to the increase in cases, the Panamanian Red Cross has revised its COVID-19 action plan and the IFRC has agreed to increase support to the National Society to an additional 50,000 Swiss francs to enable it to implement actions in psychosocial support, food vouchers, key messages and community health services to those directly or indirectly affected by COVID-19. In addition, it will soon donate 2 ambulances and will make a new delivery of personal protection equipment for the amount of 40 thousand Swiss francs. "The IFRC is committed to Panama and the Panamanian Red Cross. The presence of the IFRC in the Humanitarian Hub of Panama obliges us to accompany the strengthening of our local National Society and enhance the strengths of the Hub not only at the logistical level, but fundamentally at the level of cooperation, training and management of timely information that allows evidence-based decision making. We are committed to Panama, which is why we make available to the country the knowledge and experience of the largest humanitarian network in the world, to work on prevention and mitigation, and thus together recover from this pandemic that keeps the country isolated," said Walter Cotte, IFRC Director for the Americas. Elías Solís, President of the Panamanian Red Cross said, "The Panamanian Red Cross is making the necessary institutional strengthening efforts to offer Panama a diversification of services and quality programmes that will not only allow us to contribute to the national response to the current contingency, but also to continue working on strengthening community resilience. For us it is an advantage to have the Regional office for the Americas of the IFRC in Panama, not only for our institution but for the Republic of Panama in general because we can benefit from the technical knowledge and the capacity of articulation of the IFRC with partners not only from the International Red Cross Movement but from the United Nations system, as well as donors at the global level”. The IFRC together with the Panamanian Red Cross and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) have been supporting the efforts of the Panamanian government in the care of migrants who are in a situation of extreme vulnerability in Darién. The IFRC maintains a regional appeal on migration. Through this appeal, the Panamanian Red Cross has requested the extension of funds to make larger purchases of inputs through the Logistics Hub, in order to provide the required humanitarian assistance. The migration actions and attention to host communities have been expanded thanks to an alliance with UNICEF and other internal and external partners, through which 12,700 people have benefited in health care, more than 38,000 people have been reached with more than 2.4 million liters of safe water, 700 people have been benefited with the supply of materials and tools for the construction of emergency shelters, implementation of a distribution system that serves 1. 600 people who receive daily distributions. In addition, more than 4,300 packages of cleaning and hygiene products and water storage have been distributed, and with ICRC support some 200 people have been assisted by the Restoring Family Links programme. Reliable information on COVID-19 and the legal situation of migrants and on the details of their stay in the shelter has also been distributed, reaching more than 19,000 people. "The situation of migrants throughout the region is very worrying, and these people generally have little access to health systems and minimum preventive measures for COVID-19 and are exposed to other protection risks that increase their vulnerability, which is why we at the Red Cross in the Americas are making efforts to ensure that migrant populations, as well as other vulnerable populations such as indigenous communities, elderly, LGBTQI people, people living with HIV and people with disabilities, are considered in all plans for responding to the pandemic in the region," said Walter Cotte.

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Greece-Turkey Border: Migrants must not be used as a political tool. The EU and Member States must act in solidarity now.

Geneva/Budapest, 3 March 2020– Women, children and men caught up in the ongoing humanitarian crisis at the land border between Greece and Turkey, in the Greek islands and in the Aegean Sea must not be “used as a political tool”, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) warned today. Speaking of the deteriorating humanitarian situation, IFRC President Francesco Rocca said: “It is unacceptable that children and families are exposed to tear gas and violence or have to risk their lives in the Aegean Sea. We will not be silent in the face of this dire humanitarian situation, which may become even worse in the next hours and days.” The IFRC is deeply concerned that thousands of people, including vulnerable children, may suffer the consequences of the recent surge of migrants trying to cross the border between Turkey and Greece. While Governments have the right and responsibility to set migration policies and to control their own borders, steps should be taken to ensure the implementation of such policies do not increase suffering. “EU Member States should respond in a spirit of solidarity to the recent increase in numbers of people seeking refuge at the EU’s external borders. They must enact their responsibilities in protecting people and saving lives. EU governments cannot turn their backs on Turkey and Greece. Southern European States cannot be left alone. All States have a responsibility to protect people and save lives,” President Rocca said. “We call on the EU and the national Governments to avoid using migrants as a political tool, to ensure that asylum seekers can apply for international protection, in line with international and EU laws. Access to humanitarian assistance and essential services, including healthcare, ought to be guaranteed for all people, in particular children and other vulnerable groups,” he ended.

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Delegation from the Spanish Cooperation makes visit to view the humanitarian intervention of Red Cross in Panama

Representatives from the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID) and the Autonomous Communities of Spain from La Rioja, Canarias, Murcia and Castilla and Leon visited Darien, Panama, to view the humanitarian interventions implemented by the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) and the Panama Red Cross Society (PRCS) in the region. Through an Agreement referring to the humanitarian action subscribed by the decentralized cooperation and AECID, the Spanish Cooperation supports IFRC’s Regional Emergency Appeal for Migration in the Americas. The delegation went to Metetí, La Peñita and Lajas Blancas, in the Darien Province (near the border between Panama and Colombia), where IFRC and Panama Red Cross Society actively support migrant communities in transit to North America. As part of the actions developed in La Peñita, both local and migrant community members receive access to water, washing stations, andprimary and basic health services. Additionally, information sessions on hygiene, health, and information about migratory status are provided. During meetings with host community members, migrants, public officials from the Panamanian government and international organizations working on the area, it became clear that there is a need to strengthen actions on health and protection to limit the extreme vulnerability of migrants in this remote and largely undeveloped zone. Current estimates indicate that migratory flows through Darien will likely increase in coming months. It is of the utmost importance to reinforce the humanitarian response for this transit community, with coordination between public Panamanian institutions and humanitarian organizations in the area being the key to success.

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Only half of refugees and migrants from Venezuela feel informed, survey finds

A regional survey on the information and communication needs of refugees and migrants from Venezuela found that half of them feel that they don’t have enough information on their rights and where to obtain assistance. The study was carried out by over 30 organizations across Latin America and the Caribbean, under the framework of the Regional Inter-Agency Coordination Platform for Refugees and Migrants from Venezuela (R4V). Countries in Latin America and the Caribbean host an estimated 3.9 million refugees and migrants from Venezuela. With rising numbers, increasing needs and limited resources, humanitarian organizations have come together to understand the needs and at the same time support adaptation processes that put people at the center of the response. The assessment aims to understand what the communication preferences and habits of people on the move are, identify the best way to reach those in need, and inform them about their rights and assistance available to them. According to the exercise, the main communication channels and sources of information for refugees and migrants from Venezuela are WhatsApp and Facebook. In addition, face-to-face communication with family, friends and humanitarian actors are among the most trusted sources of information, especially for those in transit. “There is a lot of information on social media but it is incorrect or inaccurate. We would like to receive information through social networks but from trusted sources; true and accurate information.” Main survey, Venezuelan woman in Peru. While some 70 percent of interviewees said they have access to information and to a mobile phone, a considerable number - 30 percent - do not have access to a mobile phone to communicate with friends and family or to look for information, with differences across the countries and depending on whether they are in transit or in-destination. Implementing strong and inclusive communication mechanisms, including the establishment of feedback and accountability systems shape the way timely and potentially life-saving information is shared through communication channels of choice which help people make decisions at any stage of their journey. Trust, availability and inclusivity are all criteria that must be considered when formulating the correct approach to establishing such communications. Increased community engagement and participation of refugees, migrants and host communities throughout all the interventions that affect their lives is needed to ensure assistance responds to actual needs and priorities. The exercise was jointly led by UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, and IFRC, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, as part of the Communicating with Communities/Communication for Development Working Group of the Regional Inter-Agency Coordination Platform (R4V), co-lead by UNICEF, in coordination with regional and national inter-agency structures. The report is available here (link) For more information on this topic, please contact: Diana Medina, IFRC, [email protected], +507 6780 5395 Olga Sarrado, ACNUR, [email protected], +507 6640 0185

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Turkey: EU-funded programme to assist 1.7 million Syrian refugees

Geneva/Ankara, 31 October 2019 – Around 1.7 million Syrians living in Turkey will continue to receive humanitarian support through an EU-funded partnership between the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) and the Turkish Red Crescent Society. Through €500 million in EU funding, IFRC will provide monthly assistance via debit cards to the most vulnerable refugees in Turkey under the Emergency Social Safety Net (ESSN) programme. The ESSN is a multi-purpose cash transfer scheme that allows families to decide for themselves how to cover essential needs like rent, transport, bills, food, and medicine. Elhadj As Sy, IFRC Secretary-General, said: “Cash assistance is about dignity. Supporting people with cash gives them the freedom, dignity and independence to take control of their own lives and allows them to engage with and contribute to the communities that are hosting them. “Many refugees have limited access to the formal labour market. Cash grants offer the power of choice and give people the independence to address their families’ essential needs.” Through the ESSN programme, IFRC and the Turkish Red Crescent will provide families with approximately €18 (120TL) a month through prepaid cards. In addition, families will receive quarterly additional allowances based on family size, along with monthly payments to beneficiaries with disabilities. An estimated 300 Turkish Red Crescent staff will be involved in the programme, ensuring close engagement with communities throughout its duration. IFRC’s As Sy said: “This new partnership reflects the leading role that the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement plays in the delivery of humanitarian cash assistance.” In 2018, the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement was responsible for delivering about 25 per cent of all humanitarian cash assistance globally. Christos Stylianides, the European Union’s Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management, said: “The Emergency Social Safety Net programme is the EU's flagship humanitarian aid programme. It has proven itself crucial in addressing one of the most important humanitarian challenges of our times. Through this new partnership, we will continue to make a real and tangible difference for refugees in Turkey.” The ESSN is the largest humanitarian programme in the history of the EU and will be the largest programme ever implemented by IFRC. Background Eight years into the conflict in Syria, an estimated 5.6 million Syrians are registered as refugees in neighbouring countries, and more than 6.2 million are internally displaced inside Syria. In Turkey, there are an estimated 4 million refugees, of whom 3.6 million are Syrian. For the past three years, the World Food Programme (WFP), in partnership with the Turkish Red Crescent Society, has been implementing the ESSN programme in Turkey. The funding has been provided by the European Union’s Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations department under the EU’s Facility for Refugees in Turkey. IFRC will be the lead partner for the next phase of the ESSN programme. The Turkish Red Crescent will remain the operational partner of the ESSN programme; the implementation of the programme will be done in close cooperation with the Turkish Government. The first cash transfer by IFRC is scheduled for April 2020. WFP and IFRC staff are working together to ensure a seamless transition, without any gap for those who rely on it.

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Migration: Alternative to Vucjak camp needed now, says Red Cross

Budapest/Geneva, 24 October 2019–A humanitarian catastrophe is unfolding at a makeshift migrant camp on the outskirts of Bihac in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) is warning today. The Vucjak camp – which has been termed “The Jungle” by people living there – has no running water, no electricity, no usable toilets, and mouldy, leaking, overcrowded tents. Currently, there are about 700 migrants living in the camp. Last week there were 2,500 people there in some days. The camp only has 80 tents, no medical assistance, and just five volunteers from Bosnia and Herzegovina Red Cross Society to help the whole camp population. Adnan Kurtagic, one of the Red Cross volunteers working at Vucjak, says the situation is heartbreaking and devastating. “They come to me to talk. They cry and cry. They say, ‘I miss my home, my mother has died, the police did this’. I hear a lot of stories. I don’t know how I don’t break – for two months now I have only been able to sleep two or three hours a night and even then, I dream about them.” He says the team from the Red Cross Bihac City is responsible for a wide range of tasks. They clean the camp, feed hundreds of people a day, and provide basic first aid and psychosocial support. The health situation at Vucjak is particularly concerning, says the Red Cross’ Kurtagic. There are people in the camp with untreated broken limbs and 70 per cent of the population has scabies. “The sanitation and hygiene situation is alarming. I don’t know how they can sleep. People should not be living here and it should be closed, but first these people need somewhere to go. We can hardly manage but I don’t want to leave these people all alone. If Red Cross leaves, there will be no food, no water, no clothes, no help - it will be awful.” IFRC’s operations manager for Bosnia and Herzegovina Indira Kulenovic agrees that Vucjak camp should be urgently closed and the people moved to a safe, secure place that meets at least the basic humanitarian standards. “These poor people are sleeping in the mud, six to one blanket, in temperatures falling to below zero at night. At least half of them require medical assistance, and the many do not even have shoes. The conditions are inhumane, and their suffering is overwhelming,” says Kulenovic. “There is no dignity for these people. Most of them are covered in scabies bites, have fevers and diarrhoea, and winter is approaching. There will be a metre of snow at Vucjak camp in a few weeks,” Kulenovic says. Since the beginning of 2019, 23,000 migrants have arrived in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Existing migrant reception centres are full and thousands are sleeping on the streets or squatting in empty houses. The Red Cross Society of Bosnia and Herzegovina has seven mobile teams who have so far assisted 41,000 people but Kulenovic says more are needed. The teams provide people at Vucjak and those on the roadside with food, water, clothes, blankets, psychosocial support and first aid. They also distribute information on active landmine fields to warn migrants of the dangers. IFRC and the Red Cross Society of Bosnia and Herzegovina are appealing to their partners for 3.3 million Swiss francs to provide food, hygiene items, first aid and other assistance to 7,600 of the most vulnerable migrants along with cash grants for 1,500 host families during 2019. The appeal is about one third funded. ENDS Press photos are availablehere,B rollhereand interviewshere

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Rakhine crisis - Two years on, the struggle for safety, privacy and dignity

Cox’s Bazar / Kuala Lumpur, 19 August 2019 – Tens of thousands of people who fled violence in Rakhine to camps in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh are living their lives in cramped tents and shelters, in conditions that fall well below international standards. Two years on from the exodus triggered by violence on 25 August 2017, over 700,000 people live in crowded camps with little space between their small shelters. The average space per person in the camps is 24 square metres but falls to less than 10 square metres in the most densely populated parts of the camps. Minimum standards set by humanitarian organizations call for at least 30 square metres per person. Syed Ali Nasim Khaliluzzaman, Head of Operation of the Bangladesh Red Crescent Society in Cox’s Bazar, said: “Space has been a challenge since the beginning of this response. In the emergency phase, our focus was on meeting basic needs and ensuring everyone had a roof over their heads. Now, we must move together to improve basic conditions at the camps, particularly for larger households. As this has become a protracted crisis, we are focusing on longer term planning” The Red Crescent, supported by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) and other partners, is building new shelters that will meet the basic standards for space. They also provide greater protection against the heavy winds common in Cox’s Bazar during the cyclone season, helping to keep families safer. These new shelters are being constructed now. Families will be able to move voluntarily, freeing up space in other parts of the camp. Many houses and shelters in nearby host communities are similarly poor. The Red Crescent is supporting 245 families from host communities to build new durable homes that will protect them from risk during the monsoon and cyclone seasons. Many more are receiving advice and guidance on how to safely and securely repair damage to their homes. Overall, the Red Crescent will assist 60,000 people in host communities. Bangladesh Red Crescent also continues to provide people in the camps with food and relief items, water, sanitation and hygiene promotion, along with other important services including health care and psychosocial support. Bangladesh Red Crescent delivers this assistance through its health facilities, community safe spaces, outreach programmes, and hundreds of volunteers from both Bangladesh and Myanmar. Despite the efforts of the Red Crescent and other partners, meeting basic needs remains a challenge for all aid groups in Cox’s Bazar. Sanjeev Kumar Kafley, head of IFRC’s sub-office in Cox’s Bazar said: “Until long-term solutions that address the causes of this crisis are found, hundreds of thousands of people will continue to live precariously in an area that is worryingly exposed to the elements.” Over the past two years, Bangladesh Red Crescent and its partners have reached over 260,000 people with emergency help including food, water and shelter. More than 268,000 medical consultations have been delivered through 11 health facilities. Some 60 million litres of safe drinking water have been distributed. About IFRC: IFRC is the world’s largest humanitarian network, comprising 191 National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies working to save lives and promote dignity around the world. www.ifrc.org - Facebook - Twitter - YouTube

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“We share our platform so people can speak for themselves and be heard” – British Red Cross amplifies refugee voices

By Mark Richard South, IFRC Stepping aside and letting others lead might sound a surprising move for a National Society seeking to increase its influence on issues affecting refugees but sharing power and enabling participation is key to a groundbreaking new approach from the British Red Cross. The VOICES Network, supported by the British Red Cross, is a nationwide association of people with refugee backgrounds providing a platform on which to share the challenges they face and raise those issues to decision-makers. “There are many people out there who don’t know how to channel their grievances when they think that there should be a change in asylum policy. I am trained to know how and where to meet people who can make this change happen,” explains Godwin, a refugee from Nigeria and a member of the VOICES Network. For VOICES Ambassadors like Godwin, sharing their experiences with the public has the potential to change minds, engaging with the media can help shape public opinion, and advocating with policymakers can secure changes to government policy. And by coordinating and focusing on a few select priority areas - the right to work, access to education, effective asylum process, detention, housing and family reunion – the ambassadors increase their chance of having an impact. The Voices Network also plays a crucial role for the British Red Cross when it devises programmes to support refugees and asylum seekers in the UK, with the insights and experiences of Network members proving an invaluable resource to draw from. “Policies and services are too often designed and implemented without consulting the people they are supposed to help. Solutions designed to enhance integration rarely recognise or build on the diverse skills, experiences and qualifications refugees already have,” says Fiona Harvey, Project Manager at the British Red Cross. “The VOICES Ambassadors have been, and are, on the receiving end of asylum policy – you couldn’t find better qualified experts on the asylum process. Sometimes even the smallest change to legislation or its implementation can have a huge impact on people’s lives, and that is why recognizing the value of people’s lived experience is so important,” she adds. As part of its supporting role, the British Red Cross has been providing training for VOICES Ambassadors – covering how to engage with media on various levels, and how to plan and deliver advocacy - and is finding that the training is having knock-on effects in other aspects of participants’ lives. Anna, a refugee living in Glasgow has found taking part in the VOICES Network key to overcoming her shyness. “I have gained so much from the VOICES Network. Before I was so shy and today, I can stand in front of any audience and tell them about the issues that we face,” she says. Zain from Leicester found the Network a great place to connect with people who have had similar experiences. “Being involved in the VOICES Network has made me feel that I am not alone, that there are others who are in the same situation as me. This a great platform for marginalised groups such as migrants like me to have a voice as it empowers us to break through the obstacles and barriers we face,” he says. The VOICES Network is also supported through the AVAIL (Amplifying the Voices of Asylum seekers and refugees for Integration and Life skills) project and is part of a broader initiative involving Red Cross societies in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Italy and Latvia, funded by the European Union. For more information, visit:https://thevoicesnetwork.home.blog/

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Luimer Guerrero has taken his music from Venezuela to Colombia

Luimer Guerrero arrived to Bucaramanga, Colombia, over a year ago with his two children, his wife and his mother-in-law on a bus that they took with the help of their religious congregation in Venezuela. Luimer undertook his journey full of dreams and expectations with the conviction that he would have new opportunities to reemerge in a country he did not completely know. And as if it was a sign, the first place they approached was the Center for Solidary Attention and Support (CASA by its acronym in Spanish) of the Colombian Red Cross. There they received information that would be among the most important for him and his family, the explanation on how to obtain the Special Permit of Permanence (PEP), a document that the Colombian Government gives to Venezuelan migrants. For Luimer, that was his first contact with a group of people he now considers a family and an "impressive" organization, the Colombian Red Cross. After this, there were other opportunities; the Colombian Red Cross arrived with medicine and organized health days in the place where Luimer was living together with dozens of people. On another occasion, Luimer says that in the middle of a dental emergency, and without knowing exactly where to go, they approached the humanitarian institution and paid attention to them. “They helped us get to the nearest place where we could get help; I can say that whenever we ask for help we find a helping hand for myself and my family. ” Music, a blessing of life Today, this Venezuelan migrant is a music teacher thanks to the Red Cross staff who encouraged him to teach and to the people who met him and recommended him with his friends. He has 25 students among children, adults and groups of young people who are taught an art that makes their hearts happy and it is also the work that allows him to support his family. Bucaramanga (Santander) has been for Guerrero a space in which he has been able to learn from Colombian culture and at the same time has been an opportunity to be an ambassador of the Venezuelan chords with which he grew up. Music has been and will remain a seal throughout his life. Guerrero insists that to get ahead in Colombia and anywhere in the world you need to have an entrepreneurial mind. For this reason he has formed his StaffGL music academy, and thanks to his entrepreneurship he has been on several stages, one of them the Casa del Libro in Bucaramanga (Santander). His wife, meanwhile, is also working on an espresso coffee initiative. Luimer is hopeful and ensures that with effort and dedication he will keep moving forward.

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Providing safe spaces for child migrants in Ecuador

“It is emotional work. When children arrive they are so exhausted and need time to rest, play and not be seen as migrants,” says William Guerra. He is a volunteer with the Ecuador Red Cross supporting a safe space for children in the town of Lago Agrio, in the Province of Sucumbíos, which is a border point with Colombia. Many of the migrant children and families who arrive at the border come to Colombia from Venezuela as their country experiences severe political and economic distress. The numbers of children who cross this border point can fluctuate each day. Recently there have been as many as thirty and forty children each day, many with a parent or grandparent, but some also migrating alone. In response to the needs faced by migrant children, the Ecuador Red Cross implements 14 safe spaces in 11 provinces across the country. It also has additional mobile safe spaces it deploys when the number of migrants increase. The mobile spaces support children as they walk for long distances in hard to access locations. Marisol Pallo, another volunteer in Lago Agrio explains that each safe space provides an assortment of humanitarian services to children and families that seek to improve psychosocial wellbeing and protection. “We see that children here have many needs so we help with first aid, restoring family links, discussing child rights, play, and just let children be surrounded by normal things. We also provide shoes to replace the broken and worn down ones.” Marisol notes, “We need to work hard because we know this is not normal and childhood should not be this way.” Priscila Naranjo, a local college student who volunteers at the safe space, tell us, “We see so many bad stories about migrants in the news but the reality is so different. Here you see the humanitarian needs and that these are just children like all other children.”

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Cox’s Bazar: Heavy rains trigger landslides in camps, Red Crescent response efforts underway

Cox’s Bazar/Kuala Lumpur/Geneva, 11 July 2019 - Heavy rains triggered landslides in camps in Cox’s Bazar housing more than 900,000 people from Rakhine state, Myanmar. Bangladesh Red Crescent Society response operations are underway in seven camps where more than 8,500 people are affected and over 1,800 shelters have been damaged or destroyed. The World Meteorological Organization forecasts that in July, Bangladesh will be hit by the highest amount of rainfall for all of 2019, with more than 730 mm of rain expected over an average of 22 days. Sanjeev Kafley, Head of Cox’s Bazar Sub-Office for the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), said: “The rains have only just begun yet access to some of the camps is nearly impossible. Each day as more rain falls, more people are at risk of losing their homes, their belongings and their lives.” The Bangladesh Red Crescent Society has mobilized seven national disaster response teams to support communities in the flood-affected camps. In addition to carrying out rapid assessments, the teams are distributing tarpaulins, sleeping mats, tie-down kits, ropes and community toolkits to families whose homes were destroyed or damaged by the landslides. Syed Ali Nasim Khaliluzzaman, Head of Operations of the Bangladesh Red Crescent Society in Cox’s Bazar said: “With the amount of rain forecast, we are seriously concerned that we will not be able to access the affected people to provide them with essential relief items. Reaching these communities early with support and emergency supplies is a critical priority to prevent a major disaster”. The Bangladesh Red Crescent Society and partners have built strong disaster preparedness and response capacity in the camps. In addition to contingency supplies and disaster teams pre-positioned ahead of the rains, more than 9,000 people have been trained as technicians to help people reinforce their own shelters. This includes making stronger knots to secure bamboo structures and digging drainage channels for faster water run-off.

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Iraqi teen dreams of becoming a doctor

By Katarina Zoric, IFRC The smiling face of 17-year-old Mxabn from Iraq masks the hardships of the last year and a half. She is hundreds of kilometres from home, has lived in a migrant centre for eight months, and still hasn’t reached her hoped-for final destination – Germany. Together with her family, the teenager left Iraq fearing for her life and started down a path full of uncertainty. “The situation in Iraq wasn’t and still isn’t good. Because of the conflicts and constant explosions we were scared for our lives. My father couldn’t earn enough money for a normal life. We all wanted a better life and that's why we’ve decided to leave our country,” says Mxabn. Mxabn is currently living in the temporary migrant reception centre Sedra, in Bihac, Bosnia and Herzegovina. She has found new friends there; she’s learning new languages and in her spare time, she likes to draw. "I've been in Sedra for eight months now and I like it here. My whole family likes it here.But we still want to go to Germany. We would like to start our new life as soon as possible," says Mxabn. She also likes to spend time with the Red Cross volunteers. "I like talking to them, and we often laugh together. It means a lot to me to have these nice people in my life. I think of them as my friends," she says. Mxabn’s journey from Iraq to Bosnia and Herzegovina was arduous. She walked hundreds of kilometres and stayed in many camps throughout Turkey, Greece and Macedonia. There wasn’t always enough food for her and her family and they struggled with heat and cold, but Mxabn tries not to focus on the difficult situations she experienced. Instead, she looks toward the future. "I hope we’ll soon get to Germany. I want a normal life with my family. I would like to become a doctor, but I know I have to learn German language first,” Mxabn says. Despite all the obstacles she has faced and the uncertain future, Mxabn remains optimistic and truly believes that one day all her dreams will come true.

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| Press release

Migrants in Bosnia and Herzegovina dying while seeking safety

Budapest/Geneva, 30 May 2019 - Thousands of people trapped in Bosnia and Herzegovina desperately need humanitarian assistance and some are dying while trying to find shelter, says the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC). Since the beginning of 2019 the country’s security agencies estimate around 6,000 people, including women and children, have entered Bosnia and Herzegovina, but current transit centres holding around 3,500 people are full and thousands are sleeping rough. Indira Kulenovic, operations manager for the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), in Bosnia and Herzegovina, said: “People are sleeping in parks, in carparks, on the footpath, and in dangerous buildings." “A few weeks ago three migrants sheltering in an abandoned building burned to death when a candle they were using caused a fire. Soon after, another fell from the top floor of a building he was sheltering in. Psychological stress among migrants is high – just last week one man set himself on fire in desperation. The situation is dire,” Kulenovic said. The Red Cross Society of Bosnia and Herzegovina has six mobile teams providing people on the move with food, water, clothes, blankets, psychosocial support and first aid. The mobile teams are also distributing information on active landmine fields to warn migrants of the dangers of unexploded ordinances. Bosnia and Herzegovina is one of the most landmine-contaminated countries in Europe. Red Cross volunteers are working in five migrant centres across the country, preparing meals for 3,000 people a day, with food supplies provided by IOM. They are also providing clothing, bedding, tents, hygiene items and first aid. The Secretary General of the Red Cross Society of Bosnia and Herzegovina Mr Rajko Lazic said that, despite the best efforts of aid agencies to provide food and shelter, living conditions for many people remain inadequate in the centres, and worse for the people outside. “Our teams are doing what they can but they are stretched to the limit and the situation has reached a critical point. This is a humanitarian crisis,” Mr Lazic said. As a result of the crowded conditions in the centres, there has been an alarming increase in some communicable diseases. The Minister of Health Dr. Nermina Cemalovic said on 15 May there were 800 cases of scabies in Bihac transit centres. Health officials are also trying to prevent a measles outbreak, tracing all known contacts of at least two humanitarian workers who have been hospitalised with the disease. Officials have also urged all humanitarian agencies to ensure their staff are fully vaccinated. “We are extremely concerned for people on the move in Bosnia and Herzegovina. They are arriving in poor condition, and many, including children, have walked for weeks. They are hungry, exhausted, sick and cold and traumatised by their journeys. The recent wet weather has just made their misery worse,” Kulenovic said. Spring has brought more arrivals and put even more pressure on the Una-Sana Canton area in the north west of the country near the Croatian border. Last year 25,000 migrants entered Bosnia and Herzegovina. Ms Kulenovic said the local population is suffering as well, from the pressure that extra numbers has put on services, security, land and property. The IFRC will also be assisting local communities with cash grants. IFRC and the Red Cross Society of Bosnia and Herzegovina are appealing to their partners for 3.3 million Swiss francs to provide food, hygiene items, first aid and other assistance to 7,600 of the most vulnerable migrants along with cash grants for 1,500 host families during 2019. The appeal is less than one third funded. Press photos are available here.

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