By Holy See Mission
Statement by H.E. Archbishop Celestino MiglioreApostolic Nuncio, Permanent Observer of the Holy
SeeBefore the Third Committee of the60th Session of the United Nations General Assembly on item 39: Report of the United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
New
York, 9 November 2005Mr Chairman,
Having read the Report of the
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, questions relating to
refugees,
returnees and displaced persons and humanitarian questions, my
delegation
salutes the work of the UNHCR, especially that undertaken in the most
dangerous
and difficult of circumstances.
Since the movement of peoples was acknowledged in the last century,
serious
attempts have been made at the international level to find solutions to
the
problems associated with this important humanitarian question.
Although there has been a recent
decline in refugees specifically, the number of people of direct concern
to
UNHCR has increased worldwide to some 19 million, including
asylum-seekers,
returnees, IDPs and others at risk in the world. The scale alone of this
human
phenomenon merits every international attention.
The High Commissioner for Refugees
has recently underscored the UNHCR’s role as a protection agency, whose
actions
must be protection-minded and judged by their protection implications.
Given
that each individual State has the responsibility to protect its
populations
from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity,
this
concept, as reflected in the World Summit Outcome document, has rightly
gained
acceptance for humanitarian reasons. Protection of those in distress and
assistance to them go hand in hand with lucid analysis and public
awareness of
the causes of humanitarian crises; but crises by their very nature
demand swift
action and predictable funding.
In terms of the UNHCR mandate, the
concept of protection has long-term consequences, especially in the case
of the
vast majority of refugees who are living in protracted refugee
situations.
Protection, not just defence from outside hostile forces, touches the
whole
spectrum of human rights of those forced to flee. Such rights remain
constant
during all phases of repatriation, reintegration, rehabilitation and
reconstruction.
Protection firstly includes
safeguarding the people’s physical security and the full enjoyment of
their
rights. Secondly, it includes creating a safe environment, especially
for women,
children, the elderly and the disabled. The design and implementation of
all
prevention and response measures need to ensure in particular the
protection of
women and children from all forms of abuse, neglect, exploitation and
violence.
Thirdly, protection means assuring adequate nutrition, a perennial
problem in
refugee situations. Facing the nutritional challenge also involves
States
granting refugees the necessary freedom of movement and residence and
the right
to a livelihood.
The question of sustained voluntary
repatriation deserves re-examination. This involves not just return in
safety
and dignity, but also social and economic aspects of post-conflict
reconstruction by establishing in particular an effective link between
humanitarian relief and sustainable development. Concretely, that means
the
restoration of infrastructure, health, education, agriculture,
employment and
priority access to food.
The inability to address internal
displacement is now considered the single biggest failure in the
humanitarian
action of the international community. Protection needs are not related
to
whether borders are crossed or not. A reliable system, embedded in an
appropriate institutional framework, could play an effective role in
responding
to the security and protection needs of the internally displaced and in
helping
the concerned local authorities fulfil their responsibility towards the
displaced.
Finally, as the concept of
Peacebuilding is being fleshed out, it would be well to include in it a
focus on
returnees. Their repatriation should always take place with adequate
funding,
for the sake of the returnees themselves, but also in order to maintain
the
standards set by the UNHCR itself.
Thank you, Mr Chairman.
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