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Rhetoric and reality: the Iraqi refugee crisis

Attachments

1. Introduction

The displacement crisis caused by the US-led invasion of Iraq and the subsequent internal armed conflict has reached shocking proportions. Millions of people at risk

- Sunni and Shi'a Muslims, Christians, Mandean-Sabeans, Palestinians and others

- have fled their homes and most are now struggling to survive.

The crisis for Iraq's refugees and internally displaced is one of tragic proportions. Despite this, the world's governments have done little or nothing to help, failing both in their moral duty and in their legal obligation to share responsibility for displaced people wherever they are. Apathy towards the crisis has been the overwhelming response.

Governments have tried to promote a brighter interpretation of the situation in Iraq and the displacement crisis to justify their lack of response. Rhetoric, however, does not change reality. Reports of increased 'voluntary returns' and of marginally improved security in Iraq have received worldwide media coverage, but this does not alter the true picture - a worsening refugee crisis exacerbated by the failure of the international community to respond in a meaningful way. The reality is that the crisis for Iraq's refugees and internally displaced is worsening and will remain a problem requiring international attention for years to come.

Since the 2003 invasion, Iraq's displacement crisis has steadily increased in size and complexity. Today, the number of displaced people is the highest ever - 4.7 million, according to estimates by the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).(1) At the same time, the lack of effective response by the international community means that the ability of those fleeing Iraq to access protection outside the country is being increasingly thwarted. New visa restrictions imposed in neighbouring states mean that the ability of people to obtain refuge from the threat they face in Iraq now rests increasingly on their finances, rather than on their needs or rights under international refugee or human rights law. As a result, more and more families have fled their homes but cannot leave Iraq - a staggering 2.77 million people are now estimated to be internally displaced.(2)

For those lucky enough to access a territory outside Iraq, their situation is steadily worsening. In countries neighbouring Iraq and further afield, they are banned from working. The need to pay rent, buy food and fund medical treatment, combined with the limited capacity of humanitarian agencies to meet these needs, is threatening the ability of millions of people to survive. Savings go only so far. Years on from their initial flight, many families are now destitute and facing impossible choices and new risks, including child labour, prostitution and the prospect of being forced through circumstances to undertake 'voluntary' return to Iraq.

As each month passes, more refugees need help with the basics to survive. For example, some 120,000 people, 90 per cent of all registered refugees from Iraq in Syria, have been given food so far in 2008,(3) compared to 43,600 people, approximately 32 per cent of those registered,(4) at the end of 2007. Earlier in 2008, UNHCR anticipated that the number of people needing food will continue to rise, and predicted that it would be distributing food to around 300,000 people in Syria alone by the end of the year.

However, UNHCR announced in May that by August 2008, due to inadequate funding for its Iraq Operation, it 'will not be able to cover all basic health needs of Iraqis, and many serious and chronically ill Iraqis will not be able to receive their monthly medication.'(5) UNHCR also warned that current food aid for 150,000 refugees in Syria and Jordan could be reduced and that this would force many Iraqis 'into further destitution and raise the likelihood of higher malnutrition rates and increased child labor.'(6)

As this shows, the level of support provided by the international community to date has been far from adequate. Some states have opted to give only general assistance for the development and reconstruction of Iraq, but they have failed to respond at all or adequately to the humanitarian needs of displaced Iraqis through targeted assistance.

Notes:

(1) Over 2 million are estimated to be living as refugees in neighbouring countries, and an estimated 2.7 million are internally displaced inside Iraq. UNHCR Briefing Note, Iraq: Latest return survey shows few intending to go home soon, 29 April 2008.

(2) UNHCR Briefing Note, Internal displacement in Iraq, 8 April 2008.

(3) As of May 2008, UNHCR Syria Update, May 2008.

(4) According to UNHCR, Iraq situation update, November 2007, at the time 134,689 individuals were registered with UNHCR in Syria.

(5) UNHCR News Service, UNHCR seeks donor help amid funding shortfall for Iraq operation, 9 May 2008.

(6) Ibid.