Despite appearances and media spin, "migration does not have to be chaotic or seem like an invasion," and as yet another turbulent year for millions of people on the move comes to an end, the United Nations is marking International Migrants Day with a worldwide call for more cooperation and a resolute rejection of intolerance and policies driven by xenophobic rhetoric.
As winter closes in on Greece, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said today that improving living conditions for asylum-seekers and migrants is the ‘number one priority’ for humanitarian actors in the country and urged the European Union to speed up its relocation efforts.
During his trip to Vienna, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today visited a restaurant where refugees work together with locals to serve Austrian-Arab fusion cuisine, using this opportunity to showcase the UN system-wide initiative to counter xenophobia launched in September.
The United Nations refugee agency today voiced concerns over calls for expulsion, on national security grounds, of asylum-seekers after a protest at Bulgaria’s largest and most overcrowded reception centre.
Australia’s human rights record has been “blemished” in recent years by the harsh treatment of migrants and asylum seekers, according to a UN independent expert.
United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today announced the appointment of Izumi Nakamitsu of Japan as Special Adviser on Follow-up to the UN Summit on Addressing Large Movements of Refugees and Migrants, which was held on 19 September 2016.
“Deeply troubled” that last night, while fires burned in parts of the Calais refugee and migrant camp that has become known as “the Jungle” burned, many children were forced to sleep out in the cold, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) today underscored that authorities on the ground must guarantee their protection.
Humanitarians are taking a closer look at “neglected and protracted” refugee situations as well as new refugee flows under a global compact aimed at addressing challenges faced by people on the move, a senior UN official has said.
The death toll among refugees and migrants attempting to cross the Mediterranean Sea has reached an all-time high, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has reported.
