Day: June 21, 2021

U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi says the asylum system in the United States has become “unmanageable” and that his agency supports “a gradual improvement towards a more effective and humane migration system.”

In an interview with VOA, Grandi said such reform is a complex operation that will take years to achieve, but that he is encouraged by what he has seen from the Biden administration after a big cut in resettlements during the Trump administration.

“We support that because that is the indispensable piece in a broader exercise to handle human mobility in Central America, which includes the movement of people that are refugees because they flee from violence, from persecution, from discrimination,” he said. “That work has to be done at every level, has to be done in the countries of origin — mostly Honduras, El Salvador, to an extent Guatemala — has to be done in the countries of transit, including Guatemala itself and Mexico, and has to be done at the border.”

The maximum number of refugees allowed into the United States fell from 85,000 in 2016 to 18,000 in 2020. The Biden administration has boosted the cap to 62,500 refugee admissions this year, with plans to boost it further to 125,000.

Grandi said in addition to the decline in U.S. capacity, the coronavirus pandemic also helped to drastically affect refugee resettlement throughout the world during 2020. He said the total number of resettlements fell from about 100,000 in 2019 to 34,000 last year.

“We had to suspend resettlement travel simply because there were no more flights,” he told VOA. “We couldn’t use the routes because they were not operating. These are realities that are now being slowly overcome, but it will take some time.”

Grandi said the coronavirus pandemic has made it clear that countries “can’t cope alone” and that governments sometimes need help explaining to their citizens the value of programs to help refugees.

“They need international support, especially when they embark on policies that may be difficult, even controversial, for their own domestic audiences,” Grandi said. “International support helps explain to their populations the importance of these very good policies.”

He highlighted progress in Colombia, which in February announced 10-year protective status for 1.7 million displaced Venezuelans.

“Already more than one million Venezuelans have entered the first phase of the registration. This is amazing,” Grandi said. “And also, in a situation in which Colombia itself has difficult challenges — the pandemic, the social and political unrest, residual displacement from the conflict, the peace process. So, in the middle of all this, I think that for Colombia to embrace a very forward-looking inclusive refugee and migration policy is very important.”

However, Grandi said Colombia’s action represents “one of the bright spots in this very negative picture.”

He cited the continuing challenge of spike in the number of people being forced to leave their homes, a number that rose by 3 million people last year to reach 82.4 million at the end of 2020, according to the U.N. Refugee Agency UNHCR.

“It means that wars, discrimination, bad governance, often combined with other factors like climate change, inequality and poverty, demographic imbalances, all of this has not stopped human mobility, especially the forced aspects of human mobility,” Grandi said. “The secretary general issued many calls for a global cease-fire. Frankly, it was not really heeded.”

Despite the ongoing challenges, when asked what message he has for refugees, Grandi said, “Don’t lose courage.”

“We draw ourselves encouragement from your resilience. Don’t give up and we will be there with you to help you move on,” he said.

Source: Voice of America

When the polls were supposed to close Monday in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa, election workers said turnout was better than expected, and voting had been conducted safely. 

But crowds of people still queued, and closing time was extended for hours. Election organizers said logistical problems such as missing poll workers or ballots and bad weather were to blame.

Many people waited all day to cast their ballot in Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s first electoral contest. The vote is widely expected to solidify his rule, despite the beleaguered Tigray region’s nonparticipation and the postponement of several other regions’ votes for security reasons.

“This is, maybe not the last, but a very important chance to transform to democracy,” said Yeshiwas Assefa, chair of Ethiopian Citizens for Social Justice, the main opposition party.

The ruling Prosperity Party is widely expected to win the election, but Assefa said the new parliament could be the most diverse in Ethiopian history, with opposition candidates expected to win some seats.

But his office counted more than 200 election irregularity complaints Monday, ranging from missing ballots to observers being intimidated at the polls.

Eden Hagos, a 27-year-old receptionist, arrived at the polls at 3 a.m. to line up to vote. By 6 p.m., she was exhausted and hungry, and unsure how much longer she could wait.

“It was supposed to be my first time voting, and I was so excited,” she said, in a crowded, wet garden where hundreds of people still queued Monday evening. “But now, I’m angry.”

Ruling party support

As the sun went down, some other voters said they would wait as long as it took.

Ayalew Gebremichael, a 43-year-old fitness instructor, said in previous elections, opposition parties were repressed, and voters were pressured.

“This is different,” he said as the line snaked around a building. “It is more free and fair than the others.”

Up a small hill and closer to the ballot boxes, Masho Ayele, 27, and a mother of two, wore a black coronavirus face mask and a pink knit hat. She had been at the polls since 6 a.m. to vote but said she planned to wait all night if necessary.

“In my opinion,” she said, “this election is going to change my life.”

Ayele said she supports the prime minister and believes the country is already getting stronger under his rule. The election itself, she said, is evidence the country is growing more free, with poll workers telling voters to choose as they wish.

“In the past elections, they told me who to vote for, and I was scared,” she explained. “I did what they said.”

Conflict in Tigray

But there will be no voting at all in Ethiopia’s northern region of Tigray, which has been at war with the federal government for more than seven months.

The conflict has killed thousands of people and displaced roughly 2 million. Civilians across the region have reported human rights abuses, like mass killings and rapes. The United Nations says 350,000 people are in danger of starving in a famine that is already under way.

At a traditional coffee shop in Addis Ababa, Habenyom Mekonen, a businessman from Tigray, said as a long-term resident, he can vote in the capital, but he refused to register.

“There is no party that represents us,” he explained.

The Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) won local elections in Tigray last year in a ballot the federal government said was illegal. Then, after tensions deepened and war broke out, the government declared the TPLF a terrorist organization, making members ineligible to run, even if there was an election in Tigray.

Several other areas are postponing their votes until September, also because of conflicts, and in some cases, missing ballots.

Also missing are European Union observers who declined to attend after being denied permits to use their equipment in Ethiopia.

Analysts say if this election does, in fact, produce a more diverse government, achieving an enduring pluralistic democracy will take time.

“There are politicians who really believe in the electoral process,” said Kiya Tsegaye, a lawyer and political analyst. “There are also politicians who believe they can cling to power through shortcuts.”

Source: Voice of America