The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
Little protection for vulnerable travellers on major migration routes, warns UNHCR
Conflicts in Sudan and across the Sahel region have compromised protection for migrants who continue to face “unimaginable horrors” on major migration routes to Europe, UN humanitarians said on Tuesday.
A new report from the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) confirmed that each year, hundreds of thousands of people risk their lives to migrate from sub-Saharan countries in Africa without access to immediate assistance, shelter or information about the dangers they may face, even though the location of major movement hubs is well known.
Vincent Cochetel, UNHCR Special Envoy for the Central Mediterranean Situation, said that the absence of critical services placed refugees and migrants “at great risk of harm and death” and also triggered dangerous secondary onward movements.
“Our capacity to partner directly with local authorities is missing. Yet, those local authorities are there, they are located on those routes that are used for migrants and refugees, they are located in places where humanitarian actors cannot be present, either because of safety concern or because authorities don’t want humanitarian actors to be present. But the local authorities are there and they would be able to provide those immediate protection services.”
To remedy the situation and save lives, the UNHCR official called on donors and stakeholders to support the agency’s humanitarian work and that of local partners in targeted locations. “This includes better access to legal pathways to safety and improving protection services for victims, as well as those at risk of becoming victims along the routes,” Mr. Cochetel said.
As well as African migrants, those on the move come from Asia and the Middle East. Many underestimate the risks and dangers and many die while crossing the desert or near borders, UNHCR said, noting that most also suffer serious human rights violations, including sexual violence, kidnappings, torture and physical abuse.
“Many don’t go to capital cities where humanitarian actors are based and well represented,” Mr. Cochetel told journalists in Geneva. “They embark to secondary routes, reaching smaller cities in hard-to-reach areas” including in the Sahara Desert. “This is where services should be located.”
With the right level of funding, supported services could provide immediate humanitarian assistance, shelter, referral mechanisms, information on the dangers involved in embarking on hazardous journeys and access to justice.
Taking the example of Agadez in central Niger - a major migration hub towards Libya and where the security situation remains extremely dangerous for migrants - Mr. Cochetel emphasized that “the local authorities are present, people who were born there. Let's work with these authorities. These authorities see the problem and they would like to do something. Desert search and rescue, that's something we'd like to develop with these local authorities. Technologically, it is possible.”
Measures promoted by UNHCR to protect migrants from trafficking include:
· Bolstering the early identification of refugees and migrants at risk or victims of trafficking both on the land routes and upon disembarkation.
· Facilitating access to solutions for VoTs including regular pathways, such as family reunification and humanitarian evacuation,
· enhancing regularization of migrants and longer-term support in host countries. Offering voluntary return to countries of origin “should not be the only solution considered, as it may lead to risks of re-trafficking upon return”, the UNHCR report insisted.
· Facilitating access to legal support, including for access to justice and remedies. Enhancing access to support for male victims of trafficking, as men are often not eligible for the limited support that is available.
· According to the UNHCR, 108.4 million people worldwide are forcibly displaced. Most refugees - 76 per cent - are hosted by low and middle-income countries.
· In addition, the UN migration agency IOM reports more than 280 million international migrants in the world, who represent 3.6 per cent of the global population.
Ends
Story: “Migrants and refugees protection - UNHCR” – 04 June 2024
Speaker: Vincent Cochetel, UNHCR Special Envoy for the Central Mediterranean Situation
TRT: 01’55”
SOURCE: UNTV CH
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH
ASPECT RATIO: 16:9
DATELINE: 04 June 2024 - GENEVA, SWITZERLAND
Geneva Press briefing
SHOTLIST
1. Exterior medium shot: UN flag alley.
2. Wide shot of the podium with speakers at the press conference room with journalists in the room.
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Vincent Cochetel, UNHCR Special Envoy for the Central Mediterranean Situation: “Many don’t go to capital cities where humanitarian actors are based, well represented. They embark to secondary routes reaching smaller cities, smaller communities, in hard-to-reach areas. This is where services should be located.”
4. Wide shot: speakers at podium from behind and journalists in the room.
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Vincent Cochetel, UNHCR Special Envoy for the Central Mediterranean Situation: “Our capacity to partner directly with local authorities is missing. Yet, those local authorities are there, they are located on those routes that are used for migrants and refugees, they are located in places where humanitarian actors cannot be present, either because of safety concern or because authorities don’t want humanitarian actors to be present. But the local authorities are there and they would be able to provide those immediate protection service.”
6. Medium shot: speakers at podium from behind and journalists in the room.
7. SOUNDBITE (French) Vincent Cochetel, UNHCR Special Envoy for the Central Mediterranean Situation: « Si on ne peut pas être présent au nord d'Agadez aujourd'hui, les autorités locales sont là. Des gens qui sont nés là-bas, qui étaient là-bas avant que cette route soit utilisée à des fins de migration vers la Libye. Mais travaillons avec ces autorités. Ces autorités voient le problème. Ces autorités aimeraient faire quelque chose.”
-- Translation into English: “If we can't be present in the north of Agadez today, the local authorities are present: people who were born there, who were there before this route was used for migration to Libya. Let's work with these authorities. These authorities see the problem. These authorities would like to do something."
8. Cutaway: wide shot of journalists in press conference room.
9. SOUNDBITE (French) Vincent Cochetel, UNHCR Special Envoy for the Central Mediterranean Situation: « On continue de parler de sauvetage en mer. Le concept de sauvetage dans le désert n'est pas très, très développé, la recherche et le sauvetage dans le désert, et c'est quelque chose qu'on aimerait développer avec ces autorités locales. Technologiquement, c'est possible. »
-- Translation into English: “We continue to talk about rescue at sea. The concept of desert rescue is not very, very developed. Desert search and rescue, that's something we'd like to develop with these local authorities. Technologically, it is possible.”
10. Medium, close ups and various shots of journalists and technicians in the press conference room and control room.
Similar Stories
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
Israeli military operations in Lebanon continue to kill and injure civilians, and destroy civilian infrastructure, raising concerns regarding the protection of civilians, the UN Human Rights Office warned today.
1
1
1
Edited News | IOM , UNWOMEN , UNDP
Sudan: Aid teams report massive displacement after latest Darfur atrocity; women’s bodies ‘turned into battlegrounds’
In Sudan’s North Darfur, tens of thousands of people have fled a displacement camp following the massacre of civilians and aid workers as the country enters the third year of a conflict marked by horrific levels of sexual violence, UN humanitarians said on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | ITC
Global trade could shrink by three per cent as a result of the United States’ new tariff measures which in the longer term could reshape and boost as-yet untapped regional commercial links, a top UN economist confirmed on Friday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
Warring parties in Sudan are overseeing a wholesale assault on human rights amid global inaction, the UN Human Rights Office said on Friday, as the conflict is about to enter its third year.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
The UN Human Rights Office on Friday said Israel’s increasing issuance of so-called “evacuation orders” for Palestinians in Gaza have resulted in their forcible transfer.
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA , OHCHR , UNHCR , UNWOMEN , WFP , WHO
Two years of war in Sudan have created epic suffering, aid agencies say
Two years since Sudan’s brutal conflict began, UN agencies warned that famine is spreading and civilians of all ages continue to suffer shocking abuse, including rape and gang rape.
1
1
Edited News | UNMAS
In Gaza, ongoing Israeli military operations and the aid blockade have continued to add to daily fears and hardships confronting those in the devastated enclave, the UN Mine Action Service, UNMAS, said on Wednesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNDP
Dangers grow for Myanmar earthquake survivors, health system 'overwhelmed' - UNDP
In earthquake-shattered central Myanmar people are sleeping in the streets in fear of buildings collapsing, facing early monsoon rains and the risk of waterborne diseases, the UN Development Programme warned on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | ICRC , OHCHR , UNHCR
Myanmar’s military has continued to launch airstrikes and other attacks against opposition forces in the devastated country, one week since a 7.7 magnitude earthquake struck and despite announcing a ceasefire, UN human rights chief Volker Türk said on Friday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
UN Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights Nada Al-Nashif on Tuesday presented a report on the human rights situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo, detailing the continued violations of human rights as a result of the offensive launched by the Rwandan-backed M23 in eastern DRC.
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA , UNICEF , IFRC
UN humanitarians and partners on Tuesday expressed deep shock at the killing of 15 colleagues on duty in southern Gaza whose remains were recovered from a shallow grave after a week-long rescue operation, noting that one worker is still missing.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNICEF , OCHA , WHO , UNHCR
Myanmar earthquake latest: window for lifesaving support is closing, say UN humanitarians
As the death toll continues to rise in earthquake-struck Myanmar, UN humanitarians have been rushing to support severely deprived and traumatized victims, warning that the window for lifesaving response is closing.