[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 98 (Thursday, June 18, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4302-S4304]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS

                                 ______
                                 

  SENATE RESOLUTION 204--RECOGNIZING JUNE 20, 2015 AS ``WORLD REFUGEE 
                                 DAY''

  Mr. CARDIN (for himself, Mr. Rubio, Mr. Leahy, Mr. Durbin, Mr. 
Markey, Mrs. Shaheen, Mr. Coons, Mr. Blumenthal, Ms. Baldwin, Mr. 
Kaine, Ms. Stabenow, Mrs. Murray, Mrs. Boxer, Mr. King, Mr. Brown, Mr. 
Reed of Rhode Island, Mr. Menendez, Mr. Wyden, Ms. Klobuchar, Mrs. 
Feinstein, and Mr. Casey) submitted the following resolution; which was 
referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations:

                              S. Res. 204

       Whereas World Refugee Day is a global day to honor the 
     courage, strength, and determination of women, men, and 
     children who are forced to flee their homes under the threats 
     of conflict, violence, and persecution;
       Whereas according to the United Nations High Commissioner 
     for Refugees (referred to in this preamble as ``UNHCR'')--
       (1) there are nearly 60,000,000 displaced people worldwide, 
     the highest levels ever recorded, including almost 20,000,000 
     refugees, 38,000,000 internally displaced people, and 
     1,800,000 people seeking asylum;
       (2) children account for 51 percent of the refugee 
     population in the world;
       (3) nearly 4,000,000 refugees have fled Syria since the 
     start of the Syrian conflict and more than 7,600,000 people 
     are internally displaced;
       (4) approximately 1,325,000 people are displaced within 
     Ukraine with approximately 800,000 Ukrainians seeking 
     protection in other countries as a result of a worsening 
     humanitarian situation in nongovernment controlled areas;
       (5) since April 2015, sporadic outbursts of violence in 
     Burundi have prompted more than 100,000 Burundians to flee to 
     the neighboring countries of Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, and 
     the Democratic Republic of the Congo;
       (6) violent insurgent attacks in Nigeria have forced 
     167,000 people to flee to the neighboring countries of 
     Cameroon, Chad,

[[Page S4303]]

     and Niger, and have internally displaced nearly 1,500,000 
     people;
       (7) more than 88,000 women, men, and children, including 
     many persecuted Rohingya refugees from Burma, have departed 
     on smugglers' boats from the Bay of Bengal since 2014, more 
     than 1,000 of whom have died at sea;
       (8) as of June 2015, more than 100,000 refugees and 
     migrants have crossed the Mediterranean Sea from North Africa 
     and at least 1,800 women, men, and children have died during 
     such crossings or are missing;
       (9) more than 180,000 Iraqi refugees and nearly 3,000,000 
     internally displaced Iraqis;
       (10) nearly 6,000,000 internally displaced Colombians;
       (11) nearly 700,000 South Sudanese refugees in neighboring 
     countries; and
       (12) more than 465,000 refugees from the Central African 
     Republic;
       Whereas refugees who are women and girls are often at a 
     greater risk of sexual violence and exploitation, forced or 
     early marriage, human trafficking, and other forms of gender-
     based violence;
       Whereas the United States provides critical resources and 
     support to the UNHCR and other international and 
     nongovernmental organizations working with refugees around 
     the world; and
       Whereas since 1975, the United States has welcomed more 
     than 3,000,000 refugees who are resettled in communities 
     across the country: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That the Senate--
       (1) reaffirms the bipartisan commitment of the United 
     States to promote the safety, health, and well-being of the 
     millions of refugees and displaced persons who flee war, 
     persecution, and torture in search of peace, hope, and 
     freedom;
       (2) calls upon the United States Government--
       (A) to continue its international leadership role in 
     response to those who have been displaced, including the most 
     vulnerable populations who endure sexual violence, human 
     trafficking, forced conscription, genocide, and exploitation; 
     and
       (B) to find political solutions to existing conflicts and 
     prevent new conflicts from beginning;
       (3) commends those who have risked their lives working 
     individually and for the countless nongovernmental 
     organizations and international agencies such as UNHCR that 
     have provided life-saving assistance and helped protect those 
     displaced by conflict around the world; and
       (4) reiterates the strong bipartisan commitment of the 
     United States to protect and assist millions of refugees and 
     other forcibly uprooted persons worldwide.

  Mr. CARDIN. Mr. President, I rise today to submit a resolution to 
mark World Refugee Day, June 20, and to address the growing global 
crisis of people forcibly displaced by persecution or conflict.
  According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, for 
the first time since World War II, over 60 million people have been 
forced from their homes and displaced in their own countries or forced 
to flee abroad. Last year alone, 14 million people were uprooted by 
violence and persecution, most escaping conflicts in Syria, Iraq, South 
Sudan, Ukraine, Burma, and Afghanistan. There are more and more 
protracted crises, and the result is an exponential increase in 
humanitarian needs.
  The worldwide displacement from wars, conflict, and persecution in 
2014 was the highest level recorded and accelerating fast, escalating 
to 60 million last year from 51.2 million in 2013, and a dramatic 
increase from the 37.5 million of a decade ago. We are on course to 
over double the number of refugees worldwide.
  The increase since 2013 was the highest ever seen in a single year.
  Syria is still the world's largest producer of internally displaced 
persons at 7.6 million and refugees at nearly 4 million.
  The 60 million that I previously mentioned can be broken down to 20 
million refugees, over 38 million internally displaced persons, and 1.8 
million asylum seekers.
  The magnitude of the Syrian disaster is perhaps the most shocking. 
After 4 years of conflict, the situation is increasingly desperate for 
both the refugees and the host countries such as Jordan, Lebanon, 
Turkey, and northern Iraq. Since 2011, 4 million people have fled 
Syria. The futures of over 3 million Syrian children have been stolen 
because they have no access to education. Over 2 million Syrian women 
are in the neighboring countries trying to survive. Dangerous coping 
mechanisms are on the rise. More and more families are forced to send 
their children to work or marry off their young daughters. In the tiny 
country of Lebanon alone, there are over 300,000 Syrian refugee 
children who have no access to school.
  It is hard to comprehend the demographic, economic, and social impact 
of millions of refugees in Lebanon, Jordan, and Turkey. The number of 
refugees in Lebanon will be equivalent to 88 million new refugees 
arriving in the United States. Turkey has already spent $6 billion in 
direct assistance for refugees in its care. At the same time, many 
countries in the West have been extraordinarily reluctant to admit the 
most vulnerable Syrians as refugees. While contributing generously to 
humanitarian funding, the United States has only accepted about 900 
Syrian refugees. Because Syrians are finding it increasingly difficult 
to find safety, they are being forced to move further afield. Since 
January, over 100,000 people, mostly from Syria, have crossed the 
Mediterranean in boats in search of protection in Europe--an extremely 
dangerous journey.
  We know that the Syrian humanitarian disaster, which has destabilized 
an entire region, is not the accidental byproduct of conflict. It is 
instead one result of a strategy pursued by the Assad regime. The 
United Nations Commission of Inquiry in Syria has documented that the 
Assad regime intentionally engages in the indiscriminate bombardment of 
homes, hospitals, schools, and water and electrical facilities in order 
to terrorize the civilian population. ISIL and al-Nusra have also 
shelled areas with high concentrations of civilians.
  In Syria's neighbor next door, Iraq, the number of people requiring 
humanitarian assistance has grown to 8.2 million people. Three million 
people have been forced from their homes. Half of the displaced are 
children.
  To the south, in Yemen, there is a grave and escalating humanitarian 
crisis. The country was particularly vulnerable even before this 
conflict. Now civilians throughout the country are facing alarming 
levels of suffering and violence. Over 1 million have been forced from 
their homes and are now living in empty schools and other public 
buildings or along highways.

  We are also witnessing religious and ethnic persecution become part 
of the violent conflict that has pushed millions of people out of the 
regions of Sub-Saharan Africa. The unfolding human tragedy in South 
Sudan, which is perhaps the most frustrating to me, never should have 
happened. The violence engulfing that small country is entirely manmade 
and wholly the responsibility of the President and opposition leader 
and their affiliate militias and armed groups.
  Each leader refuses to prioritize the well-being of his own people 
and instead continues to seek military advantage, violating multiple 
ceasefire agreements and refusing to meet numerous deadlines for 
reaching a peace deal. It is hard to overstate the gravity of 
conditions in South Sudan. I fear there is no end in sight to the 
suffering of the people there.
  The 18-month conflict in South Sudan has already killed an estimated 
50,000 people and has displaced over 2 million more, including one-half 
million who fled to neighboring countries and over 120,000 sheltering 
in United Nations peacekeeping bases across the country. A nationwide 
famine was averted in 2014, thanks largely to the assistance from 
international community.
  But the World Food Programme recently warned that 4.6 million people, 
nearly half the population, will need food aid by the end of this 
month. Conditions in the country of Sudan are hardly better for those 
affected by the continuing conflict in Darfur. Attacks on U.N. 
peacekeepers are on the rise in Darfur. Military offenses by the 
Khartoum have caused well over 50,000 people to flee their homes this 
year. The Khartoum has also expelled international nongovernmental 
organizations, NGOs, and is trying its best to drive out the U.N. 
peacekeeping mission in Darfur. This number does not include the 
hundreds of thousands of people who have fled the violence in the South 
Kordofan and Blue Nile states. But there has been little information 
about conditions in government-held areas in both of these states, as 
Sudan has not allowed human rights investigators access.
  In northeastern Nigeria, 1.5 million people have fled their homes due 
to attacks by the terrorist group Boko Haram. Boko Haram is estimated 
to have killed over 12,000 people, kidnapped thousands, including 276 
girls

[[Page S4304]]

from the Chibok School whose whereabouts remain unknown.
  Over 74,000 Nigerians are refugees in Cameroon, another 100,000 
refugees are in the area. The global refugee trends are indeed 
alarming. The international assistance being provided is not keeping 
pace with the scale of the problem. For example, almost halfway through 
2015, the United Nation's humanitarian appeal for Syria is only 20 
percent funded. Yet, in the spirit of World Refugee Day, we must 
redouble our efforts to prevent conflicts that force families to flee 
their homes, villages, and cities. We must also then create the 
conditions to get these refugees safely back home.
  First, we need to ask ourselves hard questions about how we can 
increase the effectiveness of the assistance we provide. Most refugees 
live in urban areas, not in traditional refugee camps. Refugees who 
live in cities face unique vulnerabilities, which must change how 
international assistance is now being given. Moreover, protracted 
crises are the new normal. Seventy-five percent of the world refugees 
are caught in long-term crisis situations, with many refugees displaced 
for an average of 17 years. We need to use our humanitarian and 
development dollars more skillfully so we are providing durable 
solutions to chronic vulnerabilities.
  Second, the international community must get serious about protecting 
the most vulnerable refugees: women and children. Women are facing 
horrible threats in conflicts across the globe, where rape and sexual 
assault are being used as weapons of war, and as vulnerable refugees 
they continue to be targets of gender-based violence. Moreover, 
children now make up half of all refugees worldwide. We must do more to 
protect them from sexual exploitation and abuse, recruitment as child 
soldiers, and early marriages. The United Nations Population Fund, 
Mercy Corps, the International Rescue Committee, and Catholic Relief 
Services know how to provide targeted support and protection to women 
and children refugees, but we in the international community must fund 
them adequately to do the job.
  Third, we must strengthen the capacity of U.N. peacekeeping. As David 
Miliband, former British Foreign Secretary, now head of the 
International Rescue Committee noted:

       At a time of cuts in defense budgets, new and asymmetric 
     threats, and record numbers of people fleeing conflict, the 
     case of strengthened and more fairly shared UN peacekeeping 
     is overwhelming. Peacekeepers, properly resourced and led, 
     have never been more needed and the consequences of inaction 
     never more evident.

  Finally, we must do more to hold accountable the leaders who are 
responsible for mass humanitarian atrocities. The U.N. Commissioner for 
Refugees recently commented that he continues to be shocked by the 
indifference of those who carry the political responsibility for 
millions of people being uprooted from their homes. They accept forced 
displacement, with an impact on individuals, on countries, communities, 
and entire regions, as normal collateral damage of the wars they lead.
  They act with the conviction that humanitarian workers will come and 
pick up the pieces. It is clear the international humanitarian 
community can no longer stanch the human misery brought on by this 
callous indifference and criminal leadership. The international 
community must hold those responsible accountable, those who break all 
the rules in pursuit of their war aims.
  To that end, it was a grave mistake that between October 2011 and 
July 2012, Russia and China vetoed three Security Council resolutions 
which were designed to hold the Syrian Government to account for its 
mass atrocities. It was also unfortunate that Sudanese President Umar 
al-Bashir was allowed to depart South Africa earlier this week without 
being detained again, escaping an arrest warrant from the International 
Criminal Court, where he would be on trial for crimes against humanity 
in Darfur.
  In closing, we must recognize that as these conflicts proliferate, no 
corner of the world will be left unaffected. On World Refugee Day, we 
recognize that every person fleeing his or her home deserves compassion 
and help and to live in safety and dignity. We must recommit to work 
smarter and harder to assist the world's most vulnerable people.
  Next year on this day, I want to stand before the Senate again and 
speak of the progress we have made and the lives we have saved by our 
collective efforts. History will judge us accordingly if we fail.

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