[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 98 (Monday, June 20, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4362-S4363]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SENATE RESOLUTION 503--RECOGNIZING JUNE 20, 2016, AS ``WORLD REFUGEE
DAY''
Mr. CARDIN (for himself, Mr. Murphy, Mr. Menendez, Ms. Klobuchar, Mr.
Durbin, Mr. Coons, Mrs. Murray, Ms. Stabenow, Mr. Wyden, Ms. Baldwin,
Mr. Markey, Mr. Booker, Mr. Brown, Mr. Reed, Mr. Peters, Mr.
Blumenthal, and Mr. Kaine) submitted the following resolution; which
was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations:
S. Res. 503
Whereas World Refugee Day is a global day to acknowledge
the courage, strength, and determination of women, men, and
children who are forced to flee their homes due to conflict,
violence, and persecution;
Whereas according to the United Nations High Commissioner
for Refugees (referred to in this preamble as ``UNHCR'')--
(1) there are more than 65,300,000 displaced people
worldwide, the highest levels ever recorded, including almost
21,300,000 refugees, 40,800,000 internally displaced people,
and 3,200,000 people seeking asylum;
(2) children account for 51 percent of the refugee
population in the world, millions of whom are unable to
access basic services including education;
(3) nearly 4,800,000 refugees have fled Syria since the
start of the Syrian conflict and more than 6,600,000 people
are internally displaced within Syria;
(4) since January 2014, more than 3,300,000 Iraqis fleeing
violence have been internally displaced, and 277,000 refugees
have fled to neighboring countries;
(5) ongoing conflict, violence, and persecution have
resulted in the displacement of millions across South Sudan,
Ukraine, Colombia, and the Central African Republic;
(6) since April 2015, sporadic outbursts of violence in
Burundi have prompted more than 265,000 Burundians to flee to
the neighboring countries of Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, and
the Democratic Republic of the Congo;
(7) violent insurgent attacks in Nigeria have forced
220,000 people to flee to the neighboring countries of
Cameroon, Chad, and Niger, and have internally displaced
nearly 2,200,000 people;
(8) between January and June of 2016, more than 206,000
refugees and migrants have crossed the Mediterranean Sea
attempting to reach Europe and at least 2,800 women, men, and
children have died during such crossings or are missing after
such attempts; and
(9) approximately 95,000 women, men, and children,
including many persecuted Rohingya refugees from Burma, have
departed on the boats of smugglers in the Bay of Bengal since
2014, more than 1,100 of whom have died at sea;
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 is the largest donor to UNHCR and
provides critical resources and support to 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 commitment of the United States to
promote the safety, health, and well-being of the millions of
refugees, including the education of refugee children and
displaced persons who flee war, persecution, or 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 may endure sexual violence, human
trafficking, forced conscription, persecution, or
exploitation;
(B) to find solutions to existing conflicts and prevent new
conflicts from beginning;
(C) to provide humanitarian and development support to
countries around the world that are hosting millions of
refugees to alleviate social and economic strains placed on
host communities; and
(D) to encourage the international community to increase
resources to address current and projected refugee crises;
(3) commends those who have risked their lives working
individually and for nongovernmental organizations and
international agencies such as UNHCR who have
[[Page S4363]]
provided life-saving assistance and helped protect those
displaced by conflict around the world; and
(4) reiterates the strong commitment of the United States
to protect and assist millions of refugees and other forcibly
uprooted persons worldwide, consistent with the values of the
United States and with the interests of national security.
Mr. CARDIN. Mr. President, today I submit a resolution to mark World
Refugee Day, June 20, and to address the unprecedented humanitarian
crisis of millions of men, women, and children who are forced to flee
from their homes due to conflict, violence, persecution, or human
rights violations.
According to the United Nations High Commission for Refugees, UNHCR,
the numbers of refugees and internally displaced people in 2015
uprooted from their home outstripped even the catastrophic levels of
displacement following World War II. By the end of last year, 65.3
million people were forcibly displaced worldwide. Fifty percent of the
displaced are children. These individuals and families have been
uprooted by violence and persecution in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Somalia,
Burundi, South Sudan, Ukraine, and Afghanistan. These brutal conflicts
churning through entire regions are shattering nations, and scattering
an unprecedented number of people. Yet, we cannot allow these suffering
people to become an abstraction or mere grim statistics. We cannot
allow the wearying repetition of the horrors to numb our ability to
think of each individual and each family as people just like ourselves,
struggling to cope with unbearable circumstances.
Closer to home, rising numbers of people fleeing gang and other
violence in Central America have contributed wider displacement across
the wider region. Nearly 110,000 refugees and asylum seekers have come
from El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras to Mexico and the United
States, representing a more than five-fold increase over three years.
The relentless, horrifying violence of the Syrian conflict is perhaps
the most shocking. By the end of 2015, there were close to 5 million
Syrian refugees worldwide, an increase of 1 million men, women, and
children within one year. After 5 years of war, the situation is
increasingly desperate for both the refugees and host countries such as
Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey and Iraq. It is hard to comprehend the
demographic, economic, and social impact of millions of refugees on
these host countries. The number of refugees in Lebanon, for instance,
would be equivalent to 88 million new refugees arriving in the United
States.
The futures of millions of Syrian children are being stolen because
they have no access to education. In the tiny country of Lebanon alone,
there are over 300,000 Syrian refugee children who have no access to
school. 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.
While contributing generously to humanitarian funding, the United
States has only accepted about 2,850 Syrian refugees to date. Because
Syrians are finding it increasingly difficult to find safety, they are
being forced to move further afield. Hundreds of thousands of people,
most from Syria, have crossed the Mediterranean in boats in search of
protection in Europe. Since January 2015, almost 5,000 mothers,
fathers, and children lost their lives in their desperate bid to escape
violence.
We know that the Syrian humanitarian disaster, which has destabilized
an entire region, is not the accidental byproduct of conflict. It is,
rather, one result of the strategy pursued by the Assad regime. The
UN's Commission of Inquiry on Syria has documented that the Assad
regime intentionally engages in the indiscriminate bombardments of
homes, hospitals, schools, and water and electrical facilities to
terrorize the civilian population. The terrorist groups Islamic State
of Iraq & the Levant, ISIL, and Al-Nusra have also deliberately shelled
areas with high concentrations of civilians.
There is also a grave and escalating humanitarian crisis in Yemen.
That country was particularly vulnerable even before the current
conflict, and now civilians throughout the country are facing alarming
levels of suffering and violence. By the end of 2015, almost 200,000
people had fled to other countries, and about 2.5 million people were
forced from their homes and live in empty schools, and other public
buildings, or along highways.
We are also witnessing violent conflict that has pushed millions of
people out of regions in Sub-Saharan Africa. The outbreak of violence
in Burundi forced over 200,000 people to flee their country last year.
In Libya, smuggling and trafficking networks thrive as the country has
become a major transit route for sub-Saharan Africans seeking safety
and security in Europe. Most of these refugees are fleeing Boko Haram
in Nigeria, and decades of armed conflict and al-Shabaab in Somalia and
Eritrea, where the government carries out extrajudicial killings,
torture, and other serious human rights violations. In the Lake Chad
Basin region, more than 2.4 million people--1.5 million of them
children--have fled their homes due to violence and attacks by the
terrorist group Boko Haram. The conflict has forced more than 200,000
Nigerians to flee to Cameroon, Chad, and Niger following attacks on
their villages. While violence persists in Somalia, I am deeply
concerned about the recent announcement by the government of Kenya that
it would seek to close Dadaab, the largest refugee camp in the world
and home to almost 400,000 Somali refugees. Shutting down the camp will
mean increased protection risks for the thousands of refugees, the
majority of who are women, children and unaccompanied minors. Moreover,
Somalia is faced with a severe drought and other security risks which
will increase the vulnerability of its displaced people.
The international community must get serious about protecting the
most vulnerable refugees--women and children. Women are facing
ferocious 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. Children now make
up one-half of all refugees worldwide. We must do more to protect them
from sexual exploitation and abuse, from recruitment as child soldiers,
and from being forced into early marriage. Organizations such as the
United Nations Population Fund, UNFPA, Mercy Corps, Catholic Relief
Services, and others know how to provide targeted support and
protection to women and children refugees. But we in the international
community must fund them adequately to help them do the job. The United
States has lead in terms of humanitarian assistance, but we must
encourage other nations to do more.
Against this tragic backdrop, we have all listened recently to
divisive political rhetoric and hate speech on refugee and migration
issues which is feeding rising levels of xenophobia. Instead of burden-
sharing, we see borders closing; instead of political will, there is
political paralysis. Humanitarian organizations and their field staff,
overstretched and exhausted, are left to deal with consequences while,
at the same time, they are trying to save lives on shrinking budgets.
As the UN High Commissioner for Refugees has noted, ``Yet, there is
cause for hope. In contrast to the toxic narrative repeatedly played
out in the media we have often witnessed an outpouring of generosity;
by host communities, by individuals, and by families opening their
homes. These ordinary people see refugees not as beggars, competitors
for jobs, or terrorists--but as people like you or me whose lives have
been disrupted by war.''
In closing, we must recognize that as these conflicts proliferate, no
corner of the world will be left unaffected. Today, on World Refugee
Day, we recognize that every person fleeing his or her home deserves
compassion and help; displaced people should be able to live their
lives in safety and dignity. We must recommit ourselves 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 to speak of the progress we
have made and the lives we have saved by our collective efforts.
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