Forced displacement is not by choice. When refugees flee for their lives, they do not have time to compare whether taking the plane or the train would be the best option. Often by foot, displacement is sudden, unplanned, and desperate. Not an act of luxury but to save lives.
On World Refugee Day (June 20), with 110 million forcibly displaced people, including over 35 million refugees, we call for more solidarity to include refugees in the communities where they have sought safety after fleeing conflict and persecution.
For the communities where refugees settle, it's important to remember that while refugees left their homes behind, they brought their skills, talents, and hopes along.
We see inspiring stories like Yusra Mardini, a Syrian refugee and UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador, who, after seeking asylum in Germany, was able to continue her swimming training and went on to compete in the 2016 and 2020 Olympic games.
Globally, the vast majority of refugees stay close to their countries of origin, hoping to one day return. However, continuous conflict and instability might persist and prevent returns for decades. Thankfully, other solutions remain.
Thailand has a decades-long tradition and experience in receiving influxes of refugees from its neighbours. The country continues to host over 90,000 Myanmar refugees in the nine temporary shelters along the border, in addition to some 5,000 urban refugees and asylum-seekers from 37 countries.
In the country of asylum, we can ensure access to rights and services so that refugees can thrive in the communities that host them. Unfortunately, there are far too many difficulties refugees face once they have reached safety.
The cost of exclusion is far higher than the cost of inclusion. The Covid-19 pandemic proved it. The best way to prevent the spread of the virus was to vaccinate everyone, including people forced to flee. Thailand's vaccination scheme ensured that everyone living on its territory could access vaccines freely.
Education is equally important. Refugees can benefit from their time away from home to develop new skills, gain new knowledge to carry on with their lives, or prepare to return voluntarily and rebuild their countries when peace comes. In this instance, once again, Thailand demonstrates goodwill with its progressive "Education for all" policy which allows refugees and asylum-seekers to enrol in public schools.
Another pathway is resettlement which is the process of taking refugees from the country of asylum to a third country. However, with a growing number of refugees, access to solutions has become more and more limited. Host communities have a shared responsibility to make sure refugees are not left in political limbo and can participate in community life.
Even though civil society organisations are the driving force to support refugees and are rooted in actions, we all can play a pivotal role in shifting our approach to the refugee situation. Policymakers can draft legal reforms, social influencers can advocate lifting the stigma, and individuals can volunteer with community-based organisations.
Thais have demonstrated remarkable support and mobilisation for the refugees.
A non-governmental organisation set up refugee kitchens where the people from the host community can taste dishes from foreign countries and bond over cooking activities with refugees. Local communities donated shelters, food, and water to new arrivals in the temporary safety areas. A company offered access to play space to urban refugees and gifted all the participating children with toys. Schools organised fundraising activities in response to the Ukraine war and earthquakes in Syria and Türkiye.
This is not an exhaustive list but a sample of how we can all do more to contribute to improving the well-being of refugees. We have everything to gain in giving refugees a chance and welcoming the richness of diversity.
In December 2023, the Global Refugee Forum (GRF) in Geneva will bring together states, civil societies, refugees, and everyone else who has a part to play in supporting refugees.
The GRF is an opportunity to assess progress against the four key objectives set in the Global Refugee Compact: ease the pressures on host countries, enhance refugee self-reliance, expand access to third-country solutions, and support conditions in countries of origin for return in safety and dignity. The 2023 GRF will be a unique opportunity to amplify success stories in the refugee response. But, more importantly, it will offer momentum for all participating actors to pledge funding, expertise, and political changes.
Since the last 2019 Forum, the complex needs of refugees and the communities that host them have remained. The challenges are substantial but not insurmountable.
Recently, Filippo Grandi, UN High Commissioner for the Refugees, said during a visit to Melbourne University that we need to "embrace complexity and deal with it. Results will not be immediate, and will require courage, commitment, compassion, and determination." Those are human qualities we can all demonstrate for the refugee cause. It is our responsibility to address barriers to inclusion, which mainly result from racism, xenophobia, or ignorance.
On this World Refugee Day, we encourage everyone to engage in giving refugees more hope and more opportunities to allow them to build their new homes wherever they are.
Giuseppe De Vincentiis is UNHCR Representative in Thailand.
