Refugees: UNHCR says displacement hit record in 2015
War and persecution forced more than 65 million people from their homes by the end of last year, UNHCR reports.
More than half of all refugees came from Syria, Afghanistan and Somalia [Manolis Lagoutaris/Reuters]
The United Nations refugee agency says persecution and conflict in places such as Syria and Afghanistan raised the total number of refugees and internally displaced people worldwide to a record 65.3 million at the end of last year.
The previous year, 2014, had already seen the highest number of refugees worldwide since World War II, with 60 million displaced people.
But last year - when Lebanon, Turkey and European countries staggered under the arrival of large numbers of refugees - topped that record by nearly 10 percent, the UNHCR said on Monday in unveiling its annual Global Trends Report.
The Geneva-based agency urged leaders from Europe and elsewhere to do more to end the wars that are fanning the exodus of people from their homelands.
"I hope that the message carried by those forcibly displaced reaches the leaderships: We need action, political action, to stop conflicts," said Filippo Grandi, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. "The message that they have carried is: 'If you don't solve problems, problems will come to you.'"
'24 displaced per minute'
With stark detail, UNHCR said that on average, 24 people had been displaced every minute of every day last year - or 34,000 people a day - up from six every minute in 2005.
Global displacement has roughly doubled since 1997, and risen by 50 percent since 2011 alone - when the Syria war began.
More than half of all refugees came from three countries: Syria, Afghanistan and Somalia.
Turkey was the "top host" country for the second year running, taking in 2.5 million people - nearly all from neighbouring Syria. Afghan neighbour Pakistan had 1.6 million, while Lebanon, next to Syria, hosted 1.1 million.
Grandi said policymakers and advocacy groups face daunting challenges helping the largest subset of displaced people: About 40.8 million internally displaced in countries in conflict. Another 21.3 million were refugees and some 3.2 million more were seeking asylum.
More than a million people fled to Europe last year, causing a political crisis in the European Union.
Grandi called on countries to work to fight the xenophobia that has accompanied the rise in refugee populations, and decried both physical barriers - such as the fences erected by some European countries - as well as legislative ones that limit access to richer, more peaceful EU states.
Such European policies were "spreading a negative example around the world", he said.
"There is no plan B for Europe in the long run," Grandi said. "Europe will continue to receive people seeking asylum. Their numbers may vary ... but it is inevitable."
Response: Currently, there are more refugees in the world today than in WWII. The number of displaced peoples has risen to almost double what it was 20 years ago. The author of this article interviews a representative from the UNHCR, who states that far greater actions needs to be taken in order to stop the violence that is both killing and expelling so many every day.
Though no real solution was presented within this article, the author does a good job simply presenting the facts instead of taking a side. Though it wasn't until I read this article that I realized that there was more than one side. I believed that everyone wanted to help refugees, because they're human, like us, and are without a home and hope. But many western nations are refusing access to their nation for the refugees, leaving them stranded in limbo, with no where to go and no one to turn to.
In my opinion, countries should be forced to help those who cannot help themselves, and provide a home for the refugees, giving them something to hold on to for hope. But we can't just stop there, further and more drastic action needs to be taken to put a halt to the violence in the middle east. The UN and Western forces need to bolster their strength and put a stop to the war right now. For the longing we wait, the worse these problems get and the greater the consequences.
"Aljazeera." June 20, 2016. Aljazeera Media Network. June 20, 2016. <http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/06/refugees-unhcr-displacement-record-2015-160620052912341.html>.
Monday, June 13, 2016
UN concerned about 'Israel's excessive use of force'
Israel's occupation is the main trigger of humanitarian needs among Palestinians in the West Bank, according to the UN.
Among the Palestinian fatalities were 30 children killed by Israeli soldiers and settlers, the highest figure recorded since 2006 [EPA]
The year 2015 marked the highest number of deaths and injuries among West Bank Palestinians by Israeli forces in a decade, a United Nations report has said. Israeli casualties - soldiers, civilians and settlers - in the West Bank and Israel were also the highest in that same period, according to the report.
Entitled Fragmented lives: Humanitarian overview 2015, the report has been released each year by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) in the occupied territories since 2011. It provides an overview of the causes of the humanitarian vulnerabilities in the occupied Palestinian territory in a given year.
The 2015 report found the Israeli occupation "to be the main trigger of humanitarian needs among Palestinians in the occupied territory."
"This month, Palestinians enter their 50th year under Israeli occupation. 'Fragmented Lives' shows clearly the devastating impact of this ongoing situation, mainly on 4.8 million Palestinians who are increasingly vulnerable due to violations of international humanitarian and human rights law," said David Carden, head of UNOCHA in the occupied Palestinian territory, on Monday.
"We need a fundamental shift in the approach to the [occupied territory], particularly far greater respect for international law and concrete efforts towards accountability for those who violate it," he said.
The UN attributed the death of 146 Palestinians and 25 Israelis to the "policies and practices related to the Israeli occupation, including settler violence," and an "upsurge in violence ... marked by a sharp rise in stabbing, ramming, and shooting attacks by unaffiliated Palestinians against Israeli civilians and forces, and widespread clashes".
The last quarter of 2015 saw a wave of lone-wolf attacks, largely by young disgruntled Palestinians, leading to the highest number of casualties among Israelis since 2005. The majority were killed in the West Bank, the rest in Israel proper, the report said.
But these incidents also raised concerns, the UN said, about Israel's "excessive use of force and arbitrary deprivation of life, both in the context of clashes and in response to Palestinian attacks, including multiple cases where perpetrators and alleged perpetrators were shot and killed on the spot by Israeli forces."
Among the Palestinian fatalities were 30 children killed by Israeli soldiers and settlers, the highest figure recorded since 2006.
The report showed that the absolute majority of Palestinian injuries took place during clashes, mainly from tear gas inhalation, rubber-coated steel bullets and live ammunition shot by Israeli forces."What this report highlights is that the years of coddling Israel through diplomacy have only created a sense of impunity in Israel whereby it can do whatever it wants and not pay a price," said Diana Buttu, a lawyer and former adviser to the Palestine Liberation Organization.
"This serves to highlight the need to press for sanctions against Israel and to hold it accountable for these human rights abuses."
While the number of settler violence incidents resulting in Palestinian deaths or damage to property dropped compared with 2014, an arson attack by Israeli settlers left three members of a Palestinian family dead, and the lone survivor - a five-year-old boy - with burns over 60 percent of his body.
The number of damaged, stolen or uprooted trees in 2015 was the highest since 2006, the UN found.
"It is clear that Israeli state action - as manifested by killings, demolitions and imprisonment of children - is also matched by Israeli state inaction, namely the impunity granted to Israeli settlers to terrorize Palestinians," Buttu said.
By the end of 2015, more than 6,000 Palestinians were incarcerated for "security" offences, the highest such number since 2010. More than 420 children were also imprisoned, including six held in administrative detention, without charge or trial. Most of the offences were related to stone-throwing.
The report documented that Israeli practices in Area C - which covers 60 percent of the West Bank - and East Jerusalem, have helped create "a coercive environment that undermines a Palestinian physical presence and exacerbates the risk of individual and mass forcible transfers."
It said that the Israeli authorities' planning system in Area C favours settlement interests, as it denies Palestinians from obtaining building permits: Between 2010 and 2014, Israel approved only 33 out of more than 2,000 applications submitted for building permits in Area C.
A similar system is in place in East Jerusalem, which "has resulted in only 13 per cent of the municipal area zoned for Palestinian construction, most of which is already built up."
"The report recognizes the Israeli intention in displacing Palestinian inhabitants of Area C, which is a step forward by an international organisation to unmask the real colonial objectives of the Israeli occupation towards expelling the Palestinians from their lands," said Tariq Dana, a senior research fellow at Birzeit University.
"But generally speaking, such reports don't end up in conclusions that blatantly call for the end of the occupation," Dana added. "For example, the report recommends Israeli authorities to review the 'rules of engagement,' which may give a false impression that there are two relatively symmetric parties in conflict, or for calling for halting the 'expansion of settlements' rather than entirely dismantling them [for] violating international law."
At least 70,000 Palestinians remain displaced after their homes were destroyed in the 2014 Israeli war, with Egypt's closure of the Rafah crossing and the inter-Palestinian political feud contributing to the dire humanitarian situation.
The UN said there were positive increases in the movement of people and goods in and out of the Gaza Strip, but that access is still being impeded by permit requirements, with the nine-year-long blockade continuing to "undermine livelihoods and prevent the realisation of a broad range of human rights."
Response: In my opinion, Aljazeera presents this particular topic with a seeming bias towards the Palestinian side of this conflict. Talking mostly of the harm received and done to Palestinians, including children, by Israeli soldiers and settlers. Now with this bias in mind, I do still agree with the fact stated in this article that Israel has been allowed to simply do whatever they want and get away without any consequences. The rest of the world needs to put forth a set of boundaries for Israel that will stop them from further encroching upon territory set aside for Palestinians, and hopefully prevent any further shed of blood. Of course these standards will need to be applied to Palestine as well as Israel. Both sides need to be held to the same set of rules and consequences so as to avoid any future controversy over the unfairness of authority. But, as is always in life, it is impossible to please everyone, and a solution to satisfy the masses is usually accepted as the best that can be done.
Hatqua, Dalia. "Aljazeera." June 13, 2016. Aljazeera Media Network. June 13, 2016. <http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/06/concerned-israel-excessive-force-160613052459420.html>.
Tuesday, June 7, 2016
What really happened at Thailand's Tiger Temple?
Caretakers of the 137 tigers removed from the Tiger Temple fear they will face a worse fate in government hands.
Is this the end for Thailand's infamous Tiger Temple? [Amanda Mustard/Al Jazeera]
Kanchanaburi, Thailand - Tucked away among the swelling vistas of west Thailand's Kanchanaburi province, Tanya Erzinclioglu paced around the periphery of Pha Luang Ta Bua Yanasampanno temple with her colleagues. Every now and again, she anxiously glanced at her phone, taking calls or checking for updates.
"I have no idea what's happening," she said repeatedly to herself.
Tanya's mornings typically involved being inside the temple grounds where she helped to feed and observe some 137 tigers who were under her partial care. It had been her routine for six years and, from the passion with which she speaks about it, it seems to be where her heart lies.
But on the morning of Monday, May 30, more than 500 officers, wildlife officials, vets and police were waiting patiently outside the main entrance to the place better known as Thailand's "Tiger Temple". By the main road, a few officers sheltered from the heat under a nine-metre-high yawning tiger head sculpture.
Thailand's Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP) was finally acting after years of allegations by multiple NGOs.
Tiger Temple has long been a staple attraction for tourists and backpackers looking for the perfect photo-op. A romantic picture was painted of ochre-clad monks and endangered tigers living together in a relationship of numinous unity. The message: "You too can partake in the harmony" - for a price.
More than 500 officers, wildlife officials, vets and police were present at the raid. Tranquilizer guns were prepared to sedate the tigers before relocation [Amanda Mustard/Al Jazeera]
Funding allocations
During the raid, a two-page DNP declaration was handed out to members of the press. It explained that, legally, every tiger in the country is a "national asset" and Tiger Temple has a long history of "exploiting the property of the government for personal gain without permission from the government".
"We knew that the temple was using the tigers for money," DNP Deputy District General Adisorn Noochdumrong told Al Jazeera. "By law, they cannot do that."
Tanya, however, insisted that at least some of that money had gone into improving the living conditions of the tigers - an issue paramount to her and many of her colleagues. In particular, she highlighted the temple's pride and joy: its almost five-hectare "Tiger Island" enclosure.
Completed in 2011 at an estimated cost of 90 million baht, (slightly more than $2.5m) the 28 enclosures in Tiger Island meant that, for the first time, the tigers were able to experience outside spaces, albeit on a rotating schedule.
The open areas are strikingly different from other tiger zoos in the country. At the frenetic Sriracha Zoo, activities include tiger shows that seem to, in part, include having the cats jump through flaming hoops.
When ex-DNP director general Damrong Pidech visited the Tiger Temple in 2012, he actually praised the tiger's living conditions, telling the Bangkok Post: "Frankly speaking, their living conditions are better than those in state-owned zoos."
But, for years, multiple NGOs have expressed concerns over the temple management's activities, alluding to corruption and even the illegal trade of tigers.
Corruption allegations
One of the most incriminating examples can be found in a 2015 report by the NGO Cee4Life.
The report contains a detailed investigation documenting events leading up to the disappearance of three tigers in December 2014, which were thought to have been sold into the illegal wildlife trade. Secretly taped audio and videorecordings put forward a case suggesting that the temple's abbot had been involved, breaking both Thai and international law.
What resulted was a seeming disconnect between the apparently superior living conditions of the tigers and suggestions of a murky history of opaque operations and illegal activities; a disconnect between staff who seem to genuinely care for the animals and a minority in the upper echelons of the temple who have been accused of not sharing their concern.
Adisorn said that the DNP has for years pleaded with the Tiger Temple monks and management to address their "illegal" or "hazardous" activities, such as the close contact permitted between tigers and tourists.
"We wanted to talk first, and [get] the temple to do what we asked them to do," explained Adisorn. "We asked them to separate male and female [tigers]," he said, adding that they also highlighted the controversial practice of informal and unlicensed breeding - and subsequent inbreeding. "We knew they were trying to [increase numbers]."
When the temple's management rebuffed their requests, Adisorn said they were left with no choice but to raid the grounds and relocate the tigers to their own facilities.
After slight delays on the first day of the raid, the DNP teams soon organised themselves into an efficient chain, managing the removal of all 137 tigers, averaging more than 20 a day.
NGOs have for years expressed concern over activities of the temple's management. Wildlife officers checked the tigers' wellbeing before moving them out [Amanda Mustard/Al Jazeera]
Raid and extraction
Panee, one of the DNP vets working in Tiger Island, explained that it was "risky work, but so far the tigers are healthy".
She added, however, that some inevitable complications had occurred. "A few tigers are reacting not so [well to the sedatives], but we are [closely] watching them," she explained, holding up a vial containing the sedative used on the tigers so that they could be transported.
But as the raid progressed over the week, it soon became clear that Adisorn and his DNP team were extracting far more than just the tigers.
"We had always planned to raid every building, but I didn't want it [to be] common knowledge," said Adisorn, suggesting that any potential contraband on the grounds might have been removed prior to the raid. "I told [the Tiger Temple] we were only coming for the tigers."
By the second day of the temple raid, the majority of monks had already left. As it became clear, an investigation into activities was starting in earnest, any monks still within the grounds refused to comment and Al Jazeera was instead led to Adisorn of the DNP.
On the third and fourth day of the raid, 40 frozen tiger cub carcasses were pulled out of the temple's freezer, while in another building, 20 cubs were discovered preserved in jars of formaldehyde.
The local and international reaction was intense. The UN's environment programme released a statement, saying these cubs represented "only a tiny proportion of the enormous extent of an illegal trade in wildlife".
Reacting to the numerous findings, Teunchai Noochdumrong, the director of Thailand's Wildlife Conservation Office and Adisorn's wife, told reporters: "I am quite shocked. We have all heard concerns and allegations about this temple. I would never have thought they would be so blatant."
However, according to Tanya, these finds were actually the easiest to account for.
"These were the policy of Dr Somchai [Visasmongkolchai, a former vet at the temple] since 2010," she explained. "The DNP has been in our freezer loads of times in the past. Why are they acting surprised?"
She pointed out that months before the raid, the official Tiger Temple Facebook page had addressed the policy in an open post, which claimed they were keeping carcasses as proof they were not being sold on.
Tiger pelts and protected rosewood
What eventually really shook Tanya's faith, and that of her colleagues, however, were the far less dramatic discoveries from those spaces to which she and the majority of the staff were never allowed access: specifically, the monks' housing.
After a raid on their buildings, the DNP eventually emerged with a haul including a hacksaw, vice, and materials needed to make and sell "deer antler supplement".
On trucks outside the temple's main building, they loaded a vast amount of flat timber suspected to be protected Siamese rosewood. And earlier that morning, a truck with two temple staff and a monk was stopped at the main entrance while trying to leave.
Hidden in the car were two tiger pelts, hundreds of vials containing tiger skin, and dozens of tiger fangs. Adisorn said those caught in the truck had referred the DNP to the abbot for any explanations.
Tanya said she had been driving past just as the DNP was showcasing these findings.
"I didn't see [the tiger pelt] at first, but then I leaned around and saw this grotesque thing hanging over their hands," she said. "Then I saw the second one. I felt sick.
"Bad things have happened in the past, but the temple showed us [in 2015] that they have moved on and that's why I stayed," she explained.
Now, Tanya said she is left with mixed emotions about abandoning all the work she has done so far. "Maybe that was the most naive thing ever, but it was real."
With the Tiger Temple closed indefinitely and a heaving body of evidence being presented to the police, Adisorn is keen to show that the DNP is following protocol to ensure justice is served.
Authorities are 'discussing the possibility of creating a new sanctuary', said Adisorn. Tanya has long been a caretaker for the tigers and worries they'll be neglected [Amanda Mustard/Al Jazeera]
New sanctuary for relocated tigers
"We are discussing the possibility of creating a new sanctuary for the tigers along with some other animals," he said, aware that there are fears the relocated tigers will suffer neglect.
Although he acknowledged that the DNP facilities are far from ideal, he promised it "will take care of them.
"We have been contacted by [the animal welfare charity] Four Paws, and they want to help to manage the tiger sanctuary with the DNP," he explained.
For Tanya and the others at the temple who are still reeling from the discoveries, the welfare of the tigers remains one of their biggest considerations.
"The main thing we have ever fought for has been to have better lives for the tigers," said Tanya. Her colleague nods, explaining that they have formed relationships with the animals over six or seven years and have no plans to stop seeing the tigers.
They will maintain the pressure on the DNP to improve the conditions within the DNP facilities, they explained.
"If no one is pushing and pushing, then there is no spotlight to make sure those conditions are improved," said Tanya. She worries that as international attention fades, so will the outlook for the tigers she has spent years caring for.
But she hopes her worst fears will not come to pass. "In two weeks' time, if anyone asks, 'Hey, do you remember when the Tiger Temple was raided?' They'll just say 'Oh yeah, it was the best thing ever, the best thing to happen to those tigers'. Meanwhile, they'll all be stuck rotting in tiny cages."
Hypocrisy, that is one of the most commonly used terms to describe the actions having been taken by Thailand's government in regards to this particular issue. Having condoned the care of the tigers by giving their approve and conceding that, "Frankly speaking, their living conditions are better than those in state-owned zoos." Yet now the DNP has conducted and "unprecedented" raid and has taken away all 137 tigers from a place that cared for them and made sure that they would be made safe. Yes, in every area of the world there are those who would seek to turn the misfortune of others into their own personal gain, and thus would kill tigers to sell their pelts and fangs for wealth. But those people are impossible to avoid and exist everywhere, especially in governmental organizations.
I will have to say that the author of this article did a fine job presenting both sides of this argument without bias and with only confirmed facts. Aljazeera is usually quite good at presenting situations as they are and not as they should or could be.
Ramsey, Adam. "Aljazeera." 5 June 2016. Ajazeera Media Network. 7 June 2016, <http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2016/06/happened-thailand-tiger-temple-160605074332073.html>.
![More than half of all refugees came from Syria, Afghanistan and Somalia [Manolis Lagoutaris/Reuters]](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_uVAm5Nx27tNGC1V_cdPl0vR0_fghCM9wEgjM-8J0_R8pRTS8pitPBmh6AFDPhyug0H9c8FNwW15XMM7QvIAUzw57LNaz3NNPq5dPrTjq0IHikWiemAgqV9Nm6G9BN2HVYlweDdm85pl2rrUxw9w4FtkJ3907yhQyZ_WYHcgzkp3z9Rj47ZcApYi1qKjWLh7kZbhAjmMl5Xdfnd=s0-d "Refugees: UNHCR says displacement hit record in 2015")
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