Barwaqo Saeed

After World War II, millions of people were displaced. This has spotted and seized the attention of the international community and the United Nations (UN). To help those who were in need, The United Nations founded the International Refugee Organization (IRO) in 1946. This was a temporary UN agency to deal with refugee problems caused by World War II. Its main purpose is to either help refugees find homes in those countries they flee to or help them return to their home countries. This organization was later replaced by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees mandate is to “oversee the application of the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol, provides international protection and assistance to almost 40 million people, including asylum seekers, refugees, returnees (former refugees), internally displaced persons and stateless persons around the world”. Since its establishment, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has assisted millions of people worldwide including those who flee from their home countries because of war or natural disaster and those who are stateless. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees works with different international organizations to provide protection to those refugees and stateless.

One of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees’ core principles is to provide protection for those who were forced to flee from their country because of war. Those refugees are in a very vulnerable situation, and they don’t have any protection or help from their governments. They face discrimination and consider minorities in those countries they seek asylum. To protect these people, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees refers to guiding Principles on Internal Displacement which says, “States are under a particular obligation to protect against the displacement of indigenous peoples, minorities, peasants, pastoralists and other groups with a special dependency on and attachment to their lands”. Even though those principles have been put into a place to protect refugees, they still suffer and experience abuse, rape, and physical torture from those countries they flee to. Harming people who are seeking protection is against humanity and a violation of human rights.

 

United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees operates and has offices all around the World. This organization has been doing a lot and continuously improving the livelihood of the refugees and stateless people. One of the countries where the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees operates is Somalia. Somalia is a country in the horn of Africa and has been experiencing consistent war for the past two decades. This country has turned into a war-torn; thousands of people have lost their lives while other thousands have been displaced. According to a UN report, the main reasons for growing sexual violence in Somalia are the ongoing civil war, gender inequality, and the continuous humanitarian crises. Somalia has the world’s third-highest number of refugees.  Those who have been displaced, of them, flee to the neighboring countries and seek asylum while some others stay behind their home countries. Those people experience a lot of difficulties, especially women and children. Somalia is one of the countries in the world with the highest rape rate mainly because rape is taboo in Somalia. People don’t talk about it as it’s an issue that brings “discomfort”. In Somalia, rape is considered normal. Since the victims can’t discuss or talk about their pain and trauma, it gives the perpetrators the advantage of getting away with those crimes they commit daily. According to two reports, the Report of the Secretary-General on Children and Armed Conflict and the Report of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict, which has been documented in 2020 shows an almost 80% increase in cases of sexual violence in Somalia compared to the year before. Even though this number is higher, in reality, it only shows what was reported that particular year. There are hundreds of women and children that have been raped every day that hasn’t been reported. A large number of them live in refugee camps. The reports noted that “more than 100 cases of sexual violence against girls were verified by the UN in the first quarter of 2021. Perpetrators often exploited the vulnerability of displaced girls, targeting them when they left camps to perform domestic chores”. Furthermore, Somalia is still hosting other refugees including Syrian, Yemen, Ethiopia, and South Sudan. Both the local displaced Somalis and refugees are facing multiple challenges that impact their livelihood and sense of belonging. Refugee camps remained to be a hostile environment to many people since many rape cases continue to happen and the government does not have the power to oversee them. Moreover, UNHCR has been trying to draft policies and laws that protect the safety and well-being of refugees and internally displaced persons. UNHCR has been an active supporter of Somalia. Despite the conflict that has lasted decades, Somalia has experienced floods, droughts, and the economic collapse caused by the Covid-19 pandemic over the past two years. UNHCR has helped the government of Somalia to overcome most of those challenges.  UNHCR has been providing technical support for the government of Somalia in building an effective asylum system. In Somalia, UNHCR has been doing the work of the government because they have been building shelters, schools, hospitals, and other facilities for the refugees. UNHCR has also been getting support and funding from other UN organizations.

 

One of UNHCR’s mandates is to provide protection for refugees and assist them. Protection doesn’t only mean providing shelter and food. It means protecting their safety and well-being. It means being confident enough to perform duties outside their comfort zone. This issue of rape might seem like a human rights issue and therefore it should be dealt with by The United Nations Human Rights Council, it happens in refugee camps managed by the UNHCR, which makes it a UNHCR issue as well. Sexual abuse and sexual assault are everyone’s business. It’s everyone’s responsibility to protect vulnerable people including refugees and those people who are stateless.

 

During this study trip, there are several aspects I intend to learn about how UNHCR operates.

I want to learn: –

1. How does UNHCR manage rape crises in Refugee camps?

2. How do they support victims during the trauma period?

3.  What policies does the organization have in tackling the rape crisis?

4. How is UNHCR keeping the Somalia government accountable in dealing with those crises?

5. Are there any legal steps regarding bringing justice to the perpetrators?

 

Knowing and familiarizing UNHCR’s stance in dealing with rape crises in Somalia will help me with my career. I’m passionate about helping those in need, especially refugees around the world and particularly refugees in Somalia. Even though UNHCR has done a lot in developing and helping the refugees in Somalia such as providing access to essential services. But there are a lot of unmet needs faced by refugees living the IDPs. At some point, I want to work with UNHCR and help those refugees, so learning how to operate and deal with crises will help me contribute, reshape and make this world a better place for everyone. Not only that, the concept of “climate refugee” has been a phenomenon that I have been interested in for the last few years especially since many local Somalis are leaving their homes based on climate change. This concept has widened and reformed the definition of the traditional concept of being a “refugee”. Therefore, I am also interested in the study of refugees as a discipline and as a field of study. Thus, visiting UNHCR will give me the opportunity to know about this organization and its task. Since there are current global crises including the Yemen conflict and Ukrainian and Russian conflicts, it will be also good to see how they are operating in these regions and their plans to help victims both in the short and long terms.