Islamic Relief: Refugee Crisis Response

Summary Leaflet for UN Refugee Summit

Islam has a rich heritage of forced migrant protection, stemming from the original teachings of the Qur’an, as well as examples from the lives of Islamic prophets. Central to the Islamic tradition are the concepts of welcoming and dignity.

Islamic teachings emphasise that refuge is the divine right of the persecuted, and humankind has a responsibility to shelter and protect those in need.

ABOUT ISLAMIC RELIEFIslamic Relief has been responding to global displacement since 1984. Find out more at www.islamic-relief.org For further information on our perspective, read our Forced Migration in Islam report at: www.islamic-relief.org/publications

Islamic Relief Worldwide

19 Rea Street South

Birmingham

B5 6LB

United Kingdom

Tel: +44 121 605 5555

irw@irworldwide.org

www.islamic-relief.org

Registered Charity No. 328158

Registered Company No. 02365572

Facebook: islamicreliefworldwide

Twitter: @irworldwide

• The current number of refugees in need of resettlement is around 1.2 million, with only 30 countries out of 192 offering any places.

• There are 20 million refugees in the world.

• Eighty six per cent live in low and middle income countries.

• Refugees account for 0.3% of the global population.

• At least half the world’s refugees are Muslims.

• There are over 5 million Palestinian refugees in the Middle East.

• Over 4.8 million refugees are from Syria – 95% are living in five neighbouring countries.

• Over 2.5 million refugees are from Afghanistan, the majority in Pakistan and Iran.

• Over one million refugees are from Somalia, including 413,000 in neighbouring Kenya.

FACTS

For over 30 years we have been supporting refugees and forced migrants in line with faith-inspired principles.

According to 2005 statistics, around 50% of the world’s refugees came from Organisation of Islamic Cooperation states. In Yemen and Syria, we are one of a handful of NGOs offering lifesaving aid to displaced people.

By working with agencies and communities across the faith and non-faith spectrum – including UNHCR, LWF and CAFOD – we have reached refugees from all backgrounds, regardless of faith, ethnicity or gender.

Our projects range from meeting immediate humanitarian needs such as shelter, food or medical provisions, as well as investing in long-term development programmes like education, livelihoods training, peacebuilding or psycho-social support. Our faith-inspired identity has often enabled us access to hard-to-reach areas and has been critical when building relationships with refugee and host communities.

OUR KEY MESSAGESWe call on all nations to make welcoming forced migrants and protecting their dignity the central tenets of their response to the global forced migration crisis. Specifically, we ask states attending the summit to commit to the following:

WELCOMINGRatify and uphold the 1951 Refugee Convention and take their fair share of refugees to ensure collective resettlement of at least 10% of refugees globally.

Ensure the provision of safe and legal routes for people seeking refuge and asylum, including increased support for family reunification.

End xenophobic language and policies towards forced migrants and partner with local civil society (including faith-based organisations) to facilitate effective integration of refugees within host communities.

Increase funding for the global refugee response appeal by 30% (from $10 billion in 2015 to $13 billion in 2016).

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DIGNITY & PROTECTIONIncrease support for safe and sustainable livelihoods, including the provision of work permits for refugees and regional job creation strategies for nations hosting high levels of refugees.

A sustainable, comprehensive response by governments and the international community with increased resources for the systematic creation of safe and welcoming spaces which are inclusive, flexible, appropriate, participatory and protective. A particular focus should go on childhood settings, schools, and other formal and non-formal learning spaces, with emphasis on the most vulnerable and disadvantaged, including girls and women, and those with disabilities.

Increase funding for inclusive refugee education for all 3.6 million refugee children out of school and promote vocational training.

Increase funding and diversify partnerships to address the psycho-social and spiritual needs of refugees.

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Dignity is considered a central aspect of human identity, as the Qur’an speaks of how God “honoured the children of Adam” (Qur’an 17:70). Protecting human dignity is therefore a critical responsibility. Rather than treating forced migrants as social and economic burdens, the Qur’an commends those who “show love for those who migrated to them” and “give [the migrants] preference over themselves even if [the hosts] too are poor” (59:9).

BATOUL'S STORYAGE: 19FROM: HAMA

Before the conflict escalated in Syria, Batoul and her family were living comfortably in Hama. She attended school with her siblings and had a happy, healthy life thanks to their financial stability. On the 4 August 2014, their lives changed forever. “We decided to move to Lebanon. During this period, my brother was missing. My father took us to Sham, but when he went back to Hama he [also] went missing. We got to Lebanon and had no one with us. We had no money. We had no idea where to begin. My dream was to go to university and become a journalist. I had many dreams like travelling around the world and meeting new people. I’d like to learn about the struggles people face and help their message reach the world. If reality is this horrible, how can I dream? There is no hope of returning home, that’s what I feel. Even if I do go back, what am I going back to? I have nothing to go back to.”

The Qur’an calls on humankind to fulfil the role of protectors and helpers to “those oppressed men, women and children, who cry out, ‘Lord, rescue us from this town where people are oppressors!’” (4:75), and promises that those escaping persecution will find “many a refuge and a great plenty in the earth” (4:99).

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IRAQ

JORDAN

LEBANON

In 2015, Islamic Relief reached more than 4 million Syrian refugees in Syria, Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq.

We also reached refugees and displaced people in scores of other countries around the world, including: Yemen, Afghanistan, Sudan, South Sudan, Somalia, Kenya, Ethiopia, Bangladesh and Pakistan.

HOW ISLAMIC RELIEF IS RESPONDING TOTHE REFUGEE CRISIS