On June 20, we commemorate the World Day of Refugees every year. It will not be any different this year either (with a special focus on internally displaced persons), although the activities of not only Slovak non-governmental organizations for this occasion have been moved to the online space due to the global coronavirus pandemic.
The forecasts and statistics we heard at our Development Organizations Platform - Umbrella webinar on Thursday on 'Refugees amid the climate crisis' were disturbing. By 2050, hundreds of millions more migrants may be on the move due to natural or man-made disasters, or rather fleeing people.
However, we must not forget the growing number of internally displaced persons (IDPs in English) around the world and pay special attention to them. Today, there are more than 50.8 million internally displaced persons who have had to leave their homes due to conflict, violence or persecution, but still cannot reach and cross an international border to obtain refugee status. They also fail to find safety in their home country. Millions of other people are internally displaced due to natural disasters and in connection with the climate crisis, although the term 'climate refugee' is not yet internationally recognized. It is a matter of time before we have to step up and take the link between migration and climate change seriously. For example, the war in Syria could be a warning and a sufficient example for us.
However, the crisis caused by the global COVID-19 pandemic may cause the issue of internally displaced persons to take a back seat. Even the UN rapporteur for the human rights of internally displaced persons, Cecilia Jimenez-Damary, said that it is important not to forget internally displaced persons even during the corona crisis. At the same time, she called on countries to use their sovereign responsibility in order to protect these persons in accordance with the principles of internal displacement, to provide them with adequate support and humanitarian assistance. You can find more on the topic on the website 'Faces of Migration', dedicated to the 'Faces of Migration' campaign within our ongoing project 'Global Goals and Migration', supported by EU funds through the DEAR program.
Even in Slovakia, we do not forget this year's World Day of Refugees, with a special focus on internally displaced persons. Thus, a year ago, the members and partners of Umbrella realized the event: 'Sunday Parade' and 'Umbrella March' in Bratislava's Stara tržnica. The activities are currently online, but you will be able to experience the [fusion] festival live in the fall. The whole week (June 15-21) is also running 'Refugee Week' (more here: https://www.facebook.com/RefugeeWeek/). Various European (and our Slovak) events on the subject of refugees and support for people on the run are registered there - either within one's own country or between countries or continents.
Even if we think that at home in the Slovak Republic, this issue of resettlement and forced migration does not concern us, the opposite is true - it is a global phenomenon and we should be aware of it and understand it (and its solutions). This is how the global solidarity to which we are committed works.
Text: Boba M. Baluchová, Photo: Umbrella archive, More at: www.tvaremigracie.ambrela.org or www.ambrela.org