As the world scrambles to help Ukraine, many have noticed a so-called Ukraine Effect. The effect is two fold. On one hand, countries began to focus more efforts and aid to Ukraine, while on the other, taking aid away from other countries. In Europe, Ukrainian refugees have gained access to health care, education and job opportunities while the repatriation of refugees from Syria and other Middle East countries has been instated. Recently, Hungary offered aid to around 600,000 Ukrainian refugees, but expelled thousands of Syrian refugees. Syria has been at war for 11 years and donors are losing interest in the cause while they rush to help Ukraine. This can be seen within UN funding as Ukrainian aid is 78% funded while Syrian aid is only 47% funded. While some tie the suddenness of Ukraine’s war to the amount of aid, other countries have also been suddenly thrown into peril. Afghanistan underwent a sudden dramatic change in 2021, yet aid is only 59% funded. These slashes in funding have real time effects. Food rations have been instituted in Yemen, a nation already dealing with famine and food insecurity. Somalia almost declared an official famine in 2022 with 7.8 million people in crisis levels of hunger and 700,000 starving in 2023. Despite this, the UN received only 57% of the 2.3 billion dollars of aid requested, and the money came in late.

Other problems have also been heightened because of the war in Ukraine. Russia has fueled another global food crisis by driving up prices and wheat supplies. This affects countries in the Black Sea and worsens problems in Yemen and Somalia. Additionally, as Russia causes inflation in countries like Lebanon and Turkey, it takes away from their spending to Syrian refugees.

While Europe has accepted the most Ukrainian refugees, other powerful countries’ treatment of refugees has been brought to light.  Within the US, there is discrimination against refugees, especially from South America. The number of people displaced by the Venezuelan refugee crisis is very similar to the amount of refugees from Ukraine, at 6.8 million refugees and migrants. However, in 2022 the $1.79 billion regional response plan was less than 14% funded by the time that the $1.85 billion Ukraine regional plan was 62% funded. Despite this, the conflicts between Ukraine and Venezuela do have stark differences. While Ukraine’s refugee crisis appeared suddenly and in the face of a war, Venezuela’s crisis developed over years and has been affected by many factors, not just war. Venezuelan refugees leave because of a lack of food and medicine and an increase in violence and death, all worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic. Still, many refugees do not get the help they need in the US because of the politicalization of the issue. 

Migrants and refugees are being used as political stunt props as they are sent on buses from state to state. While President Biden extended Temporary Protected Status to Venezuelan refugees in 2021, the project is still very underfunded. 

Going forward, the US must work to depoliticize the issue of immigration and refugees. Countries across the world must work to help refugees from all countries and follow through on their promises.

Ultimately, the Ukraine Effect demonstrates the need to reform systems of global aid and assistance. It should go beyond temporary food provisions that can be taken away if funds are reallocated and center long-term goals like building infrastructure, making transportation accessible and strengthening equal education systems. Long-term aid must focus not only on providing necessities, but also providing training and opportunities to empower those who need it.

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Krisna Kumar is a senior at Friends School of Baltimore. She is interested in human rights and diplomacy and has been a member of STAND’s Yemen, Burma, United States, and East Turkistan action committees since last spring.

Sudan and South Sudan

Sudan

On April 11, 2019,  after a week of thousands of protestors camping outside the nation’s military headquarters, the Sudanese military announced that President Omar al-Bashir had been arrested and ousted, marking the end of al-Bashir’s 30 year rule as an uncompromising and relentless ruler. On April 12, defense minister Lt. Gen. Awad Mohamed Ahmed Ibn Auf announced he would head a two year transitional period through a military council, with terms including the dissolution of the government and 10PM curfews for all citizens. Increased protests caused Ibn Auf to step down as head of the military council within 36 hours and he was replaced by Lieutenant General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan who lifted certain restrictions including curfews. After episodic violence during the protests, a 10-member delegation of protest organizers met with the military council at the country’s army headquarters in Khartoum. The military has agreed to allow civilian representatives on a supreme council to aid in the governing of Sudan, but refuse to allow a civilian majority out of fear of being overpowered and outvoted. Members of the military council have suggested three civilians and seven soldiers with a maximum of half of the council’s members consisting of civilian representatives. As of May 2, 2019, the Declaration of Freedom and Change Forces (DFCF), a group of opposition leaders, has submitted a draft constitution with proposals for a cabinet and a 120-person legislature during the transitional period. The DFCF is expecting a response from the military within two to three days, leaving the future of Sudan’s governance still up to negotiations.

South Sudan

Since South Sudan’s independence from Sudan in 2011 after a war over oil, religion, and ethnicity, the nation is once again in conflict and looking to commit to peace. As of April 18, 2019, opposition leader Riek Machar postponed the formation of a unified government until safety issues were resolved, as 2016’s peace agreements ended in Machar fleeing gunfire from President Salva Kiir’s troops. Machar’s return would have marked the establishment of a power-sharing government with Machar as vice president and Kiir as President. SPLM-IO, Machar’s rebel group, proposed delaying the formation of a transitional government for six more months as issues such as lacking security control and a unified South-Sudanese army have yet to be addressed.

Great Lakes of Africa

Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)

In early April, the Democratic Republic of the Congo held gubernatorial elections for its 26 provinces after a two-week-long postponement due to allegations of vote buying among provincial delegates. Before votes were even announced, 11 people were injured in clashes between supporters of newly-elected President Felix Tshisekedi and his predecessor Joseph Kabila in Lubumbashi. On April 11, it was determined that, months after losing the seat to his presidency, Joseph Kabila’s party, Common Front for Congo (FCC), had claimed victory in 16 of the provinces while Tshisekedi’s party won only one province while an opposition faction was successful in one other. (The remaining provinces were either postponed or will require a second round of votes.) With this announcement, Kabila’s party currently holds comfortable majorities in both houses of parliament as well as provincial governorships, thus ensuring that the country has not yet rid themselves of Kabila. As a result of the provincial election results, Al Jazeera has reported that supporters of Tshisekedi took to the streets protesting against the landslide victory of the FCC while simultaneously trying to hold off claims made by Martin Fayulu, candidate in the December election, that the presidential election was the result of a deal brokered between Tshisekedi and Kabila.

April has also marked a deadly month in the DRC as a result of the months-long Ebola outbreak that has plagued the country. More than 1,000 people have died from Ebola in eastern Congo since August, and as of May 4 the number has risen to 1,008. Despite these staggering statistics, however, it was determined by an expert panel of the World Health Organization (WHO) that the crisis would not be declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) as of April 12. Professionals have predicted that this could have deadly consequences as such an announcement is necessary to draw greater attention and funding to fighting Ebola in the country.

Middle East

Yemen

The United States Senate failed to override Donald Trump’s veto of the Yemen War Powers Resolution, a bipartisan measure to end US military support for the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen, on Thursday, May 2 with a 53-45 vote. Currently, the US provides intelligence and sells arms and ammunition to the coalition, all of which are used to fuel the worsening humanitarian crisis in Yemen. This unfortunate vote comes at a time when over 70,000 people have been killed in the conflict between the Houthi rebels and the Saudi-led coalition since January 2016 and over 12.6 million are in need of drinking water and adequate sanitation services. Cases of cholera are rampant among the millions of Yemeni citizens in need of humanitarian aid, with some areas seeing as many as 2,000 cases or suspected cases of cholera per week. Humanitarian groups have been blocked by fighting, restrictions to access certain areas, and bureaucratic difficulties, making it incredibly difficult to mitigate the worst of the crisis and keeping many Yemeni citizens from receiving lifesaving aid.

After the Stockholm Agreement in December, in which Yemen’s Houthi rebels and its internationally recognized government made concessions with the goal of mitigating conflict, the warring groups agreed to withdraw troops from Hodeidah Hodeidah has been and continues to be a significant port city as it is the main entry for 70% of imports, including humanitarian aid. However, in a press statement released on April 17, the UN Security Council expressed concern that the agreements are not being implemented. Both parties have been urged to follow through on the agreement to de-escalate the conflict, although a disagreement about which group should control Hodeidah has hindered this approach.

Syria

Since the removal of ISIS from Syrian territory, thousands of women and children have fled to refugee camps within the country. With 12,000 women and children now residing within these camps — many of whom are the families of ISIS fighters— their potential repatriation has garnered international attention. In just one camp in northeastern Syria, 2,500 children of ISIS fighters are being held which has prompted the International Committee for the Red Cross to urge that these children be repatriated to their country of origin.

In the past month, Russian and Syrian-led air-raids have recommenced in what was once a demilitarized zone in Northwestern Syria. Schools, health facilities, and residential areas within the “safe-zone” have all been hit. Additionally, the UN regional humanitarian coordinator reported that the area was experiencing the worst barrel bombing in fifteen months. These barrel bombs are found to have killed at least 15 civilians. The increase in attacks is exemplified by the May 5th targeting of three hospitals. Two of the hospitals were put out of service and one, The Nabad Al Hayat Hospital was destroyed.

Reliefweb reports that, since April 21, 231,087 individuals have been displaced and 462,496 remain under attack. Additionally, in this time, at least one hundred civilians have been killed.  In the end of March, there were 6.2 million internally displaced people within the country and 11.7 people in need of humanitarian assistance.

Southeast Asia

Burma

In the past month, the Burmese government has continued to refuse to change its treatment of the Rohingya minority and has initiated a crackdown against critics of the government and national armed forces, refusing the right to freedom of speech and expression. Especially concerning was the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold seven-year prison sentences of two reporters in apparent retaliation for their implication of the armed forces in an investigation of a massacre of Rohingya villagers in Inn Din, Rakhine State. The situation of Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh remains concerning as the government is ill-equipped to deal with the massive influx of refugees resulting in food shortages within refugee camps and the mistreatment of Rohingya refugees by Bangladeshi police, as well as the refusal of access to education for refugee children. Bangladesh is hoping to repatriate Rohingya as soon as possible after initial repatriation plans were delayed in November of 2018 but many refuse to return to the country until changes are made.

Throughout the past month, the international community has issued several responses to the persecution of the Rohingya. On April 29th, the EU council extended an embargo on arms and other materials that could be used for internal repression, issued travel bans to Myanmar, and froze assets on 14 top officials connected to serious human rights violations. These extensions will last until April 30, 2020. Efforts to address the persecution of the Rohingya have also been made in the U.S., where a bill proposing sanctions against the Burmese government due to their treatment of the Rohingya was introduced to the Senate on April 12th. Additionally, the status of Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh was discussed at length during talks between the Russian and Bangladeshi governments on April 29th. During this discussion, Russia agreed to back Bangladesh in promoting the timely repatriation of the Rohingya by encouraging the Burmese government to create a safe environment for the Rohingya within their own home country. In April, UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Mark Lowcock, head of UN migration agency (IOM) António Vitorino, and UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Filippo Grandi took a joint visit to Rohingya refugee camps in Bangladesh. After this trip, the officials reiterated their concern for the Rohingya, imploring the Burmese government to end persecution and asking the international community to support the Bangladeshi government in providing aid to Rohingya refugees. The UN also condemned the deportation of 3 Rohingya refugees who were returned to Burma from India due to their lack of documentation.

Emerging Crises

Venezuela 

The situation in Venezuela continues to escalate. On April 30, Guaidó asked Venezuelans to join the “final phase” of the efforts to topple Maduro. On May Day, protestors took to the streets once again to demand Maduro’s resignation and they were violently suppressed with tear gas and rubber bullets. The military did not follow Guaidó’s demands for a revolt, exemplifying Maduro’s strong hold. On May 2, Maduro spoke on national television to frame the military’s support as a victory over the opposition’s attempt at a United States-backed coup.

The US claims that Maduro was prepared to flee if the military did follow Guaidó’s request, saying he had a plane ready to take him to Cuba. Maduro’s Administration denies these claims. These comments are the most recent mention of the United States’ “threatening drumbeat” to overthrow the Maduro regime, which includes talks of military intervention. The increasingly violent protests and suppression combined with threats of foreign intervention and seemingly everlasting economic suffering puts Venezuela in a dire situation, with political violence seeming more likely by the moment.

—

Megan Rodgers, who contributed to the Burma section of this brief, is a student at The University of Arkansas. Megan serves on STAND’s Burma and Democratic Republic of Congo Action Committees.

Grace Harris, who contributed to the Sudan section of this brief, is a sophomore at Tampa Preparatory School in Florida, where she serves as the president of her STAND chapter. Grace serves on STAND national’s Sudan and Yemen Action Committees.

Casey Bush, who contributed to the DRC section of this brief, is a graduate student at Clark University and one of STAND’s Student Co-Directors. She is a member of all of STAND’s Action Committees.

Grace Fernandes, who contributed to the Syria section of this brief, is a junior at Simmons University and one of STAND’s Student Co-Directors. She leads STAND’s Indigenous Peoples Action Committee and works with Simmons Amnesty International, an affiliate of STAND.

Caroline Mendoza, who contributed to the Sudan and South Sudan section of this brief, is a junior at Cerritos High School in California, and serves on the STAND Managing Committee. She is a member of the Burma and Yemen Action Committees.

Zachary Gossett, who contributed to the Venezuela section of this brief, is a sophomore at Butler University and a member of STAND’s Managing Committee. He serves on the Indigenous Peoples and Burma Action Committees.

Now, with 740,000 Rohingya people in Bangladesh, the country has said that it will no longer accept Rohingya refugees. This comes after a failed deal between Bangladesh and Burma to repatriate the Rohingya people. The Bangladeshi government has said that the Rohingya people have simply not volunteered to return to the Rakhine province of Burma because they were afraid of persecution. “It’s very clear:” said Filippo Grandi, UN high commissioner for refugees, “Nobody has gone back because many of those reasons that pushed them out of the country have not yet been addressed.”

On February 21, Bangladesh announced that it would move 100,000 Rohingya refugees to an island in the Bay of Bengal.  The plan is meant to ease the pressure on the Cox’s Bazar refugee camp, but it is more of a way to force people to go back to Burma.  Additionally, human rights activists have noted the danger in such a move as the island is both remote and prone to cyclones. However, the government has said that once there, refugees will only be allowed to leave the island to go back to Burma or to go to a third country which had granted them asylum.  Moreover, the government, denying that the island was a concentration camp, told people that there would be restrictions. For example, the government said that it would not give the refugees Bangladeshi passports or ID cards, indicating that the Rohingya people living in Bangladesh may continue to face the same statelessness and discrimination that they faced while living in Burma.

The Bangladeshi government no longer has the capacity to take care of the refugees.  The UN has sent in aid to people living in the Cox’s Bazar refugee camp, but it is not enough.  Whether the Bangladeshi government is serious that its sole motive is its inability to accommodate all of the refugees or it is intentionally discriminating against these people, a better solution needs to be found.  Other countries must be willing to take Rohingya in if they stand a chance at surviving the ethnic cleansing being perpetrated by their government.

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Mira Mehta is a writer and a student at Westfield High School. In her spare time, she enjoys debating and running on the cross country team. This is her second year as a member of the Communications Task Force at STAND.

According to the United Nations, today there are more than 68.5 million displaced people, including more than 25 million refugees. We cannot turn our backs on these, as one of the world’s most vulnerable populations. Facing the loss of their homes, families, and livelihoods, refugees look to the United States for a fighting chance at life. To restrict their entrance is to abandon the victims of global crises – crises that often the global community has failed to prevent.

We, the young people of STAND, continue to support the fight against anti-refugee actions taken by the United States. A country with such great wealth, potential impact,  and history of humanitarian assistance, has a moral obligation to do their part and accept refugees from around the globe.

As always, we stand #WithRefugees.

Southeast Asia

Burma (Myanmar)

For the first time, the Burmese military admitted its participation in crimes against humanity by sentencing 7 soldiers for killing 10 Rohingya men last September. The work of two Reuters reporters, Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, helped convict the soldiers. First Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and her government are pressing charges in this criminal case against the two reporters, who have remained in detention since December, and face a possible 14-year conviction for possessing classified documents. Their report includes testimony from security officers, relatives of the victims, and Buddhist villagers, and describes how Burmese soldiers and villagers executed the 10 men and dumped the bodies into a mass grave. They also possessed photographs of these killings, further implicating the troops and villagers.

The International Criminal Court (ICC) is facing the tensely debated issue of whether or not they have jurisdiction over Burma’s deportation of Rohingya Muslims. While Bangladesh, the country to which they have fled, is a member of the ICC, Burma is not. The ICC’s Chief Prosecutor, Fatou Bensouda, is a strong proponent, claiming jurisdiction on the basis that the crux of these allegations – deportation – can only occur when victims are forced across an international border, and that “exercising jurisdiction would be in line with the court’s legal framework and also recognize consequences of forced migration.”

Nicholas Kristof of The New York Times visited Burma in March, writing about what he witnessed. He said that he “enter[ed] Myanmar on a tourist visa, [and] was able to slip undetected into five Rohingya villages. What [he] found was a slow-motion genocide. The massacres and machete attacks of last August are over for now, but Rohingya remain confined to their villages — and to a huge concentration camp — and are systematically denied most education and medical care.” Kristof speaks about how Burma uses “guns and machetes for ethnic cleansing” and explores how “it also kills more subtly and secretly by regularly denying medical care and blocking humanitarian aid to Rohingya.”

Suu Kyi, who had been recognized by The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (USHMM) with their prestigious Elie Wiesel Award in 2012, was rescinded this award earlier this year because of her lack of action and sometimes active discrimination against the Rohingya. She and her political party “have refused to cooperate with United Nations investigators, blocked access to journalists and ‘promulgated hateful rhetoric against the Rohingya community.’” In the letter from USHMM to Suu Kyi, museum leaders wrote that, as attacks against the Rohingya unfolded, they “had hoped that [Suu Kyi]—as someone [they] and many others have celebrated for [her] commitment to human dignity and universal human rights—would have done something to condemn and stop the military’s brutal campaign and to express solidarity with the targeted Rohingya population.”

Bangladesh

As the Rohingya refugee population in Bangladesh increases and sanitation and security concerns continue to rise, so has international support. The UAE donated $2 million in April to the United Nations Refugee Agency in order to aid Rohingya women and children refugees in Bangladesh. This funding will support the UN’s larger mission to help 1.3 million displaced individuals this year, including 884,000 Rohingya and 336,000 host communities. India’s Foreign Secretary Vijay Keshav Gokhale met with Bangladeshi officials in April to organize humanitarian efforts, including women and child care, medical equipment, and “relief supplies including milk powder, baby food, dried fish, cooking stoves and cooking fuel, raincoats and gumboots.” These goods were requested by Bangladesh officials in advance of monsoon season, which will only exacerbate existing public health issues.

In the camps, a looming disaster awaits. Overpopulated, built of bamboo and plastic sheets, and located on steep hillsides, the camps are exceedingly prone to landslides and flooding as monsoon and cyclone season begins. A two-year-old Rohingya boy was among the first killed last week when a mud wall fell on him. Along with the extreme dangers of such floods and other natural disasters, this season will also lead to a public health crisis. Poor waste management, overflow from latrines, standing water, and even “improperly buried dead bodies” lead to high risk for the spread of disease, which already includes cholera, measles, and diphtheria.

Mohammad Shah Kamal, the top civil servant in the Bangladesh Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief, claimed that the government is working with international aid agencies to relocate 100,000 Rohingya, and “as of the first week of June, more than 28,000 refugees had been relocated [from the camps].” About 200,000 people are identified as “high risk,” but relocation proves difficult due to the lack of alternative flat ground, says the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, although the Government of Bangladesh has now “granted hundreds of additional acres for this purpose.”

Middle East and North Africa

Syria

Since the peaceful revolution in 2011, and the bloody crackdown by Bashar al-Assad’s regime, conflict has raged between anti-government rebel groups and the government  militia, causing the largest refugee crisis since World War II, the proliferation of terrorist groups like ISIS, and horrific atrocities against civilians.

In April, claims of chemical weapons attacks in Douma prompted the United States, Britain, and France to carry out a wave of airstrikes on Syrian targets. The chemical weapons attack was denied by both Russia and the Syrian government, but it was clear through reports by doctors and first responders that the attacks contained chemical components. The attacks not only killed many civilians, but also sent hundreds to hospitals because of exposure to chemical agents.

In the southwest, Syrian government and rebel forces are fighting over control of the southwest border areas. Russian-Israeli coordination has reached unprecedented levels in recent weeks, leading the United States back into diplomatic talks. Last year, the U.S. agreed to take more of a backseat approach to the Syria conflict, moving away from arming moderate rebel groups, and instead calling for a ceasefire and negotiations. The United States now must to decide its strategy: whether it will give up influence in southwest Syria, or whether it will increase military action in the region, either directly or through support of rebel groups. Either could be devastating to the already suffering civilian population.

As the Syrian government and its aligned forces continue to try and take land, suffering of the civilian population persists. In February, the government clashed again with rebels in Eastern Ghouta in an attempt to take over the area that has been a rebel stronghold for years. Backed by Russian war planes, the fighting killed hundreds of civilians in just days. After a ceasefire on February 24, the Syrian army deployed ground troops to gain control of the area. Evacuations of rebel groups started in April and now the area is completely under control of the Syrian army and Russian forces. The five-year siege of Eastern Ghouta was the longest in modern history, and this year’s two month offensive, in which government forces indiscriminately attacked civilians, and denied them food and medicine, was found by a UN Commission of Inquiry to constitute crimes against humanity. Likewise, attacks by rebels on civilian-inhabited areas of Damascus were condemned by the Commission.

In March, Turkish forces and Syrian allies started an eight-week campaign to drive out Kurdish rebels in the town of Afrin in northwest Syria. More than 150,000 civilians from the town were forced to flee because of the fighting. Turkey, which views the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) as a terrorist group, has been accused of “quietly orchestrating a demographic shift,” wherein they seek to change the balance of Afrin’s population from predominantly Kurdish to majority Arab.

In April, Yarmouk refugee camp, the largest Palestinian refugee camp in Syria, was attacked by Syrian allied militias in order to drive out ISIL and gain a stronger foothold in the region. The forces launched air strikes on the refugee camp that was home to around 160,000, and dwindled down to only 6,000 in April due to the attacks. Dozens of Palestinian refugees were killed.

The Syrian refugee crisis is worsening every day, and has reached an estimated 11 million people. In the past year, the United States has only hosted a total of 11 Syrian refugees. This number is in stark contrast to the nearly three million Syrian refugees in Turkey, and about one million in both Jordan and Lebanon. 

Sudan

In eastern Sudan, drinking water shortages have left the area of El Mazmum with almost no drinking water. “About 160,000 people living in El Mazmum and surrounding villages [have been] suffering from thirst” for the past week. An administration leader explained that the root of the problem is “malfunctioning of the main water carrier line from Wad El Nil station,” which has caused many citizens to drink from unclean and unsanitary reservoirs, causing serious health concerns. Meanwhile, their livestock may soon die due to lack of water. In addition, power cuts have left residents in the dark for over six months. On Saturday, amid protests of these conditions, “security forces intervened during vigils in various neighbourhoods, [arresting] dozens of people, among them a number of minors.”

The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC) Fatou Bensouda called for accountability for crimes against humanity in Darfur. She presented a six-month report to the UN Security Council on June 20, asking the Council to play a more active role in the process of bringing the accused perpetrators to justice and to better support her office with cooperation and funding. Bensouda also requested that the suspects be arrested as a step toward justice for the victims. She said that it is “past time” to work together to “ensure full implementation and compliance” with Resolution 1593, which emphasizes the need for reconciliation and truth commissions to reinforce peace efforts.

The UN Security Council is expected to approve cuts to Darfur’s peacekeeping mission, which is tasked with monitoring human rights and publicly reporting on findings in Darfur. The mission is set for renewal by the end of June, but the Security Council is expected to close 14 African Union-United Nations mission sites, limiting the mission’s operation to only 13 sites in the area where the government has been attacking civilians in fighting against opposition groups. Under this new plan, peacekeepers would also no longer carry out patrols in the region, which have been necessary for the security of humanitarian aid groups, and which would limit their ability to monitor and address security and protection concerns.

Central Africa

South Sudan

In a press release this month, it was reported that South Sudan is experiencing the highest level of food shortages the country has ever witnessed. Along with an insurgence of fighting in the country and attacks on aid workers, the lack of food is devastating already food insecure communities. “The UN’s deadly prediction of record numbers of hungry people in South Sudan is already unfolding from what I’m seeing,” said Jan Egeland, Secretary-General of the Norwegian Refugee Council, while visiting South Sudan, a “relentlessly hostile operating environment.” Over 100 aid workers have been killed since December 2013, and “in April alone, there were 80 reports of aid workers prevented from delivering aid. In May NRC was forced to suspend an emergency food distribution in Unity State because of active fighting in the state.”

South Sudan has proposed an increase to its 2018-2019 financial budget by 75 percent, which is set to be approved next week. Although details have not yet been revealed, the cabinet is hoping that the $63 million budget will provide long desired economic reform. Much of the funding will come from the oil industry, which has been a mainstay of the nation’s economy since its independence from Sudan in 2011.

Foreign ministers of Inter-Governmental Authority on Development in Africa (IGAD) member states agreed in a meeting held earlier this month to work to “revive the peace process in South Sudan and urge the parties to the conflict to implement a peace deal brokered by the IGAD in August 2015.” South Sudan President Kiir and opposition leader Riek Machar, who has been under house arrest in South Africa since 2016, and whose sentence has been called into question by several Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) members, met for the first time in two years with the hopes of brokering an agreement. South Sudan, however, ruled out the possibility of Machar rejoining the government, effectively ending the possibility of successful talks.

South Sudan has made strides in eliminating a major source of suffering within their country: Guinea worm, an infection caused by contaminated drinking water. Developing countries like South Sudan, with few sources of potable water, are often massive hotspots for this ailment. Known as the “fiery serpent” because of its debilitating effects, this affliction has received very little international coverage or response because it is not lethal like other widespread diseases such as malaria. Nevertheless, efforts by the Carter Center, including distributing water filters and launching educational campaigns on hygiene, resulted in a 15-month streak of zero reported cases of Guinea worm.

Lt. Gen Lam of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-in-Opposition (SPLM-IO) released 7 aid workers who were captured on the Ugandan border after three weeks of detention. Since 2013, 99 aid workers have been killed in South Sudan. Aid workers play a key role in providing basic nourishment, vaccinations, and other critical services. The International Organization of Migration claims that there are over 5 million people still in need of health care in Sudan, so it is crucial that aid workers have unrestricted access to these populations.

Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)

Fears abound that another Congo war could be in the making as President Joseph Kabila has continued to delay presidential elections since 2016, and is now in his seventh year of a five year term. Elections are now scheduled for December 2018. Late last year, there was massive police and militia violence against protesters who oppose Kabila’s efforts to extend his term. As the Economist reports, “there were protests at Catholic services in Kinshasa, the capital, and 12 other cities. Mr Kabila cracked down hard. Police surrounded 134 churches in Kinshasa alone, beat and tear-gassed churchgoers, and shot live rounds into fleeing congregations. At least eight people died and probably many more. Human Rights Watch reports that bodies were dumped into the Congo river.” In total, around 13.1 million Congolese are in need of humanitarian assistance – twice as many as last year.

Violence has also taken place in rural areas, as rebel groups target civilians in those areas. Over 2 million people fled their homes in 2017, and 4.3 million are now internally displaced. New rebel groups are forming because of distrust of the government, and are often formed along ethnic lines. Old rebel groups are now resurfacing, like the Bundu Dia Kongo, and are once again attacking the Congolese military. In the past year, the country has seen several prison breaks, attacks on cities, and a major insurgency in the Kasai province that has caused thousands of deaths.

In January 2018, a military tribunal investigating massacres in the eastern town of Beni convicted 134 people. These massacres, which killed more than 800 people in one night alone, were originally blamed on Ugandan rebels, but through trial it was discovered that the massacres were in part committed by Congolese army officials, civilians, and local area chiefs. The trial included 249 interviews with perpetrators, witnesses, and victims, and found that Congolese army officials “collaborated with local fighters and, in some cases, soldiers secured the perimeters so that victims could not escape.“ However, during the trials, only one Congolese army official was convicted, receiving a four-year jail term.

Central African Republic (CAR)

The humanitarian crisis in CAR continues to place pressure on the country and the region. The number of refugees has risen to over 582,000 and 1 in 3 children still in the Central African Republic are out of school.

On April 10, MINUSCA, CAR’s UN Peacekeeping mission, clashed with the Séléka coalition, a mainly Muslim rebel group who ousted former President Francois Bozize in 2013, in response to an attack on their forces. 21 people were killed, many of whom were civilians. In response, protesters placed at least 16 of those corpses in front of the UN headquarters in CAR to denounce alleged MINUSCA shootings at civilians. The UN claimed that this action was a form of propaganda and did not fully represent the situation. Violence against peacekeepers is becoming a norm in CAR, where attacks come from both the Séléka coalition and the Anti-balaka, a mainly Christian group who fights against the Séléka.  

The UN Peacekeepers deployed in CAR, many of whom are from Burundi, are under investigation for human rights violations, including unlawful killings and rapes. The MINUSCA mission, which is supposed to protect the civilians of CAR, has faced countless accusations of abuse since the start of its operations in 2014. The UN Department of Peacekeeping has documented 10 formal accusations, but civilians and local activists claim there to be many more.

In May, at least 20 civilians were killed and 90 injured in an attack on a church in the capital city of Bangui by government forces in an attempt to arrest a suspected rebel group member. When the security forces came, a self proclaimed “self defense” group opened fire, escalating the violence and leading to deaths of civilians.

On June 8, the International Criminal Court overturned its war crimes conviction on the DRC’s former vice president Jean-Pierre Bemba who was convicted in 2016 of failing to prevent his militia from commiting crimes in CAR that included rape, murder, and pillaging. This acquittal means that the victims in CAR will lose all hopes of reparations through the ICC, and will have to seek justice at the Special Criminal Court in the Central African Republic, a hybrid tribunal that is expected to launch investigations this year. The new Special Criminal Court is especially important because it is an avenue for victims of human rights violations and attacks to gain justice.

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Charlotte Abin is a rising senior at Gettysburg College, where she studies History and Political Science. She is currently interning at STAND in their D.C office. She is passionate about doing her part in making the world a more accepting place.

Elizabeth Sturley is a rising junior at Amherst College, where she is majoring in Political Science and Law, Jurisprudence, and Social Thought, with a certificate in International Relations. She is a summer intern with STAND in the DC office and is extremely passionate about international human rights and everything related to social justice issues!

BAN 1: Lowered refugee admission to 50,000; suspended the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program for 120 days; suspended entry of Syrian refugees indefinitely; and suspended entry for residents of Iran, Iraq, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen by case-by-case basis. This order was ultimately blocked by a federal appeals court.

When President Donald Trump assumed office in January, he issued Executive Order 13769, titled “Protecting the Nation From Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States,” which became colloquially known as the “Travel Ban,” and the “Muslim Ban,” effectively banning citizens of seven Muslim-majority countries from entering the United States. The Executive Order extended to U.S. permanent residents, foreign visitors and businesspeople alike, and suspended refugee resettlement in its entirety. It also included language that seemed prejudiced to religious minorities, assumingly Christians instead of Muslims. Right away, the move sparked controversy and protests at airports, and volunteers sought to help those detained or turned back upon their arrival into the U.S. Several federal judges opposed the ban, deeming it constitutional, and five states sued the Trump administration on account of the ban. Eventually, after several court cases, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the government had not provided sufficient evidence of possible threats posed by travelers from the Trump administration’s list of threatening countries.

In light of the legal critiques and mass protest, the Trump administration has been adjusting the ban to comply with federal courts challenges and recommendations. There have been numerous arguments regarding the constitutionality of such a ban, but a prominent one is that it violates of the First Amendment under the Free Exercise Clause as it is specifically aimed toward Muslim countries and that it is a manifestation of the anti-Muslim rhetoric that was a core component of Trump’s presidential campaign.

BAN 2:  Iraqi citizens were removed from the Executive Order; For the first 90 days after the signing of the order, foreign nationals from Sudan, Syria, Somalia, Iran, and Yemen could not travel to the U.S without a visa, but green card holders and students with valid visas were excepted; the indefinite ban on Syrian refugees was removed; the clause excepting refugees from religious minority groups was removed; and a 10-day instead of immediate-effect policy was put in place.

President Trump revised the January ban on March 6, excluding Iraq from the previous list of Muslim-majority countries. The ban was virtually the same, only removing Iraq as a preemptive tactic because Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, “feared it [the travel ban] would hamper coordination to defeat the Islamic State.” For years, Iraqi citizens aided the U.S. during their occupation in the country, placing their lives, and the lives of family members, at risk. A U.S. Embassy official in Baghdad stated, “The U.S. government has determined that it is in the national interest to allow Iraqi Special Immigrant Visa (S.I.V.) holders to continue to travel to the United States.” Additionally, it replaced the complete halt to Syrian refugee entry with a 120-day freeze, exempted permanent residents and visa holders, and dropped language offering preferential status to persecuted religious minorities, namingly Christians.

Ban 3: Restrictions against Sudan were lifted; restrictions were maintained, modified, or eased for Libya, Iran, Syria, Somalia, and Yemen; restrictions and additional vetting were added for Chad, North Korea, and Venezuela.

In late September, the Supreme Court announced that it would not hear the oral arguments from the second travel ban scheduled for October 10, but would accept briefs from both sides on October 5. While the second ban temporarily limited travel for 90 days, the third ban was indefinite and conditions-based rather than time-based. The new restrictions included 8 countries, removing Sudan and adding Chad, Venezuela, and North Korea, with restrictions differing by country and taking effect October 18. Despite the administration’s attempt to justify travel restrictions without emphasizing religion, ACLU director Anthony Romero stated that 6 out of the 8 countries are still Muslim-majority, and that the addition of a ban on North Korea, which has few visitors to the U.S. already, and some government officials from Venezuela do not obfuscate the anti-Muslim goals of the ban.

The third ban was challenged by judges from Hawaii, Maryland, and Washington, D.C. before it could take effect. Maryland district court judge Theodore Chuang persistently pressed Justice Department attorney Hashim Mooppan regarding the classified Department of Homeland Security report that ‘justified’ the third travel ban, to which the DOJ attorney never answered. The district court judge of Hawaii, Derrick K. Watson, blocked the administration from enforcing the ban against any of the seven major Muslim countries and asked the Trump administration to produce the DHS report used to justify the national security act – the administration refused his request and did not produce the report for the court.  

BAN 4: Ended the 120-day suspension of refugee processing; called for 90-day review of the program for 11 high-risk, unnamed countries; placed a hold on family reunification process for some refugees resettled in U.S.

On October 24, President Trump issued an executive order titled “Presidential Executive Order on Resuming the United States Refugee Admissions Program with Enhanced Vetting Capabilities,”  to, as stated, “enhance the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program’s (USRAP) vetting capabilities.” The order directly targets refugees, stating that they pose different security risks than foreign nationals who apply for immigrant or nonimmigrant visas and suspends refugee travel to the U.S. and current applications for resettlement. It calls for a 90-day review of the program for 11 unspecified nations that are supposedly high risk. On November 13, a federal court gave Trump “temporary permission to proceed with part of of the third version of his travel ban policy, but it created an exemption from the new restrictions for foreigners with U.S. ties.” This move, a partial win for the Trump administration, is similar to the Supreme Court’s permission of an earlier version of the travel ban which excepted those with a ‘bona fide relationship’ to someone in the U.S.

In addition to the ban’s constitutionality, questions have been raised regarding humanitarian impact. Ongoing conflict and atrocities in many of the targeted countries have resulted in increased numbers of internally displaced persons (IDPs). Refugee and IDP camps are often overpopulated, and food rations are split among great numbers of people. Moreover, there are many people in critical medical condition who seek treatment in the United States, but cannot be treated because they are banned. The humanitarian aid community has repeatedly said that the ban undermines existing United States efforts to aid victims of atrocities and conflict in the listed countries. Additionally, the most recent iteration of the ban completely grinds the refugee resettlement program to a halt, leaving time-sensitive checks to run out for those in the process of resettlement, requiring them to restart the long and arduous process.

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Rujjares Hansapiromchok is a senior at California State University, Northridge, double majoring in Political Science and Religious Studies, with a minor in African Studies. She is currently a team member of the Communications Task Force for STAND, after learning about STAND  during her internship at Jewish World Watch in Los Angeles. She is passionate about genocide and mass atrocities prevention and hopes to work in the field of peace and conflict resolution in the future.

The Rohingya, an ethnic Muslim minority who have been described by the United Nations as “the most friendless people in the world,” have been denied basic human rights in Burma for decades. Although they have lived in the region for centuries, they lost their citizenship with the passage of the Burma Citizenship Law in 1982 and many in Burma characterize them as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh. Denied basic human rights such as healthcare and education, they have been forced into what have been described as “modern day concentration camps” by the Burmese military and Buddhist extremists and have often suffered from communal violence. These grievances have motivated many young Rohingya men to join the insurgency.

Unfortunately, this insurgency has prompted a furious response by the Burmese military. Indiscriminately targeting civilians along with various vigilante groups, government soldiers have pursued a scorched-earth campaign, burning thousands of shops, businesses, and homes to the ground and murdering at least 1,000 Rohingya civilians. Witnesses have told horrific stories of children being beheaded and civilians being burned alive. The violence against the Rohingya has fueled fury in numerous Muslim-majority countries. Hundreds of protesters have rallied in Jakarta to urge the government of Indonesia to suspend trade with Burma. The Republic of Maldives has already taken this step and has also called for an investigation by the United Nations into human rights violations committed against the Rohingya in Burma. Iran has referred to the situation in Burma as “ethnic cleansing” while Turkey even went so far as to refer to it as “genocide.”

Both Pope Francis and Malala Yousafzai, who won the Nobel Peace Prize two years after being shot by the Taliban for promoting education for women in Pakistan, have also condemned the violence. Yousafzai has been particularly critical of fellow Nobel Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, the de facto leader of Burma, for her silence on the human rights abuses being committed by the Burmese military. Some have even demanded that the Nobel Committee revoke her prize. Defenders of Suu Kyi point out that she was once imprisoned by the military junta that formerly ruled Burma, suggesting that she does not possess an unlimited ability to control the military. Most, however, believe that she is one of the few leaders in Burma with the mass appeal necessary to decrease the violence.

In the week and a half since this onslaught began, at least 120,000 citizens have fled Rakhine State for Bangladesh. Another 400,000 are estimated to be trapped in western Burma. Many refugees have died in their attempt to escape Burma and those who do arrive safely are hungry, weak, and sick. Refugee camps are quickly becoming overcrowded and Burma is continuing to block aid agencies from delivering food, water, and medicine to the beleaguered Rohingya. As long as violence continues, the regional consequences of the conflict in Burma will only grow more severe.

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Justin Cole is the Policy Coordinator for STAND: The Student-Led Movement to End Mass Atrocities, and a senior at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where he is currently earning his degree in economics and peace, war, and defense.

June 20 is a day to come together and commemorate the strength and resilience that refugees possess and continue to exhibit despite the hindrances in their lives. On December 4, 2000, the UN named June 20 World Refugee Day in celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of the 1951 UN Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees.

The 1951 Convention not only defined the term “refugee”, but also outlined the rights of displaced people and the legal obligations of states to protect those displaced by conflict. The UN High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) serves as the institution that defends these protocols and guidelines, protecting and aiding refugees at the request of governments and the UN, and assisting in voluntary repatriation and resettlement efforts for refugee populations around the world.

Although today is called World Refugee Day, there are varying terms to describe displaced people. The Canadian organization Humanitarian Coalition defines a refugee as a person who is outside their country of nationality “owing to a well-rounded fear of being persecuted.” Once deemed a refugee, a person is entitled to the protections outlined in the Refugee Convention, including international protection and assistance. Despite that presumed security, there are many pitfalls and flaws that vary country to country, depending on inequities among refugees from different nationalities, outdated qualities of the 1951 Convention, and the evident struggles of simply moving to a new country with the ‘refugee’ stigma. An internally displaced person (often called IDP for short) is someone who has fled their home but has not left their country of origin. In 2015, there were around 38.2 million people who, after being forced out of their homes, met this definition. Asylum seekers are individuals who are seeking protection as a refugee but have not yet been legally granted refugee status. Without refugee-specific protections, they may be forced to return to their country, where persecution awaits them. Finally, stateless people are those who are not considered nationals of any state. The UNHCR estimates about 10 million people worldwide are stateless due to discrimination by other groups, flaws in nationality laws, and differences in country borders.

Last year, the United Nations created a #WithRefugees petition to garner support of refugees and encourage governments to do their part in protecting and assisting our world’s refugees. As European countries and other states such as Lebanon, Jordan, and Turkey are inundated with refugees they do not have the capacity to fully support, we call on other governments, such as the United States, to do their part to alleviate the crisis – by supporting refugees in the region, accepting more refugees into the U.S., and by investing in conflict mitigation and prevention efforts to prevent future refugee crises from occurring.

Here are three ways you can take action for World Refugee Day:

1. Sign the #WithRefugees petition.
2. Call your Senators and Representatives and express the need for them to support U.S. refugee resettlement.
     
3. Attend an event near you! Look at this map to find your closest community event.

In order to send a message to the Trump Administration that we, as Americans, support refugees and resettlement programs in the U.S., we are co-sponsoring a rally at the White House today. Our message is clear – “No hate. No fear. Refugees are welcome here.” By standing with a variety of allies, from faith communities to business leaders, advocacy groups to individual committed citizens, we will urge the President and Congress to commit to resettling 75,000 refugees in 2018. Please join us, or participate in an event near you, to stand with our refugees and make a message.

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Ashley Morefield is a rising senior at Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. She majors in International Studies with a concentration in Sub-Saharan Africa and French & Francophone Studies. After spending a year studying abroad in Toulouse, France, she’s excited to intern at STAND’s office in Washington, D.C. this summer.

Featured Image: (c) Wikipedia. 2013.

This week’s update focuses on failing peace talks in South Sudan and Burundi; hunger and famine in South Sudan and Nigeria; the proposed halt to the US conflict minerals rule, which will affect progress made on armed group funding, supply chain transparency, and money laundering; renewed fighting in the Central African Republic; and protests against Nigerian president Muhammadu Buhari.

South Sudan

On February 7, The Sudan Tribune published a report that two women have died from starvation in South Sudan’s Eastern Equatoria state. The incident reflects the food security difficulties that South Sudan is currently facing.

Since South Sudan’s controversial 2015 peace deal has created controversy because it requests that rebels who fought the administration of President Salva Kiir return to Juba, the capital city of South Sudan. The peace deal was administered by the former Botswana president Festus Mogae, who serves in the Joint Evaluation and Monitoring Commission (JMEC). Mogae reportedly said to the BBC that former Vice President Riek Machar should not return to Juba. These comments have raised the concerns of human rights experts who believe that Mogae’s remarks show favoritism toward the government of South Sudan. As the administrator of the peace deal, Mogae should not show favoritism to either side.

On February 17, South Sudanese minister of Labor Lieutenant General Gabriel Duop Lam joined the side of the rebels, marking the second high-level resignation this week from the government. The defection was confirmed at a news conference in Juba on Friday.

On the same day, a senior UN human rights official called for the need for accountability for “those committing atrocity crimes in conflict-torn South Sudan.” UN Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights, Andrew Gilmour said, “This is a war that has been waged against the men, women and children of South Sudan, and the only way of ending this onslaught will be when the perpetrators face consequences for what they’re doing.” Mr. Gilmour travelled to the country last month, where he observed the devastation and human rights abuses suffered by civilians. Gilmour went on to emphasize his frustrations with the limited access available to the UN Mission to South Sudan, whose mission is to protect and provide humanitarian assistance to civilians.

Great Lakes Region of Africa

Burundi

Peace dialogue in Burundi is crumbling as the government continues to refuse to participate. The Burundian government’s refusal to participate lies in the invitation of groups who they do not consider peaceful stakeholders. Meanwhile, the National Council for the Respect of the Arusha Accord (CNARED), an opposition group predominantly in exile, complained that Benjamin Mkapa, former president of Tanzania and mediator of the talks, was not including all invested groups in the dialogue and was therefore failing to represent the views of the Burundian people. In an attempt to satisfy CNARED’s concerns, Mkapa agreed to allow individuals accused of participating in a 2015 coup attempt to participate in the discussion. This decision spurred the Burundian government’s refusal to continue the peace talks, leading many in the region to doubt that the dialogue will see any success. The talks were scheduled to run from February 16 to 18, but the Burundian government refused to send representatives.

The government in Burundi maintains that the political crisis has ended and that Burundi is now a safe country, issuing a call for refugees to return home. The response from surrounding countries has been hesitant at best. In Uganda, contradictory statements have been made regarding the return of refugees to Burundi. The Minister for Disaster Preparedness Hillary Onek said that refugees would receive a three-month extension if they desired to stay, but the minister’s deputy Musa Ecweru claimed that the laws regarding refugees require that their return be voluntary. The Commissioner for Refugees of the Office of the Prime Minister, Mr. Kazungu Apollo, released a clarification that Uganda will support Burundians seeking asylum until they feel it is unsafe for them to return home.

The UN peacekeepers Burundi has sent to other countries, especially Somalia, have provided a source of financial support to the country’s defense department. The continued use of Burundian peacekeepers has raised concerns that the UN is indirectly funding repression in Burundi. Though the European Union pays the Burundian soldiers’ salaries, it has requested that the African Union find a way to pay Burundian peacekeepers without passing through Burundian banks.  

Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)

Although pressure has been applied to the Congolese government to hold elections in 2017, the budget minister claimed on February 15 that “it would be difficult to gather the necessary $1.8 billion” for the election. The minister, Pierre Kangudia, claims that the government does not have the money to host elections in 2017 come just twelve days after the death of opposition leader Etienne Tshisekedi. Tshisekedi was expected to lead a transitional government with the current President Kabila until elections could be held later this year. His death, along with the statements from the budget minister, have led to a renewed uncertainty about the future of democracy in DRC. The minister also stated that “we have to fill the holes before we can even put anything in it [the treasury],” a reference to the corruption present in the country.

Meanwhile, President Trump re-ignited a conversation about conflict minerals and the Dodd-Frank law in the United States when a directive was leaked that would temporarily suspend the Dodd-Frank law for two years. The executive order declared that the secretary of the treasury would “review regulations on financial institutions and report back specific recommendations.” The Dodd-Frank act requires US firms to “declare where they’re sourcing their gold, tin, and other minerals, often used in consumer electronics.” Removing this piece of legislation, or even simply suspending it, could lead to a resurgence in investment in conflict minerals: gold, tin, tungsten, and tantalum. In eastern Congo, armed rebel groups sell these resources to fund violent activities, and this policy change opens the possibility of a backslide in improvements made in responsible sourcing practices in the past few years.

Violence between the government and various militias in the DRC continues. Over a five-day span from February 9 to February 13, soldiers killed at least 101 people in an altercation with the Kamwina Nsapu group in central Congo. UN human rights spokesperson Liz Throssell accused the troops of “firing indiscriminately” and using “excessive and disproportionate” force to handle the situation. The deaths of 39 women in this altercation support the accusation. The UN peacekeeping mission in the DRC also stated that the Kamwina Nsapu group had “committed violent atrocities and used child soldiers.”

Major armed groups active in the eastern DRC include the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), which also carries out abuses in the Central African Republic, the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), comprised predominantly of Rwandan Hutu linked to the 1994 genocide, the Forces for Patriotic Resistance in Ituri (FRPI), which is responsible for various abuses against civilians, local Mai-Mai community-based militias, and the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), an armed Ugandan group that has bases in eastern Congo.

Central and West Africa

Central African Republic (CAR)

In the last three weeks, the Central African Republic (CAR) has seen a resurgence of violence perpetrated by armed groups. On February 7, rebels killed at least five civilians after the Central African army, with support from UN peacekeepers, killed Youssouf Malinga, also known as “Big Man,” a leader of a local Muslim militia group, during an operation. Additionally, over two dozen were wounded, and two churches and a school were destroyed. Just four days earlier, a clash between two armed groups in Bocaranga killed civilians and compelled thousands to flee to nearby forests.

Much of this violence continues because of its political and economic expediency. Warlords continue to exploit religious tensions in the country to gain popular support and strengthen their political bargaining power, thus increasing their chances of earning a government position. Because the judicial system has been unwilling or unable to prosecute these individuals for their crimes, a culture of impunity has been created, encouraging such behavior. In fact, the idea of blanket amnesty for war crimes recently arose while President Faustin-Archange Touadéra was meeting with the leaders of several armed groups. Beyond political rewards, the revenue that armed groups obtain from natural resource extraction further incentivizes them to continue to perpetuate violence. This may be exacerbated if President Donald Trump follows through on a proposal that would suspend federal rules on conflict minerals. Members of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) say that this policy could lead to “the resurgence of armed groups controlling and exploiting minerals. This might ultimately lead to a generalised proliferation of terrorist groups, trans-boundary money laundry and illicit financial flows in the region.”

Much of the future of CAR depends on action taken by the international community. On February 15, the Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Hervé Ladsous warned the international community not to turn away from the country, as armed groups remain a grave threat. As such, the peacekeeping force in the country has changed its deployment to more effectively protect the country. Regional organizations have also gotten involved, with the African Union, the Economic Community of Central African States, and the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region launching a joint-initiative for a national peace and reconciliation agreement. Only concerted international attention will allow this lengthy conflict and humanitarian crisis to cease.

Nigeria

According to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), at least half a million children under the age of five in northeastern Nigeria will suffer from severe acute malnutrition during this upcoming year, leading up to twenty percent of them to die, unless more aid is given. At least fourteen million require some type of humanitarian assistance. The hunger crisis in the northeast is caused primarily by Boko Haram, whose attacks have displaced millions of farmers, significantly reducing their ability to farm. The man-made famine is the first in over a decade. Donor countries from 14 countries pledged to scale up funding for vulnerable groups threatened by famine at the Oslo conference last month.

Thousands of Nigerians are expressing their grievances at the present humanitarian situation by protesting the government of Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari. Although much of Boko Haram has been defeated, citizens believe Buhari has failed in his other responsibilities related to eliminating corruption, bolstering the education system, and promoting economic growth. In particular, the economy has suffered under Buhari with plummeting exchange rates and virtually non-existent foreign direct investment. Anger is exacerbated by Buhari’s decision to receive medical treatment outside of the country, attesting to his lack of trust in local healthcare. Concern for the president’s health—and questions about whether it may be worse than government officials are saying—is putting further pressure on the government and raising concerns about the continued functioning of the political system.

Both Boko Haram and other militants in the Niger Delta continue to pose a problem in Nigeria. Seven suicide bombers, six of whom were women, launched an attack in Maiduguri on February 16. Though there were no civilian casualties during this attack, such attacks continue to occur with regularity around the country. Horrifically, Boko Haram is now deploying children as young as nine, who are able to get through security checkpoints more easily. The petroleum minister of Nigeria also recently announced that armed groups in the Niger Delta cost the  country between $50 and $100 billion in oil revenue as it was forced to cut back production by nearly two hundred thousand barrels per day. Although a detailed plan has recently been released to end the insurgency through development of infrastructure and social institutions, it remains to be seen whether Nigeria will have the financial or technical capacity to effectively do the job.

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Justin Cole is STAND’s Central and West Africa Coordinator. He is a Junior at UNC Chapel Hill where he majors in Economics and Peace, War, and Defense.

Elizabeth Westbrook is STAND’s Great Lakes of Africa Coordinator. She is a Junior at UNC Chapel Hill where she is a Political Science major.

Joanna Liang is STAND’s Sudan and South Sudan Coordinator. She is a Junior at the University of Delaware where she majors in History Education.

Jason Qu is STAND’s Emerging Conflicts Coordinator, focusing today on Nigeria. He is a Senior at Bronx High School of Science.

Though it is in our self-interest to offer support for refugees, the U.S. is actually taking in far fewer refugees than many other countries. In 2015, Hungary received 1,800 asylum applications per 100,000 of its residents. Sweden received 1,667 per 100,000, Germany 590, the UK 60, and the European countries (the EU-28 plus Norway and Switzerland) on average have received 250. In comparison, the U.S. accepted 70,000 refugees in 2015, which only amounts to about 0.02% of the population, or 22 refugees per 100,000 U.S. citizens. Turkey and Lebanon have both taken in millions of Syrian refugees. Historically, refugees have revitalized American communities and contributed to economic growth. From grandparents of one of the authors of this post, to Secretaries of State, to invaluable thinkers, artists, and innovators such as Albert Einstein, Béla Bartók, and Marc Chagall, refugees have left a lasting legacy on the U.S.

With our values reaffirmed and these key facts brought to the forefront of our minds, we welcome President Obama’s decision to accept at least 30,000 more refugees over the next two years. However, critical work remains. The U.S. should look to take in even more refugees, but it also must increase funding for the refugees it has already accepted. In 1980, the US offered resettlement support to refugees over a period of 36 months; today, the U.S. has whittled down this critical lifeline of assistance to a meager 8 months. Despite increasing the number of refugees the U.S. will accept, Congress has not approved a corresponding increase in funding to provide thousands of people with the support they will require.

In addition, anti-refugee groups have reacted to Obama’s announcement by pressuring Congress to block the entry of refugees with increased vigor. These groups argue refugees pose a serious security threat even though they undergo the world’s most extensive and heavily-scrutinized screening process. These desperate, alarmist claims hint at the irrational, xenophobic sentiment underlying much refugee opposition. They also echo of some of the darkest moments in American history. In 1939, when asked whether the U.S. should accept 10,000 mostly Jewish children fleeing Nazi Germany, 61% of Americans said no.

It’s time to STAND up to anti-refugee groups. We must tell Congress to provide full support for refugees. The U.S. is right to increase the number of refugees it admits, but it must also increase the amount of funding it devotes to refugees once they arrive. This funding will provide crucial assistance to refugees as they struggle to find homes, learn English, and integrate into a new life in a foreign country. Increased funding is also a smart investment in America’s prosperity. Refugees fleeing from desperate situations are motivated and talented, but the longer they struggle to learn English or find a job, the longer it will take for them to contribute to their newfound home. Just as we have seen time and time again in studies on education, high-quality investments early on yield enormous benefits further down the line. Merely accepting refugees into our border is not enough; full-fledged efforts to support integration will help lift the whole country to greater heights later on. For their sake and ours, we refuse to allow Congress to let refugees hang out to dry.

Join us in calling on Congress to support refugees! Call the numbers on the graphic below and use or adapt our script.

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Timmy Hirschel-Burns is a senior at Swarthmore College majoring in Political Science and is STAND’s Policy Coordinator. You can follow him on Twitter @TimH_B.

Elisabeth Huh is STAND’s Communications Coordinator and is a senior at the University of Chicago. You can follow her on Twitter @elisabethhuh.

Savannah Wooten serves as STAND’s Student Director. She is majoring in Public Policy and Peace, War, and Defense at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Duke University through the Robertson Scholars Leadership Program. You can follow her on Twitter @SavannahEWooten.