U.N. Estimates More than 21 Million Refugees in 2000 

Xinhua News Agency 11may02

mindfully.org note: The rapid globalization that has been so good for transnational corporations isn't so good for these 21 million people all over the world.

10 million households in the US are food insecure. 
Globalization certainly hasn't been helping them either
Most would agree that the US has the best food supply in the world. Many people might also assume that hunger and malnutrition are not a problem in the US. However, about 10 million US households, or nearly 10%, are food insecure. Food insecurity is defined as limited or uncertain availability of nutritionally adequate and safe foods or limited or uncertain ability to acquire acceptable foods in socially acceptable ways. Hunger is found in 3.5% of US households. Hunger is defined as the uneasy or painful sensation caused by a lack of food. 

Nord, M., Jemison, K., Bickel, G. Measuring Food Security in the United States. Prevalence of Food Insecurity and Hunger, by State, 1996-98. Economic Research Service, USDA 12mar01

Belluck, P. New Wave of the Homeless Floods Cities' Shelters. New York Times 18dec01

UNITED NATIONS -- Refugees, asylum seekers and others under concern of the U.N. refugee agency stood at approximately 21.1 million in the year 2000, according to U.N. statistics.

New statistics released Friday by the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) show that Pakistan saw the largest increase in refugee population over the past year, due to the influx of an additional 800,000 Afghans. Globally, Afghans constitute UNHCR's largest caseload, with an estimated 3.6 million people, or 30 percent of the world's refugee population.

The second largest group, according to the statistics, is comprised of civilians from Burundi, 567,000 of whom are living in Tanzania. Iraqis make up the third largest refugee population, with 497,400 living in Iran.

On the whole, Asia leads with nearly 8.5 million people "of concern" to the agency, which counts not only refugees and asylum seekers but also internally displaced persons who UNHCR cares for under special arrangements. Europe has 5.6 million and Africa 5.3 million.

In releasing the statistics, the agency stressed that they "should be considered provisional and subject to change." UNHCR added, however, that it did not expect the final count, to be released in July, to "differ much" from today's figures.

Half of the refugees in the world are children under 18 years

The Post (Zambia) 10may02

ALMOST half of the 21 million refugees in the world are children under the age of 18, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Ruud Lubbers said yesterday.

Speaking during the UN Special Session of the General Assembly on Children, Lubbers said these children deserved special attention. "They are often exposed to armed conflict and lack of access to food, water, shelter and basic health care," he said.

Lubbers said the children were often separated from their families during flight and sometimes subjected to sexual abuse and violence. "They are vulnerable to manipulation and forced military recruitment and they are often exposed to HIV/AIDS.

Their education is often disrupted at a crucial stage in their development," he said. Lubbers said all refugee children had a few over-arching dreams in common which include enough food and other basic assistance, a secure environment, reunification with their families, access to education, sports and help to become self-reliant through skills training.

"Refugee children are often separated from their parents during flight. They often find themselves having to look after younger siblings all by themselves," he said. Lubbers said tracing and family reunification of unaccompanied and separated children has been a continuous priority activity for UNHCR.

"One positive example is in the Great Lakes Region of Africa, where close inter-agency collaboration resulted in the reunification of some 62,000 Rwandan children between 1994 and 1998. But much work needs to be done to address the needs of unaccompanied and separated children," he said.

Lubbers said a renewed commitment from countries around the world was needed, to ensure that children had access to asylum procedures and that they were assisted by legal representatives.

He said protection against detention needed to be addressed as thousands of unaccompanied children found themselves detained in facilities alongside common criminals. He said leaders had a collective responsibility to address the underlying root causes that increase the susceptibility of refugee children to abuse. Lubbers said children were the mirror to the future.

"However, if all they know is deprivation, violence and exploitation, it is unlikely that they will contribute to the development of stable, just and productive societies in the future.

If, we are able to ensure that they live in environments where they are physically and economically secure, where they are not at risk of being exploited, and where they have access to health care, education and other opportunities, they become valuable citizens of our world," he said.

Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media. (allafrica.com)

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