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Colombia Situation – Regional Overview (Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela, Panamá and Costa Rica)

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Colombia Situation – Regional Overview (Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela, Panamá and Costa Rica) Colombia Situation – Regional Overview (Colombia, Ecuador, Venezuela, Panamá and Costa Rica) 1. Background During the last decade, the aggravation of the humanitarian situation in Colombia has left more than three million people displaced within the country - according to the Government’s register - and hundreds of thousands seeking asylum in countries within the region. In this context, the only way to addr ess this complex humanitarian situation proved to be the development of a comprehensive regional approach. Therefore, UNHCR adopted the concept of “Colombia Situation”, with the objective of promoting a collaborative response to internal displacement in Co lombia and, at the same time, ensuring the international protection of refugees. The “Colombia Situation”, covers the main neighbouring countries hosting refugees, namely Ecuador, Costa Rica, Panama, and Venezuela. Nonetheless, other country operations, su ch as Brazil, Chile and Peru, also maintain a close link with the region, due to the increased number of Colombian refugees. Regional Programs All countries of the Colombia situation are party of The Mexico Plan of Action was signed in November 2004 by 20 the 1951 Refugee Convention and its 1967 Protocol. countries, who committed themselves to strengthening refugee Colombia and Ecuador hav e also included in their protection and implementing an integrated approach to durable internal regulations, the regional refugee definition solutions. In the framework of this Plan, UNHCR implements in the proposed by the 1984 Cartagena Declaration. In line countries involved within the Colombia situation, three programs addressed to a) urban displacement, b) protection in the sensitive with Mexico Plan of Action, the main goal is to find common solutions to the problems of asylum and border areas and c) resettlement, in close coordination with local forced internal displacement, through promoting authorities. solidarity between people and countries for the construction of a peaceful and stable future. The “Cities of Solidarity” program aims at the vast majority of refugees effective integration through self-reliance by promoting access to In addition UNHCR is s trengthening partnerships to employment and housing as well as income generating projects and cope with situations of mixe d migration and their free and fair access to the labor market. statelessness as t he region is receiving an increasing number of asylum seekers, often mixed with Instead, the “Borders of Solidarity ” program strives to assist both economic migrants, especially from the Horn of refugees and local host communities in border areas to coexist. Africa and the Middle East, posing new challenges Integration is promoted by linking refugee assistance to national and to some already fragile asylum systems. In fulfilling regional development plans, with benefit for both refugees and host its mandate throughout the region, UNHCR works communities. closely with Governmental and State and national NGOs, faith-based organizations and other UN Meanwhile, “Resettlement in Solidarity ” is a regional responsibility- agencies or international organizations as well as sharing program destined to benefit a limited number of refugees who face high protection risks in their current countries of asylum. In 2009, with the private sector authorit ies, international. About 250 UNHCR staff currently work in 25 offices 614 Colombians were resettled from Ecuador to other Latin American in the region. countries. Página 1 Colombia Situation – Regional Overview 2. Beneficiary populations Colombian persons of concern in the region Refugees There are now more than 115,000 refugees and asylum seekers in Refugees Asylum Total neighboring countries, most of them Colombian nationals. Seekers However, this figure represents only a small fraction of the Ecuador 44,380 42,469 86,849 Colombians who have fled their country due to violence and Costa 10,199 377 10,576 violations of their human rights. Surveys revealed that there are Rica between 250,000 and 300,000 Colombians living in refugee-like Panama 1,299 537 1,836 situation in the Colombia situation countries. In Ecuador, after Venezuela 1,244 14,223 15,467 the implementation of the Enhanced Registration Project, more Brazil 605 38 643 than 27,740 Colombian refugees living in remote areas in the 57,727 57,644 115,371 Total North of the co untry were recognized as refugees and received identification documents. This project was an innovative Data as at December 2009 initiative and a unique experience for Latin America. Colombians Note: according to surveys carried out in the region, the have also fled to other countries of the region, such as Panama, Colombian population in refugee like situation amounts to Costa Rica and, most r ecently, the remote Amazon region of approximatelly 70,000 in Ecuador and 200,000 in Venezuela. Brazil and Chile. It is important to mention that in 2009 alone, some 13,000 asylum seekers requested asylum in the region. Resettled Colombian refugees This represents an increase of 40% comparing with the number UNHCR uses Resettlement from the Americas primarily as a of new arrivals in 2008. protection tool and durable solution. It seeks also to use it as a responsibility-sharing mechanism to alleviate pressure on Colombians who are registered as refugees and asylum-seekers asylum countries. Cases are submitted to both traditional and generally benefit from the same access to public health and regional emerging resettlement countries, as encouraged by the education services as local populations. However, without Mexico Plan of Action. The Office supports cases of official registration and documentation, most of them face resettlement of Colombian refugees to third countries from serious hurdles in access ing basic services and finding work. Up Ecuador (4,048 up to December 2009), Costa Rica (1,341), and to 70% of this population lives below the poverty line and only more ocassionally from Venezuela and Panama. Five countries one in three has found formal employment. (alphabetically Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay) are part of the Solidarity Resettlement Programme, receiving up Internally displaced to 250 refugees from the region per year. During the last four years the number of displaced persons has increased by one million in Colombia. Most displaced persons Returnees move individually, although during the last years there have UNHCR has focused on the implementation of a comprehensive been massive displacements from border departments as well. protection response including the prevention of further Generally, the pattern of displacement has been from rural displacements and the support for local integration in areas areas to urban centers even if displacement occurring within hosting IDPs. Recently the Colombian Government has launched urban limits or between cities is increasingly reported. Forced an ambitious return programme called “Retornar es Vivir” displacement significantly hurts family incomes and leads to whose goal is to facilitate the return of 120,000 displaced high rates of poverty. Some 43% of displaced families have persons to 115 towns across the country. So far, unstable single women as head of household and the situation is security conditions, difficulties in access to the land, and limited particularly precarious for adol escents, with reports of child opportunities for income generation have impeded more forced recruitment by irregular groups in several zones of the progress in this area. UNHCR is monitoring a sample of returns country. Ethnic minorities have also been disproportionately in order to identify risk factor and make recommendations to affected by the conflict: Colombia’s more than 84 indigenous the Government. groups make up for only two per cent of the total population, but represents a much larger part of the displaced population. Regarding voluntary repatriation from neighboring countries, In 2009, UNHCR had 572,000 direct beneficiaries of its programs UNHCR policy has consisted in facilitating individual repatriation in Colombia, in most cases women, children, indigenous and of refugees, whenever conditions are met in terms of access to Afro-Colombians are targeted for especial effort s and information, safety and dignity. So far, only some individual differential approach. cases opted for voluntary repatriation. Página 2 Colombia Situation – Regional Overview 3. What we do at regional level UNHCR’s overarching goal in the Colombia Situation is to Colombia Situation Structure promote a collaborative and comprehensive response to As far as human resources are concerned, about 250 internal displacement in Colombia, maximising the UNHCR staff currently work in 25 offices in the region, protection space available for refugees in the region and according to the following distribution: IDPs as well as promoting durable solutions . UNHCR focuses throughout the region on the following main issues: Staff Colombia Asylum Colombia countries Situation - Strengthen the asylum regime to effectively protect all those who are in a refugee like situation. International 17 23 40 National 89 70 159 - In close collaboration with national actors, UNV 47 11 58 maximise the protection space where refugees are JPO 4 35 39 able to exercise their rights: sustainability of return and relocation processes; Others 0 2 2 Total 157 94 251 - Refugees provided with proper identity documents, certifying their legal status and entitling them to fundamental rights: improve reliability of the
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