About the Author: Margaret Pollack serves as Senior Advisor on Population Issues in the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration.

Today, on the first International Day of the Girl Child, it’s important to remember some of the most vulnerable girls in the world — those living in post-conflict or other humanitarian settings. The special vulnerabilities of young women and girls — to early marriage, unplanned pregnancies, gender-based violence and abuse — can all be exacerbated when the normal protections of organized societies break down during times of conflict or crisis. Humanitarians have a special responsibility to meet the needs of these girls, and the United States is working with our international and non-governmental organization partners to ensure those most in need of protection are not forgotten.

Our humanitarian assistance — including the provision of health, shelter, nutrition, and water and sanitation programs — supports the community, the family, and through this the whole child.… more »

About the Author: Anne C. Richard serves as Assistant Secretary of State for Population, Refugees, and Migration.

I recently spent time in Istanbul to learn about some of the people who have sought refuge in Turkey. My day started with refugee families headed to America in the near future, followed by a meeting with UNHCR to discuss the plight of thousands of refugees living in Turkey but, for one reason or another, are struggling.

At the Resettlement Support Center run by the International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC), one of our partners, I saw refugees from several countries being interviewed by ICMC staff about their experiences. These preliminary interviews are an important step in preparing refugees for the in-depth process run by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Interpreters and ICMC staff were very busy working with refugees from Iraq, a woman… more »

Media Note
Office of the Spokesperson
Washington, DC
July 26, 2012

Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration Anne C. Richard will travel to Burkina Faso and Geneva, July 29- August 4, 2012. During the visit, Assistant Secretary Richard will join UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Antonio Guterres to review the situation of refugees from the crisis in Mali, which is taking place within the broader Sahel food insecurity emergency.

Since January of this year, conflict and insecurity in Mali have generated more than 260,000 Malian refugees; an additional 155,000 Malians are estimated to be internally displaced.

On July 12, 2012, President Obama authorized the use of up to $10 million from the Emergency Refugee and Migration Assistance Fund to respond to the unexpected and urgent refugee and migration needs resulting from the conflict in northern Mali. The emergency funds will be used to support the efforts of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to provide life-saving protection and assistance to those fleeing the conflict. This brings U.S. support for the Malian refugee aspect of the Sahel crisis to more than $30 million, and brings total U.S. assistance being provided for the broader Sahel humanitarian emergency to nearly $350 million in FY 2012. MORE.

Notice to the Press
Office of the Spokesperson
Washington, DC
July 20, 2012

On Tuesday, July 24, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton will deliver the keynote address at “Imagine the Unimaginable: A Symposium on Ending Genocide in the 21st Century” presented by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, in cooperation with the Council on Foreign Relations and CNN. The symposium will explore the challenges of preventing genocide in the 21st Century.

Symposium participants will include senior leaders from government, think tanks, business, academia, philanthropy, and the genocide prevention field, as well as the next generation of young leaders. Topics will include how emerging global trends such as economic uncertainty, political upheaval, resource scarcity, population migration, new technologies, and other factors could impact at-risk populations, and will explore innovative strategies for genocide prevention and response.

The Museum will also unveil the results of a large-scale public opinion poll that will provide new insight into Americans’ attitudes towards genocide and prevention, including their perspectives on whether and how the U.S. should engage in recent situations such as Syria and Sudan. MORE.

About the Author: Elizabeth Campbell serves as the Senior Humanitarian Policy Advisor in the Bureau of International Organization Affairs.

Imagine if you did not have a country to call home. Imagine, not being able to legally get a job, marry, or own land. Forget about trying to travel. And if you had children, what legacy would you leave for them?

Statelessness impacts as many as 12 million people around the globe. Often, this under-recognized human right, the right to a nationality, can increase the risk of exploitation and abuse, including forced migration and trafficking in persons. Women and children are particularly vulnerable.

That’s why the U.S. led resolution, along with Botswana, Colombia, Mexico, Iraq, Turkey, and Slovakia, passed at the Human Rights Council (HRC) in Geneva today is so important. “The Right to a Nationality: Women and Children,” is… more »

Media Note
Office of the Spokesperson
Washington, DC
June 26, 2012

Assistant Secretary for the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration Anne C. Richard will travel from June 26-29, 2012, to Cleveland, Ohio and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to meet with resettled refugees, local and state government officials, resettlement agencies and other community members involved in the resettlement of refugees.

On June 27, Assistant Secretary Richard will consult with resettlement agencies and local service providers in Cleveland on a broad range of issues concerning resettled refugees. Since 2009, Cleveland has welcomed nearly 1,500 refugees from more than 20 countries. MORE.

About the Author: Greg Nantz serves in the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration.

In recognition of World Refugee Day, the U.S. Departments of State and Homeland Security honored 19 refugees who recently completed the naturalization process. Today, they stood together to make their pledge of allegiance and begin their lives as American citizens. 

Deputy Secretary of State Bill Burns spoke at today’s ceremony and described the United States’ legacy of admitting refugees: “Although this is World Refugee Day, it means something special to the American people. Centuries before the world defined what it means to be a refugee, America was already a place of refuge. We welcomed to our shores men, women, and children fleeing hunger, poverty, persecution, and desperation, from the Irish potato famine and the Russian pogroms of the 19th century to conflict and instability in East Africa today. Our culture and our character is defined by their contributions,… more »

About the Author: Anne C. Richard serves as Assistant Secretary of State for Population, Refugees, and Migration.

As the newly confirmed Assistant Secretary responsible for refugee programs and policy, I made my first overseas trip to Iraq to see our programs first-hand. Sitting in a small room off a dusty Baghdad street, I met the gaze of several women, all dressed head-to-toe in black. Despite their plain dress, their eyes were lively and alert. Two small children darted in and out, staying close to their mother. The grandmother was across the room. As we made introductions, I learned that the women were nearly all widows. Several husbands and adult sons had died during the violent period that erupted in Iraq after the Samarra Mosque bombing of 2006.

Since 2003, the U.S. government has been committed to helping Iraqis who are displaced within their own country — people we refer to as IDPs or “internally displaced persons.” Under international guidelines, the Government of Iraq… more »

About the Author: Anne C. Richard serves as Assistant Secretary of State for Population, Refugees, and Migration.

In the past five years in Afghanistan, there have been impressive gains in key health indicators, and a dramatic decrease in infant and child mortality rates due to the efforts of the Afghan Ministry of Public Health, with the support of the United States and the international community. Now many more Afghan women survive pregnancy and childbirth. These dramatic improvements serve as a good reminder to the international community that with sound investments to tackle Afghanistan’s still-daunting humanitarian and development needs, progress has been and will continue to be achieved.

Today, I had the honor of joining with the Afghan Minister of Public Health, Dr. Suraya Dalil, who has a very impressive resume, working most recently at UNICEF, to sign a Memorandum of Understanding that serves as another step forward for Afghanistan. In the Memorandum, our countries have… more »