Refugee Convention – 60 years onward, still needed today
Although the United Nations’ Refugee Conventions was adopted 60 years ago, and has been coupled with the promotion of the need for human rights around the globe, unfortunately the gap between obtaining rights and freedoms in certain countries remains deep.
Sadly, many wealthy countries continue to distance themselves from the human right atrocities that happen in other places far from the safety of their own homes – they are not interested in those seeking asylum and their problems.
Lack of interest and understanding is discouraging
This lack of interest and understanding is sometimes discouraging – especially when considering that negative misguided opinions about people seeking asylum and their reasons for being forced to flee their homelands, has not necessarily improved for certain areas of the world 60 years onward.
Truthfully asylum seekers can be physically in their new adoptive countries but their mind is still back home with the families, friends that they were forced to flee.
Helping people to understand the experiences of asylum seekers
As a refugee, you may be safe in your new country but you still sometimes feel lonely and rejected. That’s why the workshops held at Lansdowne Church in the West End of Glasgow by a group of university students, church members, refugees, researchers and Ms Ali, is important.
Events like these, bring different people together to share experiences and highlight different images of asylum seekers during the asylum process. It also gives refugees an opportunity to share their feelings with their respective communities here in the UK.
The insightful workshops showed that misunderstanding and misinterpreting of immigration matters, particularly asylum-related issues, will remain longer among the majority of the people – so there’s still work to be done.
Refugee Week – shining a light of truth on Refugee lives
Refugee Week Scotland is an important event – this year in particular, has allowed us to look at all that’s happened in the last 60 years since the creation of the life-saving Refugee Convention – and move forward, raising awareness about Refugee issues, aspirations and importantly highlight the truth about their experiences and lives.
