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"I
urge you to celebrate the extraordinary courage
and contributions of refugees past and present."
- Kofi
Annan, UN
Secretary-General
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While
every refugee's story is different and their
anguish personal, they all share a common thread
of uncommon courage – the courage not only to
survive, but to persevere and rebuild their
shattered lives.
~
Antonio
Guterres, U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees,
2005-
"When
food becomes
scarce, refugees often turn to desperate measures
to feed themselves and their families. We are
particularly worried about the health of the
refugee population, domestic violence and refugees
resorting to illegal employment or even to prostitution,
just to put enough food on the table."
~ Antonio
Guterres, U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees,
2005-
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Thus,
on this World Refugee Day, let us take time to recognize
and draw inspiration from these ordinary people who
have shown such extraordinary courage – the world's
millions of refugees and displaced.~
Antonio
Guterres, U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees
There
are many challenges facing the international community
today but few, in my mind, are more pressing than
those of finding humanitarian solutions to refugee
problems. We talk of regional conflicts, of economic
and social crises, of political instability, of abuses
of human rights, of racism, religious intolerance,
inequalities between rich and poor, hunger, over-population,
under-development and. I could go on and on. Each
and every one of these impediments to humanity’s pursuit
of well-being are also among the root causes of refugee
problems.
-- Poul
Hartling, UN High Commissioner for Refugees, 1978-1985
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A
lasting solution, the possibility to begin a
new life, is the only dignified solution for
the refugee himself.
-- Poul
Hartling, UN High Commissioner for Refugees,
1978-1985
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In
countries where people have to flee their homes
because of persecution and violence, political
solutions must be found, peace and tolerance
restored, so that refugees can return home.
In my experience, going home is the deepest
wish of most refugees.
~ Angelina
Jolie
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"Refugees
have done more for my heart and my spirit than I can
ever express in words."
~ Angelina
Jolie
The
exile is a singular, whereas refugees tend to be thought
of in the mass ... What is implied in these nuances
of social standing is the respect we pay to choice.
The exile appears to have made a decision, while the
refugee is the very image of helplessness.
~ Mary McCarthy
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I
wish to call on you to join hands in the building
of a world in which less people will be forced
to flee, and in which refugees are protected
until they can safely return home one day.
-- Sadako
Ogata, UN High Commissioner for Refugees,
1990-2000
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"Refugee
problems may often seem intractable but they are not
insoluble. In our experience there are two basic prerequisites
for solution: the political will of leaders to tackle
the causes and to settle for peace, and international
determination to push for peace and then to consolidate
it. Consolidating peace means helping societies emerging
from war to reintegrate refugees in safety and dignity,
to rebuild their institutions - including in the field
of justice and human rights - and to resume their
economic development."
-- Sadako
Ogata, UN High Commissioner for Refugees, 1990-2000
"There are no refugees, no displaced persons here,
... They are our guests and we treat them as such."
~ Mike Turner quotes
'Refugees
are defined as persons who are outside their country
and cannot return owing to a well-founded fear of
persecution because of their race, religion, nationality,
political opinion or membership of a particular social
group.'
~ United Nations, 1951
BetterWorld
Heroes
Who Were Refugees
In
the future, human rights will be increasingly
a universal criterion for designing ethical
systems.
--
Mahnaz Afkhami
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The
sad truth is that most evil is done by people
who never make up their minds to be either good
or evil.
-- Hannah
Arendt
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Try
not to become a man of success, but rather try
to become a man of value.
--Albert
Einstein
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We
believe that human rights transcend boundaries
and must prevail over state sovereignty.
-- José
Ramos-Horta
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We
are not myths of the past, ruins in the jungle,
or zoos. We are people and we want to be respected,
not to be victims of intolerance and racism.
--Rigoberta
Menchú Tum
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"I've
always been in danger, but I don't mind."
-- Sima
Samar |
REFUGEE
DAY
