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[NEW YORK, January 29, 2007] - Iraqis fleeing the violence in Iraq have sparked the fastest growing refugee crisis in the world, refugee advocates say, and is creating even greater instability in the region. The Women’s Commission for Refugee Women and Children urges the international community to immediately address the plight of Iraqi refugees and the displaced. The longer displaced Iraqi women, children and youth are unprotected, the more vulnerable they are to exploitation and abuse, as the Women’s Commission has seen in crises worldwide. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) says that tens of thousands of Iraqis are fleeing the country every month. UNHCR officials estimate that up to two million Iraqi refugees have fled to neighboring states, while 1.7 million have been displaced internally. More than 480,000 are thought to have fled their homes in 2006 alone. The majority of the displaced are women and children. "Displaced and refugee women, children and youth face particular dangers because of their gender and age, as the Women’s Commission has seen in conflict situations around the world, from Darfur to Afghanistan,” says Carolyn Makinson, executive director of the Women’s Commission for Refugee Women and Children. “The rampant insecurity within Iraq and the lack of humanitarian assistance in neighboring countries, puts women and children at great risk of abuse. There are already reports of Iraqi women and young girls forced into prostitution or sex to survive and children forced into labor and other forms of exploitation. It’s time to make assisting displaced Iraqi women, children and youth a global priority.” Syria and Jordan are reportedly becoming overwhelmed with the number of refugees entering their countries and have placed certain restrictions on the services provided to them. Refugees International reports, for example, that until 2005 Iraqi refugees enjoyed free access to medical services in Syria, but now they must pay. Refugees International also found that access to education for Iraqi refugee children is a significant challenge. In Jordan, refugee children can attend public schools only if space is available, but private schools are unaffordable for many families. Syria allows Iraqi refugee children to attend public school but families often cannot afford the supplies and school uniforms their children need. A UN assessment found that 30 percent of Iraqi refugees ages 6-11 years old in Syria are not in school. And although many refugee families are in difficult financial circumstances, they often cannot legally work and have no way to support themselves and their families. Women who cannot provide for their families are particularly vulnerable to exploitation and abuse. To ensure the protection of Iraqi refugees and internally displaced Iraqis, and to help ease the great strain on countries receiving refugees, the United States and international community must significantly increase its funding for humanitarian assistance programs. The Women’s Commission endorses the finding of the bi-partisan Iraq Study Group report that funding for international relief efforts is “insufficient, and should be increased,” and urges the United States government to take the lead in funding assistance requests from UNHCR and other humanitarian organizations. Recommendations Further information
pdf: http://www.womenscommission.org/newsroom/press_releases/012907.shtml