‘Pandemic Could Devastate Refugees Without Urgent International Action’

* Photo: UNICEF

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The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) Executive Director Henrietta Fore has released a written statement amid COVID-19 outbreak and raised concerns that the "pandemic could devastate refugee, migrant and internally displaced populations without urgent international action."

"COVID-19 will almost certainly gain a foothold in refugee camps, crowded reception centers or detention facilities holding migrant families," Fore has warned and underlined that "such a scenario is looking imminent, given how quickly the virus is spreading." Fore has briefly stated the following:

'Risk is compounded in case of an infectious disease'

"Even absent a pandemic, uprooted children and families – those living as refugees, migrants or internally displaced – face immense barriers to accessing healthcare and preventative services like proper handwashing and sanitation facilities. So, when an infectious disease hits, their risk is compounded.

"An outbreak of a respiratory disease like COVID-19 could spread easily through the overcrowded confines and unsafe conditions typical of many camps or settlements. Families in these environments would be more likely to get sick and less capable of fighting off the disease because of inadequate services.

'31 million children uprooted from their homes'

"We are not talking about a small number of people either. Today, there are 31 million children who have been uprooted from their homes, including over 17 million internally displaced, 12.7 million refugees and 1.1 million asylum seekers.

"All of them need some form of assistance. Most of them do not have the luxury of calling a doctor when sick, of washing their hands whenever they need to, or of practicing physical distancing to stop disease transmission.

'Ensure equitable access to testing and treatment'

"Any public health response to the pandemic should reach the most vulnerable, including refugees, migrants, those who are internally displaced.

"This means ensuring equitable access to testing and treatment as well as access to prevention information and to water and sanitation services. There should be plans in place for safe, family-based care and support for children separated from their caregivers or whose caregivers die.

'Containment measures shouldn't block rights'

"It also means that containment measures, like border closures and movement restrictions, should not block children's right to seek asylum and reunite with family members. Nor should it hinder aid agencies' efforts to provide humanitarian aid.

"Uprooted children and families should be moved quickly out of harm's way to adequate accommodations where they have access to water, soap, physical distancing and safety.

"But we cannot do this alone. Now, more than ever, governments and the international community should come together to protect the most vulnerable in these unprecedented times." (AÖ/SD)