| February 11, 2007 Discrimination Felt As Refugee Crisis Grows by Karen Button, insurgent49 
Since a report released by Refugees International in
November declared Iraq the “world’s fastest growing refugee
crisis,” political pressure has been building for the
international community to recognize the situation for what it
is—a humanitarian disaster.Nearly 100,000 Iraqis are fleeing the raging violence of their country each month. Per day 2,000 attempt to cross into Syria and 1,000 into Jordan. The rest are dispersing throughout the region to countries like Lebanon, Egypt and Libya. Cedric Turlan, spokesperson for the NGO Coordinating Committee in Iraq (NCCI), said he believes 3-4 million Iraqis have already fled. Accurate figures are impossible to determine since only those who register as refugees with the UN High Commission on Refugees (UNHCR) are counted. Turlan points out since many Iraqis are living without any formal documentation, the number is clearly higher. In Jordan, for example, there are officially 700,000 Iraqi refugees while organizations like NCCI and UNICEF believe the number is at least 1 million. Yet little international support has arrived. The UNHCR said their budget last year amounted to only $1 per person in dealing with the Iraqi crisis. And even though this year’s budget has doubled, it still only amounts to $2 per person for the year. The organization’s coordinator of the Iraq unit, Andrew Harper, wrote in the latest issue of Forced Migration that “Iraq is hemorrhaging." He estimates that one in eight Iraqis is now displaced, making it, he says, the largest migration of people in the Middle East since Palestinians were displaced by the creation of Israel in 1948. (To put it in perspective, if an equivalent number were displaced in the US, it would be over 35 million people, and over 7 million were it the UK.) Iraqis now account for 10-20 percent of Jordan’s population, placing a huge strain on the country’s already beleaguered resources. It is not a wealthy nation; Jordanians make an average $5,096 USD annually and unemployment is as high as 30 percent. It also ranks among the top ten most water-deficient nations in the world and imports all its energy needs. Jordan is hardly prepared for an influx like it has witnessed. Not surprisingly, tensions between Jordanians and Iraqis are on the rise. There is a notable difference even on the street since my last visit to Amman this past spring. In conversations strangely reminiscent to those in the States regarding Mexican immigration, Jordanians openly state their frustration with the situation, believing Iraqis are burdening the country’s economy and taking away their jobs by their willingness to work for less pay. Yet, the Iraqis who’ve fled for their lives and are trying to eke out an existence in Jordan are equally frustrated. They feel discriminated against, they say, in a country Iraq helped for years by providing very cheap oil. Feelings of hopelessness and despair permeate the Iraqi community as family savings dwindle and options are limited. Food, shelter, medical care, school supplies, clothing, and gas for heat all cost money that many Iraqi refugees simply don’t have. UNHCR and UNICEF say they are doing their best, but many Iraqis are in the situation of Abu Mohammed. A 35-year-old man from Kirkuk, Abu Mohammed was threatened with death and fled to Jordan in 2005 with his wife and children. But, he says, “it’s impossible for me to work here because they might catch me and deport me.” That would leave his wife alone with their four children, not to mention the danger he would be thrust back into in Iraq. Instead, the two eldest work to support the family. But, insists their father, employers “don’t give Iraqis the same salary.” Fourteen-year-old Mohammed works full time in a grocery story. His fifteen-year-old sister, Noor, works half-time in a print shop. Between the two they bring home about $130 USD a month, barely enough to cover rent and electricity. As teenagers, the two should be attending school rather than working, but as Iraqis without residency, they are not allowed. Last year the Jordanian government banned all Iraqi children from attending public schools, but softened the policy after two weeks. Families tell me they are now at the mercy of school administrators. In Abu Mohammed’s neighborhood, close to the bustling and mixed downtown area, Iraqi children are not allowed. Across the city, Um Ahmed says her children are able to attend school, but are tormented because they’re Shiite. She says the family has lived in Jordan in relative peace they arrived in 2001, but since the 2003 US-led invasion attitudes began to change. “It wasn’t like this before. It changed against the Shi’a since after 2003. Jordan blames us for the occupation,” she claims. “Then it became worse after Saddam’s death.” A few days after Saddam’s hanging, Um Ahmed says her eight year old daughter Hana was asked if she was a Sunni or Shi’a. “She answered she was Shi’a and they told her, ‘we should dismiss you from this country!’ She came home crying and blamed me, asking, ‘why did you put us in this situation?’ “In the schools they are always focused on Shi’a or Sunni. Now the children are hating to go to school because of this. Last year their marks were much better.” Um Ahmed’s situation is made worse by the fact her husband left five months ago to visit relatives in Iraq and hasn’t been allowed back in Jordan since. Her two sons, one of them only 10 years old, now work in a shoe factory to support the family. Tears slip down her cheeks as she talks. The five children miss their father and she is in a constant state of worry about where their next meal will come from. Sectarian differentiation is clearly spilling over the borders—a Jordanian man who struck up casual conversation in a store volunteered that the country has always been Sunni and he worries about too many Shi’a entering. When I ask why, he reveals a deeper concern about Iran. Iraqis also report being asked if they are Shi’a or Sunni by border officials, though everyone I’ve spoken with who’s crossed—Sunni and Shi’a alike—express disgust at the question. But most Iraqi refugees at this point say they’ve felt discriminated against because they are Iraqi, rather than by their sect. One man relates his experience at a medical clinic, which he was told provided free health care to refugees. He says not only did the doctor treat his family with disrespect, but he was also given a bill for the services. To top it off, he was also given a long list of expensive medications and tests that should be done for his son outside the clinic. Unprepared for the fees, he says he was deeply ashamed. Abu Amar’s family is one of the poorest I’ve met with, though they were from the middle class when they lived in Iraq. “I was so shocked at the treatment,” he says. Then adds, “as you know, Iraqis have their dignity.” The stories these families share are only a highlight of the growing fissure between Jordanian authorities and Iraqis living in the capital city. Initially welcomed in Jordan, the government now refers to Iraqis as “illegal immigrants” rather than refugees from war. In statements made off the record, humanitarian advocates are quick to criticize the Bush administration’s lack of support. They say the US is responsible for creating the refugee crisis and should be giving financial assistance to Syria and Jordan, especially. The UN High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres is currently touring Middle Eastern countries that where Iraqis have fled. While acknowledging Syria’s and Jordan’s generosity, he called for greater international aid to hosting nations. “The pressure over society, over resources and infrastructure, over social systems and education, is enormous. The sacrifices made by these countries are remarkable and the international community needs to assume full responsibility supporting them." Yet, as Mr. Bush seeks over $700 billion for next year’s military budget, and the US spends $8 billion a month on the occupation, a scant $20 billion was allocated this year for refugee assistance. Karen Button is a freelance journalist and peace activist. She can be reached at kbutton@insurgent49.com |
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