Situation of Iraqi refugees deteriorating: report

Jul 13, 2008, 8:28 GMT

Amman - The living conditions for more than two million Iraqi refugees in Jordan, Syria and Lebanon are deteriorating despite the efforts of host countries and humanitarian agencies, according to a report released this week by the International Crisis Group (ICG).

The study, entitled 'Failed Responsibility: Iraqi Refugees in Syria, Jordan and Lebanon,' urged greater action by the international community and the Iraqi government to rectify the situation.

The ICG said it had based its findings on interviews with experts, humanitarian workers, government officials and Iraqis who fled their country due to rising violence.

The survey commended Jordan for last year's decision to allow Iraqi children to attend public schools, but it warned that without greater access to healthcare or the workforce, deteriorating living conditions may lead to 'criminality' or 'unrest.'

The ICG report also detected a direct link between violence among the refugee population across the world and poverty combined with the prevalence of young unemployed males.

Some humanitarian workers interviewed by the ICG indicated that such young people could be attracted to militant movements if the situation of Iraqis in host countries worsens.

The report took a harsher tone with the Iraqi government, saying it was guilty of 'callous neglect' as it has been 'ungenerous' with its citizens abroad, although 'flushed with oil revenues.'

It also stated that Western nations, particularly the United States and the European Union, had failed to live up to their commitments and were providing little financial support to host countries.

'Donor countries and Iraq bear the greater responsibility to assist both refugees and host countries,' the report said.

'Western nations have been happy to let host countries cope with the refugee challenge, less than generous in their financial support, and outright resistant to the notion of resettlement in their midst,' the ICG charged.

The report warned against encouraging Iraqi refugees to return to their homes before 'genuine and sustained improvement' in security conditions was ensured inside Iraq.

'Returning can be extremely perilous: safety remains uncertain, public services inadequate and many houses have been seized by others, destroyed or located in neighbourhoods of villages now dominated by militias of a different sect,' the report said.

In its recommendations, the ICG called on host countries to be more lenient in allowing Iraqis to enter the labour force, take further steps to prevent the exploitation of Iraqi women and children, particularly prostitution, and expand healthcare services to Iraqis.

The study also urged the Jordanian government to allow Iraqis to form NGOs to serve their communities inside Jordan.