IPS Inter Press Refugees
Human migration is a matter of global concern. Flows of migrants and refugees influence and change the social, economic and political dynamics of their destinations -- and the places they have left behind. IPS covers crucial issues such as migrant and refugee rights, irregular or undocumented migration, human trafficking, remittances, displaced persons and forced labour. And the positive: in many cases migration creates a new dialogue among civilisations. Migrants themselves become the building blocks of bridges connecting different cultures.
Updated: 22 hours 6 min ago
MIGRATION-ECUADOR: Cubans Turn to Marriages of Convenience for Citizenship - Part 2
Cuban nationals can be found every day at the busy corner of Amazonas and
Naciones Unidas avenues in the Ecuadorean capital, where the National Civil
Registry Office is located.
Categories: Refugees
MIGRATION-ECUADOR: Cubans Find Door Half Open - Part 1
Carlos sold his house, Juana got a divorce so she could remarry and obtain
resident status, and Pedro bought a "letter of invitation" with 10 years of
savings... These sorts of stories are common amongst Cubans anxious to make a
new life in Ecuador.
Categories: Refugees
US: Court Blocks Arizona's Anti-Immigrant Law
In a legal victory for the administration of President Barack
Obama, a federal court Wednesday temporarily blocked the
implementation of key provisions of a controversial Arizona
immigration law that was to take effect Thursday.
Categories: Refugees
MIGRATION-PORTUGAL: On the Football Pitch, Everyone Is Equal
Football functions on so many levels. It can be big business, moving
astronomical quantities of cash, with obscene salaries for owners, coaches and
star players. And it can be a widely played sport, found in every park, street or
vacant lot. And it can be the common ground for multicultural coexistence.
Categories: Refugees
Brazilian Immigrants Weather Crisis in Spain
Unlike so many immigrants who have come to Spain in search of jobs and a better standard of living, 39-year-old Flávio José Carvalho da Silva moved to this northeastern Spanish city from his home country of Brazil because he fell in love with a local woman.
Categories: Refugees
Mentally Ill Adrift in U.S. Immigration System
Mentally disabled legal permanent residents of the United
States and asylum seekers face indefinite detention, erroneous
deportation, and unfair hearings in U.S. courts, according to
a new joint report from two leading human rights
organisations.
Categories: Refugees
BULGARIA: Refuge Can Get Worse Than Rejection
A protest to close down Busmantsi, a detention centre for undocumented
migrants in Sofia, highlighted the obstacles faced by refugees and asylum-
seekers in Bulgaria.
Categories: Refugees
Big Tobacco Profits from Kazakh Child Labour, Report Says
Hoping for better opportunities than they can find at home,
many families from Kyrgyzstan travel to find work.
Neighbouring Kazakhstan has the strongest economy in Central
Asia, and tobacco farms attract workers fleeing Kyrgyzstan's
high unemployment.
Categories: Refugees
Justice Dept Draws a Line in Arizona's Sand
While civil rights and Hispanic advocates are applauding the
Justice Department's decision to sue the state of Arizona over
its new "may I see your papers please?" anti-immigrant law,
solid majorities of Arizona citizens are telling a variety of
polling organisations that they approve of the legislation.
Categories: Refugees
Swiss Knives Out for Migrants
The disputed 'black sheep' placards may soon return to Swiss streets. The
country's Federal Council and parliament have validated a right-wing initiative
calling for the automatic deportation of criminal foreigners.
Categories: Refugees
Slavery Casts a Long Shadow
Ayana rises before the sun. She bathes, dresses, and leaves
the house before her daughters awake.
Categories: Refugees
Iranian Diaspora Struggles to Find Unified Voice
Iranians should be forgiven for not coming out en masse to
demonstrate on the anniversary of their disputed presidential
elections.
Categories: Refugees
Anti-Immigrant State Laws Could Multiply, Obama Warns
U.S. President Barack Obama criticised "ill conceived"
immigration laws in Arizona and called on Republicans to end
their opposition to immigration reform and pass bipartisan
immigration reform in speech delivered Thursday morning.
Categories: Refugees
MALAYSIA: Thousands of Refugees Living in Constant Fear of Arrest
As Rajoo, 27, makes tea at a rundown shed in Brickfields, a depressed suburb of
the capital inhabited by hundreds of Tamil immigrants from Sri Lanka, he evinces
no sign of anxiety and a deep yearning for something.
Categories: Refugees
PAKISTAN: Water Trickles Back into Village, Thanks to Solar Desalination
Ismail Achar never thought a day would come when his island village would be
reduced to a barren tract of land with hardly a drop of water to drink.
Categories: Refugees
LITERATURE-CUBA: 'Forbidden Stories' by Sonia Rivera-Valdés
Lázara wakes up every morning in her home in New York, has a cup of coffee and, with the same passion with which she takes a stand for or against every cause, she turns on the radio, hoping to hear the news that she has been waiting for most of her life: the demise of former Cuban president Fidel Castro.
Categories: Refugees
A Reform Movement by and for Undocumented People
Hundreds of grassroots organisations came together at the U.S.
Social Forum here to discuss strategies in the fight for
immigration policy changes that would put an end to
criminalisation and the militarisation of the border with
Mexico.
Categories: Refugees
MEXICO-US: Wall of Hate and Poverty Divides El Paso and Juárez
"Sergio, your death will be avenged by the angry, organised people" reads graffiti under the Puente Negro railroad bridge connecting this border city with El Paso, Texas.
Categories: Refugees
WORLD CUP: United For Africa - Making it Last
Perhaps Africa's World Cup began in earnest on Jun. 16, when a despondent green and gold-clad crowd began leaving the Loftus Versfeld stadium even before the end of South Africa's heavy defeat to Uruguay. Migrant African fans felt the first touch of cold post-tournament reality.
Categories: Refugees
FILM: A Congolese Woman's Journey of Survival and Triumph
Suffering through the atrocities of war affects people in
different ways. Some become crippled by anger, others by fear.
Some become violent and want only revenge. And some, like Rose
Mapendo, an inspiring survivor of the war and ethnic cleansing
in the Democratic Republic of Congo, come out with a strong
commitment to work for peace and reconciliation.
Categories: Refugees