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A Refugee Solution: Humanitarian Visas Plus Planes
By maudeaster on 2015-10-10 13:03:47
I’m just back from 5 weeks in Europe where the issue of the day is how to respond to the human crisis unfolding in the
Middle East - the displacement of literally millions from war zones where
bombing and arms shipments continue to drown out the voices calling for negotiated settlements. As an American, what
struck me most was the contrast between the generosity and humanitarian commitment of multiple European countries, most
notably Sweden and Germany, and the pitiful response so far of the US. While Germany is organizing itself to offer a new
home to a million refugees, our larger, richer US has committed to adding just 10,000 displaced Syrians to the paltry1,800
accepted in the last 4 years. And Europeans rightly reason: US foreign and military policy has played a major role in
creating these refugee-generating conflicts, so why shouldn’t the US be at the forefront of resettling the displaced? In a
September 11th article in The International New York Times, Steve Hilton, a former senior adviser to British Prime Minister
David Cameron, wrote: “...it is impossible to ignore the impact of American foreign policy on what’s happening in Europe.
It was shocking to see an ‘expert’ from the (US) Council on Foreign Relations quoted on Saturday saying that the situation is
‘largely Europe’s responsibility’. How, exactly? The Iraq invasion (which could reasonably be described as ‘largely
America’s responsibility’) unleashed a period of instability and competition in the region that is collapsing states and fueling
sectarian conflict.” Hungary shocked much of the rest of Europe by abandoning its international commitments and erecting a
wall to greet those who'd fled from Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Yemen. But it was hard to miss the parallels between the
Hungarian barrier and the US efforts to wall off its border with Mexico. Again, another rather shameful American
contribution to this crisis. But what heartened me was learning on our trip about two potentially powerful tools the US could
use to change course and become a generous and creative leader in the needed refugee resettlement: humanitarian visas like
the Nansen passports and an airlift to replace the life-claiming sea voyages. I read a
fascinating piece by Alexander Betts, Director of Refugee Studies at Oxford University, describing the refugee travel
documents, the Nansen Passports, recognized by over 50 countries and used following World War I to resettle 450,000
people displaced by the collapse of the Ottoman Empire and the Russian Revolution. Betts proposed that people could be
processed for similar humanitarian visas at consular outposts in the regions where current displacement is occurring. Brazil
has already taken the lead on this, announcing it will provide humanitarian visas and already taking in over 2,000 Syrian
refugees this way. Betts was recommending this for European countries, but it would be an excellent approach for the US as
well. =<" Betts’ other excellent proposal was that an airlift should be organized to
bring refugees approved for visas safely out of the conflict zones — to avoid the perilous journeys across the Mediterranean
on which so many lives have been lost. Again there is a powerful precedent: the US-sponsored evacuation, by aircraft and
naval boats, of 125,000 refugees in 1975 at the end of the Vietnam War. The UN Refugee Protocol, to which the US is a
signatory, requires that people in danger of persecution or threat to their lives be given the right to seek protection in another
country. It is past time that the US lives up to its obligation. Here’s one petition we can all sign to encourage the US at least
to accept more Syrian refugees.
