- Title: JORDAN-REFUGEES/HANDPRINTS Jordan marks World Refugee Day
- Date: 16th June 2015
- Summary: AMMAN, JORDAN (JUNE 14, 2015) (REUTERS) PEOPLE STANDING ON TENT CANVAS LAID OUT ON GROUND BANNER READING (English and Arabic): 'STAND TOGETHER - HAND IN HAND' VARIOUS OF VISITORS PAINTING ON TENT CANVAS PEOPLE WATCHING VARIOUS OF PEOPLE PUTTING HANDS IN PAINT, MAKING IMPRINT ON TENT CANVAS PEOPLE WRITING MESSAGES ON TENT CANVAS (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) OXFAM PROJECTS MANAGER,
- Embargoed: 1st July 2015 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Jordan
- Country: Jordan
- Topics: General
- Reuters ID: LVA8RXMQOVPXCEDFFN5M48CO30PY
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Jordanians have been highlighting the plight of their country's refugees with a hand-printing event in the capital.
Using a tent canvas from the Zaatari refugee camp, activists invited passers-by to make colourful hand prints on the canvas.
The event, organised by UK-based charity, Oxfam, was aimed at raising awareness.
"Those passing by the souq ask us what is happening, so we tell them about World Refugee Day. It was really interesting that some of children put more than one handprint at a time, as if to say that one hand is not enough. We tell them about the issue of refugees in Jordan and some of them say: 'Yes, we are also refugees, we are originally from Bethlehem and we are here'. Others say: 'Yes, we know that our neighbours are like this (refugees)'. This is precisely the aim of this activity: to remind people that among us, amongst our homes, there are people who came here from wars and the crises in the world and our role as people is to stand together, hand in hand," said project manager, Razan Khalifah.
World Refugee Day, marked on June 20 each year, draws attention to the millions around the world who have been displaced.
Around 85,000 Syrians have found sanctuary from their country's civil war at Jordan's Zaatari refugee camp, some 15 kms (10 miles) from the Jordanian-Syrian border and now one of the largest refugee camps in the world.
On top of this, Jordan received waves of Palestinian refugees in the 1948 and 1967 Middle East wars, and a majority of the kingdom's seven million subjects are now Palestinian.
Despite living in Jordan for decades, for many, the dream of returning home is ever-present.
"It's really excellent to remind people. Why don't people remember? We should remind people every six months that they have a dream that they have to go back to. You have to go back to your homeland one day. At least it will be dream for your son," said Palestinian, Ali Azazmeh.
With an influx of refugees, unemployment running at 11.4 percent, and the slow pace of political reform, Jordan faces the same combustible mix that set off the Arab uprisings in 2011.
But for Jordanians such as Nada Abdul Raheem, it's important to make newcomers feel welcome, whatever the difficulties.
"I really liked the idea of supporting the refugees who come from other countries. It gives the feeling that you are not strangers. Jordan is your country and it welcomes any other refugees who come from any country," she said.
Worldwide, an estimated 5.5 million people were forcibly uprooted during the first six months of last year, 1.4 million of them fleeing abroad, the UNHCR said.
The Middle East and North Africa has become the main region of origin of refugees, overtaking the Asia and Pacific region that held the top spot for more than a decade.
Syrians have overtaken Afghans as the largest refugee population aside from Palestinians, fleeing to more than 100 countries to escape war in their homeland, the United Nations said earlier this year.
Afghan refugees, the biggest group for three decades, have fallen to second place, with 2.6 million hosted by Pakistan and Iran at mid-year, it said. Somalis ranked as the third largest refugee group at 1.1 million. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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