MOLDOVA COMMEMORATES WORLD REFUGE DAY

Each year on World Refugee Day 20th June the United Nations honors the courage and perseverance of uprooted and stateless people who number more than 42 million worldwide and events to commemorate World Refugee Day 2012 in the Republic of Moldova are already underway.

In the MallDova shopping center's 3rd floor "Artium" gallery, a photographic poster exhibition depicting EU/UNHCR co-funded refugee integration projects in the Republic of Moldova is on display until 22nd June. Integration is an important theme for UNHCR this year as the Republic of Moldova's new law on the integration of foreigners and refugees takes effect from July.

A special video spot portraying refugees as marathon runners will be broadcast on TV and is being shown on Chisinau trolleybuses until 30th June. The special “marathon” video promotes the integration needs of refugees, an activity that under Moldova’s new law will be coordinated by the Bureau for Migration and Asylum of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and will involve important cross-ministerial cooperation,.

Refugees, representatives from government ministries, the diplomatic corps, news media, UN agencies and civil society groups will compete in a table tennis tournament on 23rd June. Members of the public are invited to watch the tournament from 10 am, at State University of Moldova Specialised Table Tennis Arena (6 Testimiteanu Street, behind MallDova), in Chisinau.

Events to commemorate World Refugee Day will also take place at Chisinau International Airport, as over 27^th-28^th June the airport’s Arrivals Hall will host UNHCR Moldova's "tent" and a display hundreds of mini-tents promoting refugee integration. With EU funding, since 2009 UNHCR has trained border authorities working at the airport and other international crossing points in good practices for handling asylum claims by persons seeking protection in Moldova.

UNHCR is almost entirely funded from voluntary contributions, so public awareness and support plays a vital role in UNHCR's work. One of the world's leading humanitarian agencies, UNHCR has twice been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize (1954 and 1981) for its work assisting millions of the world’s refugees from persecution and war.

There are more than 2,000 persons under UNHCR’s mandate in the Republic of Moldova, mainly stateless persons but also refugees from other former Soviet states, Africa, Asia and the Middle East.

Globally, UNHCR is marking World Refugee Day 2012 by launching a new campaign aimed at building empathy towards refugees and understanding of the plight of forcedly displaced persons. UNHCR’s Special Envoy Angelina Jolie, several Goodwill Ambassadors and other celebrities have lent their voices to a new “dilemmas” campaign that encourages the public to contemplate the dilemmas faced by victims of conflict or persecution.

UNHCR has also developed a free smartphone “app,” a short role-playing game called “My Life as a Refugee”, which brings to life the refugee experience and highlights some of the life-changing decisions and consequences faced by millions of refugees worldwide. Built for iOS and Android and soon to come out for iPhone, “My Life as a Refugee” entertains and educates players with interactive narratives based on real-life experiences of families torn apart by conflict or persecution.  

To learn more about this year’s “dilemma campaign”, please visit: 

http://takeaction.unhcr.org or the

"My Life as a Refugee" app website: http://mylifeasarefugee.org