For Immediate Release

19 June 2012

New Zealand Honours World Refugee Day with Events Across the Country

At this very moment there are over 15 million refugees around the world. By tomorrow, even more people will have been forced to flee their homelands, leaving everything behind just to stay alive.

Every year on 20 June, World Refugee Day, people around the world come together to honour the strength and resilience of refugees and former refugees. This year, New Zealanders across the country will commemorate the day with events ranging from film screenings to football matches.

“We do not celebrate World Refugee Day,” says Heather Hayden, Chief Executive of Refugee Services Aotearoa New Zealand.

“Over 60 years after the United Nations Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, people are still fleeing across borders in fear for their lives. What we do celebrate is the strength of people from refugee backgrounds and the contribution they make to New Zealand and to their local communities.”

Every year the New Zealand government accepts a quota of 750 refugees for resettlement. They are settled into Auckland, Hamilton, Manawatu, Greater Wellington, Nelson and, until recently, Christchurch.

Refugee Services Aotearoa New Zealand is the lead agency resettling refugees for the government of New Zealand. Working in partnership with a host of other organisations, Refugee Services and their dedicated volunteers support new arrivals to build new lives and become contributing members of their new communities.

“Refugees arrive in New Zealand seeking protection,” says Heather. “They cannot go back to their homelands. They’ve lost everything and when they get here, they have to start again.”

New Zealanders around the country will come together for World Refugee Day events and acknowledge the strength and courage of those who come here as refugees and those who have not yet found safety.

“But,” says Heather, “World Refugee Day is also an opportunity to recognise the wider community and the huge support they provide.”

“From volunteers giving their time to government’s commitment to maintaining the quota, New Zealanders can be very proud of their country’s support of refugees,” she says.

Refugee Services and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) kicked off New Zealand’s World Refugee Day events with a parliamentary breakfast event hosted by Hon Nathan Guy, Minister for Immigration, on Wednesday 13 June.

“The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has previously praised New Zealand’s refugee resettlement program and strategy,” said Dennis Maang, a former refugee from Myanmar, in his address at the breakfast. “I personally feel very fortunate to be resettling in New Zealand, a land of opportunities, and I am looking forward to giving back to the community who have given so much to me.”

For more information about World Refugee Day events happening in your area, visit www.worldrefugeeday.org.nz or call Refugee Services at 04 805 0343.

ENDS

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