World Vision Australia is among a coalition of NGOs calling on the Australian Government to significantly increase the country’s annual humanitarian refugee intake and offer more children protection, to ban immigration detention of children and to ensure families are kept together where-ever possible.
They are among a raft of demands being made ahead of a discussion at the UN General Assembly this week of two global compacts – one for refugees and another for migration – which are expected to follow on from global commitments made in the 2016 UN New York Declaration for Refugees and Migrants.
Along with World Vision, other members of the Initiative for Child Rights in the Global Compacts include Save the Children, UNICEF Australia, International Detention Coalition, the Multicultural Youth Advocacy Network and ISS Australia.
As well as increasing the humanitarian intake and banning child immigration detention, the coalition – which this week released a policy briefing paper, Children and The Global Compacts – are also calling for migrant children to have access to child protection services and for an increase in funding commitments aimed at providing education for displaced children, including in both source and host communities.
Claire Rogers, CEO of World Vision, urged Australia to speak up for the rights of children at the upcoming meeting of the UN and in future negotiations on the global compacts.
“We have a special role to play, particularly in this region. We must lead by example, examine our own practices and offer much more support to developing countries who are shouldering most of the responsibility of the global refugee crisis,” she said.
Matt Tinkler, acting CEO of Save the Children, said that with more than 65 million people currently on the move, roughly half of whom are children, “the risks to the safety of the most vulnerable have never been greater”.
“We congratulate the Australian Government on its role in the adoption of the New York Declaration – now it’s time to show the world that this document can be turned into a more detailed plan and real action, to ensure child refugees and migrants are protected.”
Tony Stuart, CEO of UNICEF Australia, said the current crisis in Myanmar and Bangladesh highlighted the need for the Australian Government to engage with other governments in the Asia-Pacific region on the issue.
“Processes must be put in place that ensure continuity of care for vulnerable children on the move between states, to ensure their survival and development, and protect them from dangers such as smuggling, trafficking and exploitation.”
