I hadn’t heard anything about refugee issues in South America until I saw this article. The only mention I ever saw previously was that some countries, Brazil is one I think, have taken in Iraqi Palestinians. But here is an interview with the retiring head of the UNHCR’s Americas Bureau. I don’t know enough to even add my two cents worth, so read it all.
As director of this bureau, I have had to continually fight to win more visibility for Colombia and convince the High Commissioner, the Deputy High Commissioner, the Assistant High Commissioners and other directors that they have to pay attention to this region. The attention of top management is focused on the big stories that run daily on TV, such as Iraq and Sudan. When you have a situation like Colombia that’s been going on for more than 50 years, it’s difficult to get attention and support – but the problem is there. We are talking about 3 million internally displaced and half-a-million refugees in the region.