Day: January 15, 2014

Turkey cracks down on aid agency at Syrian border, possible links to terrorism

~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

And, get this, it is the same ‘humanitarian’ aid agency that sent the Flotilla to Gaza ***in an attempt to break the Israeli blockade.

If you are a regular reader of RRW, you know that we have been pointing a finger at Turkey for letting so many “refugees” simply pass through Turkey and into a beleaguered Bulgaria.   Now, I guess because Obama’s buddy,Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan, has political problems they are making some moves on questionable border activities.

From Reuters:

ISTANBUL, Jan 14 (Reuters) – Turkish anti-terrorist police raided the offices of an aid agency on the border with Syria on Tuesday, in part of what local media said was an operation in six cities against individuals suspected of links to al Qaeda.

The Humanitarian Relief Foundation (IHH) said police had raided its offices in the southern Turkish city of Kilis, which borders Syria, and detained one person.

The IHH came to prominence in May 2010 when Israeli marines stormed its Mavi Marmara ship to enforce a naval blockade of the Palestinian-run Gaza Strip and killed nine Turks in clashes with activists.

“IHH aid is delivered to Syrian babies, children and those who freeze in the cold … This is an operation to change perceptions (about IHH) and stop aid from being delivered inside Syria,” the group said in a statement.

Turkey has maintained an open-door policy throughout the Syrian conflict, providing a lifeline to rebel-held areas by allowing humanitarian aid in, giving refugees a route out and letting the rebel Free Syrian Army organise on its soil.

Nothing better than a little “humanitarian” aid (with pictures of doves) to cover all sorts of nefarious border activity!

***This gave me a great excuse to watch again Latma’s production of ‘We con the World!’  If you are not one of the 2.6 million viewers of this hilarious remake of ‘We are the world’ then please click here and enjoy!

Palestinian workers protesting UNRWA, want more of your money!

~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

Demonstrations broke out in the West Bank on Sunday where Palestinian employees of the UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) are striking for higher pay.

Before you read on, check out Judy’s post on UNRWA here just a few days ago.

Then keep in mind that the US is paying approximately 25% of UNRWA’s annual budget of a billion dollars.

Here is a very interesting article from The Jerusalem Post last summer that confirms what a bunch of suckers we are in the West.  Rich Muslim countries give little to keep UNRWA going:

The total UNRWA budget for 2012 was $907,907,371. The permanent and hysterically supportive rhetoric for the “Palestinian cause” from the Muslim world might lead one to expect that UNWRA is mainly funded by Muslim countries. The truth, however, is that UNRWA is almost entirely funded by Western taxpayers. With a total of $644,701,999 in contributions, the US, EU, UK, Sweden, Norway, Germany, The Netherlands and Japan pay 71 percent of the annual UNRWA budget.

And don’t forget that the funds from the second-largest donor, the EU, are of course already composed of EU taxation of member states.

So where do the Muslim states rank? First in, at No. 15, is Saudi Arabia.  [And remember S.A. takes NO refugees—ed]

So now the Palestinian so-called “refugees” want even more of your money!

From the Jordan Times:

JALAZOUN, West Bank — At least 50 people were hurt on Sunday in a clash between Palestinian police and residents of a refugee camp protesting against a strike in a UN aid agency that has paralysed services, police and an ambulance service said.

The demonstration, in Jalazoun camp in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, was the most violent in a series of protests over the past week stemming from a more than month-old strike for higher pay by local employees of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA).

UNRWA, which employs more than 5,000 Palestinians in 19 camps for some 730,000 West Bank refugees, has been forced to shut schools, clinics and suspend trash collection at the camps since the strike began.

“We have nothing to do with the strike and we want to make our voice heard,” said Mohammed Najar, a Jalazoun resident. “The situation in the camps cannot be tolerated: no schools, no clinics and trash is piled everywhere.”

We owe them!  We owe them!  66 years later we owe them!

Many refugees fear UNRWA is slowly disengaging from its aid activities and believe the international community owes them support since it recognised Israel amid the war that led to its founding in 1948 — during which they fled or were driven from their homes to Gaza, the West Bank and surrounding countries.

The UN agency has said it is trying to end the strike but does not have funds to meet the wage demands. It also says its employees get paid at least 20 per cent and in some cases 80 per cent more than public sector employees in equivalent fields.

Grrrr!

Learn more about Israel and refugees in our special category (142 previous posts) here.

Bhutanese and Burmese refugee teens dropping out of highschool at “alarming” rate

~ Ann Corcoran ~ Leave a comment

That is what a new report from a group that studies higher education issues involving Asians in America is saying.

Dr.Chia Youyee Vang: “alarming” statistics

From Diverse Issues in Higher Education:

A startling 39 percent of U.S. Burmese are high school dropouts, so not surprisingly, 30 percent of this ethnic group lives below the poverty line, according to a new report.

Scheduled for release Wednesday, the report, titled “Invisible Newcomers,” explores the educational attainment, socioeconomic challenges, migration and settlement experiences of the Burmese and Bhutanese, who make up the two largest, recent refugee groups in this country. The report’s authors are Dr. Chia Youyee Vang, an associate professor of history and comparative ethnic studies at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, and Dr. Monica Mong Trieu, an assistant professor of sociology and Asian American studies at Purdue University. It was issued by the Asian & Pacific Islander American Scholarship Fund (APIASF) in collaboration with the Association for Asian American Studies.

Since 2004, more than 80,000 Burmese have arrived in the United States after fleeing political, religious and economic persecution. Bhutanese refugees began coming in 2008 to escape discriminatory social and political rule. The migration of both ethnic groups grew so rapidly that, in 2011, refugees from Burma, which is also known as Myanmar, made up 30 percent and those from Bhutan comprised 26 percent of people resettled in this country.

Calling such statistics “alarming,” Vang and Trieu say that intensive educational and social support should be provided to teens to improve the likelihood of high school completion. Furthermore, the dropout rate among Burmese Americans is almost twice that of the national dropout rate among non-Asians here.  [More than black American teens?—-ed]

Read it all.

Gee, that sounds like another generation on welfare to me.

In a related story, the state of Kentucky is considering extending graduation time for refugee teens, here.  Add that to the cost of refugee resettlement when your city’s politicians are “welcoming” more refugees and immigrants.