The presentation about refugees in class really inspired me to think more about refugees and the refugee situation in America as well as other countries. I always knew that the process was tough to get into the country but it was very interesting to learn about the process after someone is already in the country. It’s very impressive that our country provides resources for refugees after their arrival in the states. However I think that there could be more funding for refugees and immigrants since, as we learned in class, the funding is often only enough to provide for a couple of months of living for refugees. It’s important to remember that refugees often aren’t here by choice but by necessity of being forced out of their country-like in Afghanistan. In situations like that I think it’s highly important that the US provides sanctuary for refugees and helps them to settle for what is certainly an unprecedented situation for them.
Argentina is a country with borders that are open to refugees as well. The country is host to 4,094 refugees in 2022 according to worldbank.org. They are also moving forward with new programs to support refugees in their country. “In May, national authorities established a community sponsorship programme for people fleeing social unrest and natural disasters in Central America, the Caribbean and Mexico. However, people in need of international protection for other reasons and from other countries were not included” (Amnesty). Clearly they are making progress towards caring for refugees within their borders. The US for its part has 363,059 refugees as of 2022. Hopefully Argentina will continue their efforts to make the country more hospitable for immigrants and refugees.
However as of right now it’s clear that Argentina has a long way to go for their refugee programs. According to this report from Amnesty, “Authorities suspended the relocation of new people in need of international protection under the community sponsorship programme for Syrians (the “Syria Programme”). Government authorities failed to pass regulations pursuant to the refugee law to allow asylum seekers and refugees greater access to basic rights such as education, work and healthcare.” This clearly shows that Argentina needs to put more effort into ensuring their refugees are properly assimilated into their society. Hopefully they can develop systems more like America’s for the purpose of ensuring that refugees are taken care of within the country. However with other issues, such as those involving the black market and failing economy they may have too much on their plate.
Human rights in Argentina. Amnesty International. (2022). https://www.amnesty.org/en/location/americas/south-america/argentina/report-argentina/
Refugee population by country or territory of asylum – Argentina. World Bank Open Data. (2022a). https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SM.POP.REFG?locations=AR
World Bank. (2022b). Refugee population by country or territory of asylum – united states. World Bank Open Data. https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SM.POP.REFG?locations=US
