Video of Secretary of Homeland Security



Policy MemorandumTO: Barack Obama, President of the United StatesJoseph R. Biden, Vice PresidentSen. Mitch McConnell, Majority Leader, U.S. Senate Rep. Kevin McCarthy, Majority Leader, House of RepresentativesRep. Nancy Pelosi, Democratic Leader, House of RepresentativesFROM: Hanna Mueller, Jennifer Joseph, Chris Tagoe, and Shanice BranchRE: United States’ response to the Middle East refugee crisisDATE: December 8, 2015Executive SummaryThe Syrian civil war has killed more than 300,000 people since it began in 2011, and forced more than twelve million to leave their homes. At least eight million people are internally displaced in Syria, while four million people have left and now live mainly in refugee camps located in neighboring countries, causing a major economic strain. Rise of harsh political debate and controversies over the role of the West resulted in harsh legislations across EU and the U.S. To address the crisis from the U.S. standpoint, after cautiously examining the causes of the refugee influx and studying the current problems they face, we propose three policy options: diplomatic talks to achieve cease-fire in the region; financial and technical support to Turkey, Jordan, and Lebanon; and increasing intake of refugees in the U.S. We recommend that all three policy options should be combine in order to safe lives of the innocent people who are bearing the impact of complex geo-political struggles.Problem: Middle East refugee crisisCause of refugee crisis emergence The last couple months of the civil war in Syria have been brutal. More than 300,000 people have been killed since the war started four and a half years ago (Yourish). Amidst the escalating violence, people experience unemployment, inflation, electricity and water shortage. Syria’s population lives in extreme poverty (Rummery). Mass shooting and gunfire between pro-Assad forces and rebel militias has pushed more then four million Syrians to flee the country, adding to already existing problem of refugees and migrants from Afghanistan and Iraq in the Middle East and Europe. Terminology mattersMigrants and refugees are leaving their countries for different reasons, but often travel on the same route. Metir Corabarir urges that there are political and humanitarian consequences of using inaccurate terminology, since it shapes our perception and behaviors. According to international refugee law, “refugees” are people who are forced to leave their countries and are unable to return because their lives and freedom are in danger; the causes of danger may be widespread violence, war, foreign occupation, prosecution and other serious human rights violations (The 1951 Geneva Convention). On the other hand, international migrants are people who leaving their country voluntarily mostly due to economic hardship; they leave in search of a better life. Under the international refugee law, countries have responsibilities towards refugees, but not migrants. However according to the Universal Declaration of Human rights they ought to respect the human rights of both refugees and migrants. The use of terminology allows some countries to evade their responsibilities towards refugees by naming them “migrants”, “illegal migrants”, or “persons under temporary protection” (Corabatir). Most Western countries call the largest humanitarian crisis of our era “the migration crises”. They impose more restrictive policies, which leads to the double victimization of refugees, describes Corabatir for Al Jazeera English. Current situation of refugeesThere are officially eight million Syrians displaced in their home country, and more than four million seeking safety in the neighboring Lebanon, Jordan or Turkey (Samaan). The overwhelming number of the refugees in these countries causes hostility, cutback of benefits, and restricted access to borders. The UN Refugee Agency recorded funding shortfalls for refugee programmes in Jordan and Lebanon. The United Nation Human Rights Council (UNHCR) states, “The Syria Refugee and Resilience Programme for 2015 is currently just 37 per cent funded.” This underfunding leads to reduction of food aid and worsening conditions at the formal refugee camps across the region, forcing people to send their children out to beg (Rummery). Victims are seeking an escape by taking increasingly extreme measurements to go further afield, especially to Europe. Physically exhausted and psychologically traumatized refugees have two ways to arrive in southern Europe. One of the ways is to cross the Mediterranean Sea; this route considered the deadliest for refugees and migrants. More than 2,700 migrants and refugees have drowned or suffocated at sea this year (UNHCR). According to the UNHCR data, over 350,000 refugees have reached southern Europe by sea as of the end of August. Another way is by crossing through the heavily guarded border of Turkey. The lack of legal routes leaves no choice for asylum-seekers but to turn to smugglers for unauthorized border crossing. These inhumane transportation methods take the refugees through the Balkans and onward through Hungary (“Sea Route”). The European Union border agency announced more than 150,000 refugees entered the European Union (EU) in August, adding up to more than half a million for the year (Frontex). Michael Birnbaum states that amid the largest refugee crisis in Europe since the Balkan Wars of the 1990s, a surge of thousands of refugees is reaching Europe faster than they can be accommodated. As arrivals increase, reception capacity and conditions are inadequate to support the demand (UNHCR). The Serbian-Hungarian border was rebuilt and secured with armed forces last weekend in order to maintain an orderly stream of refugees trying to get to Germany and Austria, where authorities promised them protection. William Spindler, a spokesman for UNHCR, says that registration systems and processes across the EU differ from country to country, and many don’t have the ability to register more than a few hundred a day (qtd. in Witte). According to Alexandra Krause, a UN representative at the Greek-Macedonian border, a record 7,000 people crossed the border in just one day in early September.As the EU, Turkey, Lebanon, and Jordan have extended a hand of help to most of the people fleeing the war torn countries, the richest states on the Arabian Peninsula have not stepped up to the plate. Rich gulf counties such as Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have so far failed to offer safe havens for the refugees fleeing their war torn countries. These Gulf countries are not signatories to the 1951 Refugee Convention and so they are not obligated to take in these refugees. These countries to varying degrees have supported and allied with various rebel and Islamic factions the region (Maslin). The international community should put pressure on these counties to help with the current situation. On the other hand, most of these countries in the region are allies of the United States and the U.S. should use its’ influence to persuade them to do more to resolve this humanitarian crisis.Role of the U.S.The question of what the U.S. role should be in addressing the growing humanitarian crisis has made for some harsh political debate and has raised a lot of controversies. A senior White House official told the NBC News that "the reality is the U.S. can't come close to solving the problem." (Jansing) Some lawmakers worry that accepting a large number of refugees could mean exposing the country to security risks. Some politicians don’t believe that it is our responsibility to resolve the refugee problem and that other countries such as the Arab gulf states “which are awash in oil money” should be the ones taking initiative to solve the issues (Williams). The U.S. has generally been a leader in humanitarian response; however they have never recovered from the post 9/11 fear that a terrorist may infiltrate their refugee resettlement program. According to Maher Samaan, less attention has been paid to the Syrian Arab Republic’s civil war and its victims since the rise of Islamic State due to the highly publicized violence and threat ISIS poses to the West. In October, due to escalating concerns about Islamic extremism in the West and following the killings of 130 people in Paris, the House?of Representatives voted overwhelmingly to make it more difficult for refugees from Iraq and Syria to enter the United States. Even though President Obama has repeatedly pushed back against warnings that ISIS could attack the United States by sending over fighters as refugees, the massacres in Paris and San Bernardino made Americans fearful about terrorism on their soil. This new legislation passed by the House would require that the director of the F.B.I., the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security and the director of national intelligence confirm that each applicant from Syria and Iraq poses no threat. On the other hand, antiwar activists, other politicians and other lawmakers argue the opposite. They posed that the U.S. has a moral obligation to aid and shelter refugees has they are partly responsible of the issue - it is tied to the Iraq war and its aftermath. The new legislation to toughen the refugee-screening process means shutting our doors to the desperate men, women and children who are risking their lives to escape death and torture in their homelands. Stephen Lendman, - a retired Chicago businessman who hosts a thrice weekly "Progressive Radio News Hour” states that, "If America stopped waging wars against independent countries, the refugee crises would not happen (Williams). The way to help the refugees is to stop these wars.” In fact, according to the public opinion, the underlying cause of the crisis is Syria's relentless civil war. And, as some of politicians pointed out, the implication of the west has a lot to do with it. As a world leader, America has a responsibility to take in more refugees to aid in the crisis (Newland). Thus, solving the conflict in Syria and elsewhere is essential for any lasting solution. Furthermore, according to Bashar al-Assad, “The West is "responsible" for the refugee crisis in Europe.” “The West now is crying for the refugees with one eye and aiming at them with a machine gun with the second one," Assad said "If you are worried about them [refugees], stop supporting terrorists" (Burke). Policy OptionsThe following are three policy options that offer the most humane and effective possibilities on how the United States can assist in resolving the severe humanitarian crisis of refugees. Diplomatic resolution to stop Syria’s warNumerous analysts have suggested that the best way the United States can prevent the creation of additional refugees is to use military force to remove the violent leaders causing them to flee (Jones). However, there are a lot of dangers in starting a military operation in Syria. It will create even more damage and force the rest of population to escape the region. Therefore, the safest and least costly solution to resolve the problem is to use diplomatic means. With the recent detection of Russian and Iranian financial and military backing of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad’s regime, United States officials should immediately initiate a conference with all sides involved in the conflict. U.S. officials need to propose models of political transition for the formation of a new government in Syria. Through negotiations among the involved sides, the resolution should include Russia, Iran as well as Assad’s army to stop its military actions in the region. This resolution should also achieve a cease-fire in Syria and establish further strategies to eradicate ISIS.Financial and technical support to Turkey, Lebanon, and JordanWith opinions divided among Americans as whether to accept more refugees into the U.S. or not, one scenario that can appease both sides is to look at an option that involves the U.S. devoting more resources to the refugees outside the United States. Turkey and?the less developed countries in the Middle East including Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt are shouldering the majority of the burden. With close to five million refugees between them, the major challenge these countries face is the lack of resources. They lack the resources to provide adequate shelter, food, water, clothing and health services for the huge influx of refugees. It will cost less money and pose nearly no security threat if America will provide financial and technical support to these countries. The United States should help these countries to develop their ability and?capacity to quickly build housing and other facilities needed for the refugees. The United States needs to also aid these countries with military and security resources to help them improve safety and maintain a sheltered environment for the large influx. With additional external help, these countries will have the ability to take in and care for more people. It will reduce the pressure on America and the European countries. This will significantly reduce the security threat that most Americans believe will arise with the intake of the refugees. Latest data and reports states that the US has provided- as September 21,2015 –?nearly $419 million for people affected by the war in Syria. This new funding brings the total U.S. humanitarian assistance in response to this conflict to more than $1.6 billion in fiscal year 2015 and over $4.5 billion since the start of the crisis.? U.S. humanitarian assistance has provided critical, life-saving support to more than five million people across Syria. More so, it will provide funding for shelters, water, and sanitation and hygiene projects to help those affected by the crisis.? It also will provide critical relief supplies and much-needed counseling and protection programs to help the most vulnerable, including children, women, persons with disabilities, and the elderly. It will help mitigate the impact of the crisis on governments and communities throughout the region that are straining to cope with the mass influx of refugees from Syria and other Middle East countries affected by the war. Part of the new funding will respond to the 2015 appeals of $8.4 billion from the United Nations for Syria and the region.? It is important to note that even with this contribution, the UN appeals for humanitarian aid to address the crisis in Syria are only 38% funded, resulting in cutbacks to food and other essential services.? Contributions from other donors are urgently needed and the United States continues to advocate for increased contributions through diplomacy and outreach (Office of the Spokesperson, 2015). Increasing intake of refugees in the U.S.The European Union has agreed to take in an additional 32,500 refugees from Syria and Eritrea over the next 2 years by a quota system (“Why is EU struggling”). If the United States implemented a similar quota system it would counter act the influx in population growth as opposed to taking large lump sum at once similar to Germany’s 800,000 applications for asylum. The United States currently takes about 70,000 refugees each year; to remain the leading country in moral and humanitarian efforts we must increase this number drastically, the 1,500 Syrian refugees taken in this past year is a number to be laughed at compared to the millions taken in by Turkey and Lebanon (Sengupta). However, we do acknowledge America’s efforts of agreeing to host 100,000 refugees from Syria this fiscal year beginning October 1st (Harris). All asylum seekers have to go through a complex and expensive legal process to prove that they are at risk of persecution and should be protected. To complement the vast scrutiny and thorough background checks of the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program, we should be assessing if refugees have friends or family already in America and look to unite friends and family before random placing. It is easy for people who have a warm bed and place to call home each and every night to cast immediate suspicion on taking in refugees. The claim that the refuges have ties to terrorist cells is a popular topic in politics especially during the current presidential campaign. Republican candidate Ben Carson state, “U.S. should bar refugees from war-torn Syria because they are "infiltrated" with Muslim extremists who seek to harm America” (Beaumont). This type of prejudice should not discourage you from keeping the policies and beliefs America to hold true. The policies and procedures laid out by U.S. Refugee Admissions Program will ensure the very people we are trying to help are not going to hurt us in the end. Refugees have a history of valuing education, hard work, and have been proven to help build our economies. Recommendations The current refugee crisis is not one that can be easily resolved because the issue here is multi-faceted. There is far too much violence occurring in the Middle East – both from the political factions as well as extremist terrorist groups such as ISIS. Unless a resolution can be reached that will quell the carnage, the crisis will continue until every oppressed Syrian has fled from their country and found refuge elsewhere. The implementation of a combination of all proposed policy options presented will ensure safety and security for millions of victims of the conflict in the Middle East region. The diplomatic negotiations must be continued in order to begin the process of stabilizing the country in order to make it a safe place for the Syrian people to return. This proposal is one that is currently being tackled by the U.S. administration as well as the governments of several other countries. This conflict is complex, but a diplomatic solution must be found.The second proposal is to provide greater financial and technical support to the neighboring Middle Eastern countries. This option would help in the humanitarian effort by reducing the number of refugees who are risking their lives on perilous journeys trying to get to Europe in search of safety and a better life. The millions of displaced people in Syria and the neighboring countries are causing a major economic strain and depletion of the countries’ resources, an impact on their job markets and growing hostility from their citizens. It is ultimately causing the neighboring countries to turn away refugees who are in desperate need of help and asylum. We believe that equipping the neighboring countries with the resources they would need to take in a greater number of refugees may be significantly less costly than other options, and would provide these countries with the financial support to build housing facilities and secure necessary resources for the refugees. The implementation of the third proposal to increase refugee intake to 70,000, with fifty percent coming from Syria consisting of mostly women and children, will directly help victims of the conflict. If the recent bill to toughen refugee screening passes the Senate, we recommend President Obama to stay on his course and veto the bill. Mr. Obama in his speeches emphasizes that refugees are already subject to “the most rigorous vetting process that we have for anybody who is admitted” (Steinhauer). These individuals will be subject to the already established refugee security screening, which is detailed and rigorous, in order to ensure our citizens that the refugees do not pose a national security risk. The non-governmental agencies that carry most of the preparation casework for Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) interviews can speed up their involvement process of accepting refugees. These processes involve pre USCIS approval and post USCIS approval. It involves interviewing applicants, helping prepare the applications for the USCIS and arrange medical examinations and background checks for those refugees approved by USCIS. They also prepare the resettlement arrangements for the refugees after they have been approved. We understand the vital importance and time associated with background searches and security checks cannot be compromised. We are suggesting no change in that portion of the admissions process however what we are proposing is that the most relevant part of the process that can be expedited is the preparation, the medical examination and the resettlement arrangements. Here in lies practical areas that can be moved along while not posing a security threat to the United States and continuing to make Americans feel safe at home. In addition, priority will be given to those refugees who have family members that are U.S. citizens and can provide an affidavit ensuring financial sponsorship of the refugee. This clause will decrease the costs endured by our government to financially support the refugees and would accelerate and ease the assimilation process. Decreased costs and a path to assimilation are advantages that can be used to positively influence public opinion to welcoming refugees into our country. The movement of refugees is expected to continue on a significant scale. This humanitarian crisis requires urgent attention. Refugees face severe humanitarian and protection challenges related to extreme poverty, the suffering throughout the crossing, abuses of smugglers, and the closure of the borders. Our recommendations offer the most humane and effective possibilities on how the United States can remain one of the key faces of the refugee crisis without causing harms to America. We need to make sure that we do not allow fears about what the refugee crisis represents to override our concern for our fellow human beings.Thank you for your attention and support for this issue. Appendix As demonstrated in the chart bellow the Refugee Admission Process is intricate. Sources: Population estimates, CIA World Factbook; refugee estimates?UNHCR 30th Nov 2015Video of Secretary of Homeland Security Jah Johnson explaining the process of screening Syrian refugees: CitedBeaumont, Thomas. "Republican Hopeful Carson Says No to Syrian Refugees in US." Journal Times. Associated Press, 02 Oct. 2015. Web. 04 Oct. 2015.Birnbaum, Michael. "Refugee Crisis: Five Ways for Europe to Solve It."?The Sydney Morning Herald. SMH, 09 Sept. 2015. Web. 15 Sept. 2015.Burke, Sarah. “Syria’s president Assad blames West for Europe Refugee Crisis”. ?NBC News. 16 Sep. 2015. Web 04 Oct 2015Corabatir, Metir. "When It Comes to Refugees, Terminology Matters." Al Jazeera. Research Centre on Asylum and Migration, 1 Sept. 2015. Web. 15 Sept. 2015."Frontex | News - More than 500 000 Migrants Detected at EU External Borders so Far This Year." Frontex Europa. EU Border Agency, 14 Sept. 2015. Web. 15 Sept. 2015.Harris, Gardiner, David E. Sanger, and David Herszenhortn. "Obama Increases Number of Syrian Refugees for U.S. Resettlement to 10,000." The New York Times. The New York Times, 10 Sept. 2015. Web. 04 Oct. 2015.Jones, Walter C. "Nunn Calls for 'diplomatic Solution' to Refugee Crises." . Savannah Morning News, 2 Oct. 2015. Web. 4 Oct. 2015.Maslin, Jared. "Why Some Arabs States Refuse to Accept Syrian Refugees." Time. Time, 2 Sept. 2015. Web. 04 Oct. 2015.Newland, Kathleen. “Why the US should do more for refugees.”? CNN Opinion Section. 09 Sep. 2015. Web 04 Oct. 2015?Richard, Anne. "The Syrian Refugee Crisis." N.d. MS. U.S. Department of State. . 7 Jan. 2014. Web. 4 Oct. 2015. Rummery, Ariane. "Worsening Conditions inside Syria and the Region Fuel Despair, Driving Thousands towards Europe." UNHCR News. UNHCR Geneva, 8 Sept. 2015. Web. 15 Sept. 2015.Samaan, Maher, and Anne Barnard. "For Those Who Remain in Syria, Daily Life Is a Nightmare." The New York Times. The New York Times, 15 Sept. 2015. Web. 15 Sept. 2015."The Sea Route to Europe: The Mediterranean Passage in the Age of Refugees." UNHCR News. UNHCR, 1 July 2015. Web. 14 Sept. 2015.Sengupta, Somini. "Migrant or Refugee? There Is a Difference, With Legal Implications." The New York Times. The New York Times, 27 Aug. 2015. Web. 04 Oct. 2015.Steinhauer, Jennifer, and Michael Shear. "House Approves Tougher Refugee Screening, Defying Veto Threat." The New York Times. The New York Times, 19 Nov. 2015. Web. 07 Dec. 2015.Tasch, Barbara, and Mike Nudelman. "The Routes of Europe's Refugee Nightmare." Business Insider. Business Insider, Inc, 15 Sept. 2015. Web. 16 Sept. 2015."The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, UDHR, Declaration of Human Rights, Human Rights Declaration, Human Rights Charter, The Un and Human Rights." UN News Center. UN, n.d. Web. 13 Sept. 2015."Why Is EU Struggling with Migrants and Asylum? - BBC News." BBC News. N.p., 21 Sept. 2015. Web. 04 Oct. 2015.Williams Carrol? J . “US response to refugee crisis is nowhere near that of Europe.” Los Angeles Times. 03 Sep. 2015. Web.? 04 Oct 2015Witte, Griff, and Anthony Faiola. "At Choke Points on the Way to Western Europe, Chaos and Growing Frustration."?Washington Post. The Washington Post, 08 Sept. 2015. Web. 16 Sept. 2015.Yourish, Karen, K.K. Rebecca Lai, and Derek Watkins. "How Syrians Are Dying." The New York Times. The New York Times, 14 Sept. 2015. Web. 15 Sept. 2015."1951 Convention and Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees." UNHCR News. UNHCR Geneva, n.d. Web. 13 Sept. 2015. ??? ................
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