The United Nations delivered a warning to the U.S. in a new report, suggesting that the rising number of women and refugees fleeing their homes in Central America warrant urgent attention. The escalating gang violence spurring the mass, forcible migration is the same catalyst of the so-called surge of migrants that saw over 66,000 unaccompanied children last year, and intensifying again in recent weeks.
“The dramatic refugee crises we are witnessing in the world today are not confined to the Middle East or Africa,” Antonio Guterres, UN High Commissioner for Refugees, said. “We are seeing another refugee situation unfolding in the Americas. This report is an early warning to raise awareness of the challenges refugee women face and a call to action to respond regionally to a looming refugee crisis.”
Women on the Run, the UN Report, asks that other countries in the Western Hemisphere recognize this as a refugee crisis to ensure there are appropriate safeguards and safety nets for these potential refugees as they reach and breach borders and escape violence in their hometowns. The report interviewed 160 women from the Northern Triangle, who detailed a “pervasive and systemic” level of criminal armed gang violence, and a murder rate that ranks among the worst in the world. With wealthy nations like the United States now playing host to these waves of immigrants, a red carpet has not necessarily been rolled out for their welcome.
“Many of the women interviewed were relieved and thankful to have found safety in the United States, in particular,” the report reads. “Yet the women profiled in this report described numerous obstacles to finding safety, including facing dangerous journeys, detention, and in certain instances, (re-victimized) from countries of asylum.”
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