The latest global study indicates that there were over 11.4 million refugees by the end of 2007 who had fled from their countries due to war conflicts or persecution and about 26 million IDPs, and therefore there are many people who do not live in their homes and about whom the UNHCR has to take care after.

 

We are facing today a complex mixture of world problems that could lead to even more massive forceful displacement in the future. World’s hot spots conflicts, dictatorships, climate changes, prices increase are some of the problems which mainly affect the poorest population causing instability in many regions.

 

The overall number of refugees who are under the UNHCR protection increased from 9.9 to 11.4 million up to the end of 2007. The number of IDPs (within the one state) has increased from 24.4 to 26 million. UNHCR today protects or assists directly or indirectly 13.7 million people, what is considerably more compared to 12.8 million in 2006. The number of refugees or IDPs under the UNHCR protection in 2007 increased by 2.5 million, and by the end of  the year reached 25.1 million.

 

As far as the refugees are concerned, it is stated in report that Afghani (almost 3 million, mainly in Pakistan and Iran) and Iraqi (almost 2 million, mainly in Syria and Jordan) account for almost one half of all refugees under the UNHCR protection in 2007, then follow Columbians (552, 000), Sudanese (523, 000) and Somali (457, 000). The report states that the increase of the number of refugees in 2007 is due to instable situation in Iraq. The countries which received the biggest number of refugees in 2007 are Pakistan, Syria, Iran, Germany and Jordan.

 

647, 000 individual asylum claims or refugee status claims were submitted to the authorities and UNHCR offices in 154 countries last year - 5% more and the first increase for the past four years.

 

According to UNHCR data, Serbia is the only country in Europe which faces long-lasting refugee crisis. The number of refugees dropped – from 550, 000 in 1996 to only 90, 000 today. The state should consider resolving of their status as one of priorities, and that problem should be resolved through a comprehensive strategy and a dialogue of the countries in the region.

 

Durable solution for refugees in Serbia is either their voluntary return to Croatia or Bosnia or local integration in our society. Serbs from Croatia are facing problems in repossessing their property, tenancy/occupancy rights and convalidation of registered working years/pension contribution, while the situation in Bosnia is slightly better in that respect. Local integration in Serbia includes facilitated procedure for obtaining the citizenship along with all accompanying rights.

 

Serbia also faces difficulties with more than 209, 000 IDPs from Kosovo, who do not have a refugee status as they are Serbian citizens. By far the largest proportion of Serbs from Kosovo still lives in collective centers, they are unemployed, don’t possess ID documents and many lost the members of their families.

 

Along with Sudan and Tanzania in Africa, Myanmar, Afghanistan and Pakistan in Asia, Serbia is among the countries which have the biggest number of refugees, expellees and IDPs. According to UNHCR data, there are in total 320, 000 refugees and IDPs in Serbia, while the number of 18, 000 returnees to Kosovo and Metohija is “pretty devastating”.

 

The donors have already been a bit exhausted with our refugee story; however, we must keep reassuring them in how important is to resolve a refugee and IDP issue. This is impossible without a political dialogue and there is a framework for it. Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and at that time Serbia and Montenegro adopted the Sarajevo Declaration containing everything what should be done on the issue. For the past several years UNHCR has invested almost a half billion US dollars in resolving the problems of refugees in Serbia, while national budget allocations have been even more substantial.