BRIAN BARBOUR
BRIAN BARBOUR is based in Sydney, Australia, but works regionally throughout the Asia- Pacific region. He currently serves as Regional Refugee Protection Advisor for Act for Peace. He is also an Affiliate at the Andrew & Renata Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law at the University of New South Wales, where he is a PhD candidate researching the set-up of state asylum systems. Brian has conducted research with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), as a Refugee Status Determination (RSD) expert consultant, to develop tools and guidance to support the transition of the RSD function from UNHCR to a new state asylum system, on backlog prevention and reduction, and on building and strengthening the institutions responsible for RSD and related services. Brian is admitted to the New York Bar as an Attorney and Counselor-at-Law and has worked in the field of refugee protection for more than ten years.

The democratization movement launched in Gwangju, and the sacrifices made in pursuit of democracy, set in motion fundamental changes in Korea that remain today. Participation at the annual May 18 Memorial Ceremony and Gwangju Asia Forum this year was a powerful reminder of the importance of memory and learning. It also provided evidence of the impact that can be had by those who passionately commit to democratization movements and refugee protection, even in the face of a seemingly intractable and overwhelming force.

Throughout the Forum, practitioners working at the national and regional level detailed their work and the current state of affairs for refugees in several countries in the Asia-Pacific. Challenges are tremendous. Those who need protection are often unable to secure it. Laws and procedures are often absent, and where they exist, are often inefficient, ineffective, and unfair. The risk of human rights abuses and exploitation are high, and xenophobia and racism are on the rise.

Regionally, we heard that there are very large numbers of refugees, but very few countries with laws or systems to protect them. In Southeast Asia, we heard about the lack of systems, about rights violations, and about the hidden reality of refugees. In East Asia, we heard about the low recognition rate, problems with procedures and narrow interpretations, and xenophobia among the population.

We heard also that in many, perhaps all, of these countries (and globally for that matter), there is a trend among governments, in politics, and among an increasingly bold and extreme neo-nationalism, to “generate a narrative” that is anti-refugee and anti-migrant.

But, at the same time, what was evident from the scope of work being engaged in by participants in the Forum, was that if we step back and look at the region from a distance and over a longer period of time, we can see the good, and the inevitability of progress.

The countries of South Asia are hosting millions of the world’s refugees, much more than the rest of Asia, and much more than most of the rest of the world, and they have been doing so for decades. There are informal and ad hoc schemes that exist. Those hosted are finding their own way to survive and raise their families. Many civil society groups welcome refugees as their neighbors, and a growing number of civil society partners and lawyers are intervening to support them.

The countries of South East Asia are all seeing some momentum; some glimmer of progress. Indonesia has its Presidential Decree, while municipal governments, and even the fishermen of Aceh are taking ownership of refugee protection. Thailand is developing a screening mechanism to recognize refugees. The new Malaysian Government has declared that it wants to be a leader for the Palestinian and Rohingya refugee crises and that it will consider signing the refugee convention. Cambodia has already signed the Convention and is developing systems. The Philippines has always been a leader in this region, the first to sign the Refugee Convention, the first to have a Statelessness status determination system, the first to serve as an emergency transit location for those awaiting resettlement who are at risk.

The countries of East Asia have developing asylum systems, through which refugees can actually be granted asylum, enjoy rights, and eventually even become citizens.

In all of these countries, and everywhere in the Asia Pacific, civil society leadership is strong and growing. Organizations are working strategically to make a difference and change things for refugees. For example, a growing unified network is standing in solidarity with each other through the Asia Pacific Refugee Rights Network, and standing in solidarity with refugees themselves to support their leadership in the pursuit of protection.

This is not to say that the current state of affairs is satisfactory. The good fight must continue on a daily basis and at every level global, regional, national, and local; but progress can be seen and with continued efforts is inevitable.

Things may get worse before they get better. There may be dramatic setbacks. People are suffering and will continue to suffer unnecessarily from poorly formed policies and procedures, a lack of laws, discrimination and xenophobia, and rampant rights violations. But those engaged in protection work can support each other, in solidarity, and remind governments, international institutions, regional actors, and others that refugee protection is not controversial. It is not controversial, because the right thing to do is also the most effective and most efficient thing to do, and it is also what the law requires.

It is a testament to progress that the Forum presented details about a higher education program that has been initiated in Japan, providing scholarships for refugees. The congratulations for this initiative can certainly be shared among universities, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), civil society, and others, but the initiative is largely the product of refugee leadership. Refugees in Japan often have to struggle and sustain a superhuman perseverance to overcome the challenges and barriers that are placed in their way. While many actors assist to remove barriers, or simply be a voice of encouragement; usually refugees themselves who achieve not only a place for themselves, but for other refugees as well, and for many others among the communities that they are a part of.

How do we address the growing xenophobia in the current global political climate and among societies? Perhaps the best way is to encourage inter-personal interaction. To spend time with each other, learn about each other, and know each other. Welcome them, live with them, talk to them and help each other, and before long it will no longer be them, it will be us.