Joint EU-UNHCR project -“Strengthening the Protection Capacity in the Republic of Belarus – phase II”

Seminar on refugee protectionfor executive authorities and self-governance bodies

Minsk, 8th of October 2010 

PRESS-RELEASE

A seminar for executive authorities and self-governance bodies of the Minsk region will be held in Minsk on October 8, 2010 (venue: conference hall of the Minsk Region Executive Committee, Engels street 4, 5th floor). The seminar is jointly organized by UNHCR Representation in the Republic of Belarus and executive authorities of the Minsk region. It is a continuation of a planned set of similar events, which already took place in Brest, Gomel, Grodno and Minsk in 2008–2010.

During the event, regional executive authorities and representatives of self-governance bodies will discuss international and European standards in the area of refugee protection as well as with specifics of the national asylum system of Belarus. Representatives of central and local state authorities, the National Assembly, international and non-governmental organizations will also take part.

The seminar is implemented in the framework of the joint EU-UNHCR project “Strengthening the Protection Capacity in the Republic of Belarus – phase II”, which complements UNHCR's Regional Protection Programme (RPP) and  the roadmap set forth in UNHCR’s 10-Point Plan of Action for the effective protection of asylum-seekers in mixed migration movements in Central and Eastern Europe.

The project aims at further developing and consolidating the protection monitoring mechanisms and procedures that have been established in Belarus in 2007-2008. Its purpose is to ensure free and unhampered access of asylum-seekers to the territory, asylum information as well as fair and efficient refugee status determination procedure.

In particular, project activities are focused on the following areas:

  1. Referral procedures from the police to the migration authorities at the Belarusian-Russian border and within the country.
  2. Country-of-origin information system.
  3. Technical capacity of the existing computerized refugee registration system.
  4. Identification procedures in the country.
  5. Knowledge and skills of officers of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and State Border Committee working with specific refugee protection issues.
  6. Awareness-raising aimed at the distinction between asylum-seekers and irregular migrants among the general public.

The total budget of this joint EU-UNHCR three-year initiative amounts to €888,431 to which the EU contributed 80% and UNHCR 20% of the funding.

For any other additional information: contact Mr. Timofey Solodkov, UNHCR Belarus Programme Assistant. Tel: +375 17 2983335(37); Fax: +375 17 2982369; e-mail: solodkov@unhcr.org.

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