"Keep them safe!" - the campain is launched today -

Victims of generalised violence lack protection in the Nordic countries - this has to change now!

Persons fleeing both generalised and more targeted forms of violence cannot rely on protection in the Nordic countries.
Instead they have to endure years of meaningless and anxious waiting for authorities to decide on their destiny. Many are rejected but not returned. Instead, they are left in a situation of legal limbo without basic rights and future perspective.

Many disintegrate little by little with "normal life" slipping further and further from reach. At the end may be deportation, often forcibly, back to the conflict and human rights violations in a home country like Iraq, Somalia or Sri Lanka.

"Keep them safe" is a Nordic campaign which aims to get governments in the region to acknowledge that people fleeing generalised violence and conflict are in need of international protection and ensure they get such.
As a minimum, Nordic governments must respect the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) recommendations regarding international protection needs of asylum-seekers.

The campaign is launched 25 September 2007 and will run till the end of December 2007, in all five Nordic countries.

The campaign includes regional press materials, a signature petition, national initiatives and a closure event in Stockholm (follow event calendar).

The campaign encourages everyone to stand up for the right to asylum and international protection from violations, conflict and persecution.
It calls upon the Nordic governments to live by both the letter and spirit of the international conventions they have committed to.

Twenty Nordic non-governmental organizations are behind this campaign.
(.... among them ....)
Amnesty International - Iceland
Icelandic Human Rights Centre
Rauði kross Íslands / Red Cross Iceland

The Campaigners want:

• Nordic governments to recognise the protection gap existing in relation to people fleeing generalised violence.
• Nordic governments to commit to finding ways to address the protection gap in relation to people fleeing generalised violence.
• Nordic governments as a minimum to respect the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) recommendations regarding international protection needs of asylum-seekers.
• The general public to support this call for meaningful and effective international protection of people fleeing generalised violence and conflict.

- taken from the campaining-site http://magnea.se/projekt/nordiccampaign/ -