As a Tibetan stateless refugee with lived experience in advocacy, activism, and defending Tibetan women’s rights, I often participated in the UN Human Rights Council and its mechanisms. Due to our status, the Tibetan Women’s Association did not have any ECOSOC status, and we had to look for access to make statements on behalf of ally organizations. However, my experience as a Tibetan Canadian making a statement as part of the Canadian delegation and the RAN Canada was very different, meaningful, and empowering.

• I couldn’t help but reflect on my situation and participation as a refugee expert leader to the GRF 2023 as a Canadian citizen. I could not have done it if I was without any status. This stood out for me in meaningful participation in the UNHCR system. I was a member of the refugee expert group, which facilitated the co-creation of the global pledge and the development of country-level commitments by UN Country Teams (UNCTs). I could contribute and peer review country team pledges and commitments, provide feedback, and have discussions leading to meaningful engagement.
• The afternoon after we made our statement at the plenary, I was with Minister Miller, Ambassador Newton, Minister Counsellor Munroe, Mellisa Tam, Jen Castello, and the team and shared my above emotions. It was a team hug; everyone appreciated my sentiments and statement and recognized my contribution to advocating refugee protection.
• The outcome of the collaborative spirit and effort among the UNHCR and its entities, member states, the private sector, World Bank, refugee-led organizations, faith groups, refugees, and civil society members was amazing, which resulted in over 1600 pledges, including $2.2 billion financial multistakeholder pledges. Such partnership could work wonders for global conflict resolution if there were political will to resolve the root causes at their core. The financial resources could be spent on capacity building and strengthening refugee advancement and its potential for economic development of the host countries.
• Refugee participation was reported as more than 300, a tenfold increase from the 2019 GRF, and it was inspiring to see the young Rohingya women who spoke about their stateless and displaced situation at the Rohingya High-level event. Resettlement, girls and women’s education, LGBTQ issues, employment, and mobility pathways were highlighted by the Canadian delegation. It was a joy to see advisor Maysoun Darweesh announce the resettlement pledge on behalf of Canada’s resettlement program. RAN Canada’s growth from its establishment in 2020 to the GRF 2023 is promising and reflective of its potential finding advocate for global refugee advancement and find durable solutions.

The GRF certainly was a platform to make connections, advocate, continue to make changes to the future developments of refugee protection and uphold the accountability of all the pledges and promises made at the GRF 2023. All stakeholders must follow up, seek accountability from our member states, and exchange information.

Read Canada’s multistakeholder pledges here:

Observing how refugee advisors were tokenized at the GRF was challenging. While Canada, the United States, Australia, Brazil, and New Zealand stood up for providing meaningful representation and the opportunity to make national statements at the GRF, refugee advisors in a number of other delegations struggled to influence their delegations and were not able to play as prominent a role in the actions of their delegations during the GRF. I also felt that making a statement alone does not indicate meaningful participation, and one must feel engaged in all areas of multilateral stakeholder negotiations.

I was able to connect with our refugee advisors from the expert group network and allies working on the Stateless and forced displacement groups. Many had a good impression of Canada’s progressive approach to refugee participation at international meetings.

Written by: Tsering Norzom Thonsur, Refugee Advisor, RAN Canada

January 11, 2023

The Refugee Advisory Network of Canada (RAN Canada) organized its inaugural webinar titled “Meaningful Refugee Participation: Taking Stock and Charting the Way Forward” in celebration of World Refugee Day on June 20, 2023. With 53 participants from 10 different countries, the webinar explored the concept of meaningful refugee participation and discuss its significance in improving the lives of refugees. The panel featured representatives from four refugee-led organizations (RLOs), including Dr. Hourie Tafech from United States Refugee Advisory Board (USRAB), Rabia Talal Almbaid from New Zealand Refugee Advisory Panel (NZRAP), Mustafa Alio from Refugees Seeking Equal Access to Table (R-SEAT), and Tsering Norzom Thonsur from Refugee Advisory Network of Canada (RAN Canada). The panel discussion was moderated by Dawit Demoz from RAN Canada.

During the panel discussion, the participants briefly shared their perspectives on what meaningful refugee participation meant to them. Dr. Tafech stated that meaningful refugee participation should aim for normalization, where refugees do not have to advocate for their place at decision-making tables. Rabia emphasized the importance of ensuring that all refugees’ voices, including those who consider themselves former refugees, are heard and valued. Tsering expressed her encouragement from this year’s World Refugee Day, where the hope carried by refugees should be matched by non-refugees. Mustafa highlighted that meaningful refugee participation is a learning curve and a means to achieve better outcomes, calling for patience and mutual efforts between refugee advisors and governments.

The webinar provided valuable insights into the concept of meaningful refugee participation and the challenges and opportunities associated with it. The panelists emphasized the need for sustained collaboration, genuine intention from governments, and equitable representation to advance meaningful refugee participation. The discussion highlighted the role of CSOs, evidence-based research, and refugee voices in shaping policies and improving the lives of refugees. The panelists emphasized that meaningful refugee participation is a continuous learning process and called for ongoing efforts to ensure better outcomes for all refugees.

The conversation can be followed on , where they welcome further engagement and feedback on the topic of meaningful refugee participation. To learn more about RAN Canada, please visit their .

Full Webinar Report | Rapport de webinaire complet

Webinar Participants

Moderator

Dawit Demoz

Advisor, RAN Canada; Program Manager, Jumpstart Refugee Talent

Full Profile

Panelists

Mustafa Alio

Co-Managing Director, R-SEAT

Full Profile

Tsering Norzom Thonsur

Advisor, RAN Canada; Manager, Settlement Program, Parkdale Intercultural Association

Full Profile

Hourie Tafech

Advisor, USRAB (United States Refugee Advisory Board); Program Manager, Refugees International

Full Profile

Rabia Talal Almbaid

Panelist, New Zealand Refugee Advisory Panel

Full Profile

This report was prepared by Nadeea Rahim, LERRN Research Support and Program Officer.

For enquiries relating to this statement, contact RAN Canada: all@rancanada.ca

Version française ci-dessous

Statement by the Refugee Advisory Network of Canada to the Government of Canada on Humanitarian Response to Resettle Afghan Refugees and Migrants

Following the extremely horrifying and devastating situation in Afghanistan including the siege of Kabul and Kandahar by Taliban, the world is witnessing firsthand the sense of fear among many Afghan nationals. The Government of Canada’s commitment to resettle 20, 000 Afghan refugees focusing on women, girls, LGBTQI+ individuals and targeted minorities is very commendable and promises to address this gross humanitarian crisis.

Ahead of the September 20th elections announced by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, the sensitivities around this evolving humanitarian crisis cannot and should not be undermined. At-risk Afghans fleeing atrocities in their home state associated with political tools and aspirations contradicts the tenets of humanitarian interventions and protecting persons forced to flee. Similarly, evacuation plans to resettle at-risk Afghan nationals should not be considered as a substitute to commitments to Afghans already awaiting humanitarian and refugee assistance.

While the Afghanistan situation is of drastic and immediate concern, Canada and the international community cannot forget the equally important humanitarian assistance needed in other dire situations and countries like Haiti and Ethiopia. The tragic effects of this 7.2 magnitude earthquake in Haiti includes a death toll of more than 2,200 people and about 60,000 homes destroyed. This is a reminder that concerns around climate change cannot remain marginalized. Likewise, the great famine, mass murder and gender-based violence resulting from the armed conflicts in Ethiopia’s Tigray region cannot be merely talking points by the international humanitarian community. A lot more needs to be done.

The Government of Canada’s contributions and commitments thus far have been very commendable. We, the Refugee Advisory Network of Canada encourage the government to scale up these efforts as the needs for global humanitarian assistance continue to evolve.

DĂ©claration du RĂ©seau consultatif canadien pour les rĂ©fugiĂ©s au gouvernement du Canada sur l’intervention humanitaire visant Ă  rĂ©installer les rĂ©fugiĂ©s et les migrants afghans

Ă€ la suite de la situation extrĂŞmement horrifiante et dĂ©vastatrice en Afghanistan, notamment le siège de Kaboul et de Kandahar par les Talibans, le monde est le tĂ©moin direct du sentiment de peur chez de nombreux ressortissants afghans. L’engagement du gouvernement du Canada Ă  rĂ©installer 20 000 rĂ©fugiĂ©s afghans en mettant l’accent sur les femmes, les filles, les personnes LGBTQI+ et les minoritĂ©s ciblĂ©es est très louable et promet de rĂ©pondre Ă  cette crise humanitaire flagrante.

Ă€ l’approche des Ă©lections du 20 septembre annoncĂ©es par le Premier ministre Justin Trudeau, les sensibilitĂ©s liĂ©es Ă  cette crise humanitaire en constante Ă©volution ne peuvent et ne doivent pas ĂŞtre nĂ©gligĂ©es. Les Afghans en danger qui fuient les atrocitĂ©s commises dans leur pays d’origine en raison d’outils et d’aspirations politiques contredisent les principes des interventions humanitaires et de la protection des personnes forcĂ©es Ă  fuir. De mĂŞme, les plans d’Ă©vacuation visant Ă  rĂ©installer les ressortissants afghans Ă  risque ne doivent pas ĂŞtre considĂ©rĂ©s comme un substitut aux engagements pris envers les Afghans qui attendent impatiemment de l’aide humanitaire et une assistance aux rĂ©fugiĂ©s.

Bien que la situation de l’Afghanistan soit une prĂ©occupation drastique et immĂ©diate, le Canada et la communautĂ© internationale ne peuvent pas oublier l’aide humanitaire tout aussi importante qui est nĂ©cessaire dans d’autres situations dĂ©sastreuses et dans des pays comme HaĂŻti et l’Éthiopie. Les effets tragiques de ce tremblement de terre de magnitude 7,2 en HaĂŻti comprennent un bilan de plus de 2 200 morts et environ 60 000 maisons dĂ©truites. Cela nous rappelle que les prĂ©occupations liĂ©es au changement climatique ne peuvent rester marginalisĂ©es. De mĂŞme, la grande famine, les meurtres de masse et la violence sexiste rĂ©sultant des conflits armĂ©s dans la rĂ©gion du TigrĂ© en Éthiopie ne doivent pas ĂŞtre de simples sujets de discussion pour la communautĂ© humanitaire internationale. Il faut en faire beaucoup plus.

Les contributions et les engagements du gouvernement du Canada jusqu’Ă  prĂ©sent ont Ă©tĂ© très satisfaisants. Toutefois, nous, le RĂ©seau consultatif canadien sur les rĂ©fugiĂ©s, encourageons le gouvernement Ă  intensifier ses efforts, car les besoins d’aide humanitaire mondiale continuent Ă  s’accroĂ®tre.

Plans for a Refugee Advisory Network follow the results of a September 2019 policy dialogue co-hosted by LERRN and the and involving a number of refugee leaders and civil society partners. It builds on the pivotal experience of LERRN Advisor ˛ŃłÜ˛őłŮ˛ą´Ú˛ąĚý´ˇ±ôľ±´Ç, who was named as the first ever official Refugee Advisor to the Delegation of Canada, headed by the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Marco Mendicino, to the inaugural Global Refugee Forum in Geneva in December 2019.

The launch of the Refugee Advisory Network, which has been endorsed by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, represents an important step forward in ensuring that refugees can engage in a direct and meaningful way in global policy discussions. LERRN believes that policy partners stand to benefit from the expertise offered by former refugees, whose ideas for solutions are rooted in their experience of the realities of forced displacement.

The Refugee Advisory Network will be comprised of a group of refugee leaders in Canada who are actively engaged in diverse aspects of global refugee policy discussions and connected to global refugee networks. Members of the Network will be selected through an open and competitive process supported by a Selection Committee that includes representatives from civil society, academia and prominent former refugees. During their two-year term, Members will benefit from mentorship and capacity-building opportunities to enhance their ability to constructively engage with the global refugee policy process.

The Network will be a resource that the Government of Canada can draw on for including refugee participants and advisors to future delegations to international meetings on the refugee system.

In endorsing the launch of the Refugee Advisory Network, Minister Mendicino stated: “We are proud to build on Canada’s leadership demonstrated at the Global Refugee Forum in Geneva to support this new initiative by The Local Engagement Refugee Research Network (LERRN). The initiative will amplify the voices of refugees so that they can better shape the policies that affect them. Having the experiences and insights of refugees at the table will strengthen Canada’s contributions to the international refugee system.”

For up-to-date info, visit the RAN Canada landing page: