UNOG Bi-weekly press briefing: El Salvador - UNHCR
/
1:37
/
MP4
/
120.6 MB

Edited News | UNHCR , UNOG

UNOG Bi-weekly press briefing: El Salvador - UNHCR

New law in El Salvador will help “tens of thousands” of internally displaced people, says UN Refugee Agency

El Salvador’s new legislation to help people internally displaced by violence will help tens of thousands of people who have been displaced by gang violence and organized crime, the UN Refugee Agency said today.

UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, welcomes El Salvador’s passage of legislation to protect, aid and offer durable solutions to people internally displaced in the Central American nation due to violence from organized crime and criminal gangs, as well as those who may be at risk of displacement,” spokesperson Elizabeth Throssell said.

“The legislation, passed by a resounding majority in El Salvador’s National Assembly on January 9, opens the door for tens of thousands of victims of forced displacement in the country to gain access to life-saving humanitarian assistance, and to have their basic rights restored, including effective access to justice,” she added. “ The law further provides for the establishment, for the first time, of a comprehensive national system that brings together a wide variety of State institutions to collaborate in responding to and preventing forced displacement.”

Once signed by President Nayib Bukele, the law would have a lasting positive impact on the lives of the 71,500 Salvadorans estimated to have been forcibly displaced between 2006 and 2016 within their country’s borders, the UN agency said. Tens of thousands more who are at risk of being forced to flee their homes would also be helped, Ms. Throssell said.

The text of the legislation on internal displacement, drafted with technical support from UNHCR, aligns with the UN Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement and with other international standards that describe the rights of internally displaced persons, including the right to request and receive humanitarian assistance, protection of family unity, an adequate standard of living and durable solutions. It also establishes mechanisms to allow those affected by internal displacement to protect and reclaim property they may have been forced to abandon in their flight.

The law reflects the growing momentum In Central America and beyond to recognize and respond to the phenomenon of internal displacement, according to UNHCR. In Honduras, where an estimated 247,000 people have been displaced by violence within their own country, the National Congress is considering legislation similar to the law passed in El Salvador. Mexico also recognizes the serious impact of internal displacement and has expressed its commitment to pass legislation on the issue at the federal level.

UNHCR reiterated its readiness to continue offering technical and operational assistance to the governments of Central America and Mexico to help them mitigate the causes and consequences of forced displacement, in line with their commitments as part of a regional alliance to provide comprehensive protection and solutions to the issue called the Comprehensive Regional Protection and Solutions Framework, known by its Spanish-language acronym, MIRPS.

The legislation in El Salvador comes in the context of a global push to find solutions for the millions of people around the globe who are internally displaced within the boundaries of their own countries.

Speaking to the media at the United Nations in Geneva, Throssell recalled that “in October, the United Nations Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, established a High-level Panel on Internal Displacement to increase global attention and advance solutions for this issue which affects more than 40 million people worldwide due to conflict and violence.

  1. Wide shot: exterior, flag alley, Palais des Nations, United Nations Geneva.
  2. Wide shot, press briefing room
  3. Close-up, journalist
  4. SOUNDBITE (EN) Elizabeth Throssell, spokesperson for the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR): “UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, welcomes El Salvador’s passage of legislation to protect, aid and offer durable solutions to people internally displaced in the Central American nation due to violence from organized crime and criminal gangs, as well as those who may be at risk of displacement.”
  5. Medium Shot, journalists
  6. SOUNDBITE (EN) Elizabeth Throssell, spokesperson for the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR): “The legislation, passed by a resounding majority in El Salvador’s National Assembly on January 9, opens the door for tens of thousands of victims of forced displacement in the country to gain access to life-saving humanitarian assistance, and to have their basic rights restored, including effective access to justice. The law further provides for the establishment, for the first time, of a comprehensive national system that brings together a wide variety of State institutions to collaborate in responding to and preventing forced displacement.”
  7. Close-up, journalist
  8. SOUNDBITE (EN) Elizabeth Throssell, spokesperson for the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR): “In October, the United Nations Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, established a High-level Panel on Internal Displacement to increase global attention and advance solutions for this issue which affects more than 40 million people worldwide due to conflict and violence.”
  9. Medium shot: journalists typing
  10. Wide Shot podium
  11. Close-up, journalists

Similar Stories

UN Human Rights Spokesperson Jeremy Laurence on attacks around aid sites in Gaza

1

1

1

Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG

UN Human Rights Spokesperson Jeremy Laurence on attacks around aid sites in Gaza ENG FRA

“Deadly attacks on distraught civilians trying to access the paltry amounts of food aid in Gaza, are unconscionable. For a third day running, people were killed around an aid distribution site run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. This morning, we have received information that dozens more people were killed and injured,” Jeremy Laurence UN Human Rights spokesperson said at the biweekly press briefing in Geneva.

Gaza aid update - OCHA 30 May 2025

1

1

1

Edited News | OCHA

Gaza aid update - OCHA 30 May 2025 ENG FRA

Gaza ‘hungriest place on earth’ with aid stymied – UN humanitarians

Starving Gazans continue to be deprived of aid as international relief efforts are being severely constrained by the Israeli authorities, the UN humanitarian affairs coordination office OCHA said on Friday.

Gaza humanitarian update - OCHA, UNRWA

1

1

1

Edited News | OCHA , UNRWA

Gaza humanitarian update - OCHA, UNRWA ENG FRA

As a controversial United States and Israel-backed aid distribution plan gets underway in Gaza, the UN called on Tuesday for an “immediate surge” of its own pre-positioned supplies to help prevent starvation.

Uganda UN Human Rights Spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani  urges president to reject bill allowing trials of civilians in military courts

1

1

1

Edited News | OHCHR

Uganda UN Human Rights Spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani urges president to reject bill allowing trials of civilians in military courts ENG FRA

UN Human Rights Office Spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani today urged Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni to reject a bill that was recently endorsed by parliament allowing trials of civilians in military courts. The Uganda People’s Defence Forces Amendment Bill 2025, which was passed on 20 May and now awaits presidential signature to become law, among others broadens the jurisdiction of military courts, authorising them to try a wide range of offences against civilians.

UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Seif Magango: South Sudan: UN human rights chief decries escalating hostilities, arbitrary arrests and hate speech

1

1

1

Edited News | OHCHR

UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Seif Magango: South Sudan: UN human rights chief decries escalating hostilities, arbitrary arrests and hate speech ENG FRA

UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Seif Magango today warned of a further deterioration in the human rights situation in South Sudan at the bi-weekly briefing in Geneva.

Syria humanitarian update OCHA - WHO 23 May 2025

1

1

1

Edited News | OCHA , WHO

Syria humanitarian update OCHA - WHO 23 May 2025 ENG FRA

Syria: ‘Staggering’ needs amid insecurity, health care crisis  - UN humanitarians

Millions of people in Syria continue to face mortal danger from unexploded munitions, disease and malnutrition and urgent support is required, UN humanitarians said on Friday.

Gaza health update - UNRWA - OCHA - WHO

1

1

1

Edited News | UNRWA , OCHA , WHO

Gaza health update - UNRWA - OCHA - WHO ENG FRA

UN life-saving aid allowed to trickle into Gaza as civilian needs mount

Amid calls for more humanitarian trucks to enter the food and medicine-deprived Palestinian enclave of Gaza, UN humanitarians have received permission from Israel for “around 100” more aid trucks to cross into the Strip after only five were let in yesterday,  But the scale of relief efforts allowed remains entirely insufficient to meet the urgent needs of people there, humanitarian workers say.

Press vests becoming a target - war reporter Christina Assi

1

1

1

Edited News

Press vests becoming a target - war reporter Christina Assi ENG FRA

A war reporter from Lebanon who lost a limb in the line of duty is calling for an end to impunity for attacks against journalists.

ITU 160th Anniversary - 17 May 2025

1

1

1

Edited News | ITU

ITU 160th Anniversary - 17 May 2025 ENG FRA

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) commemorated 160 years dedicated to connecting the world on Saturday, 17 May in Geneva, Switzerland, during the annual World Telecommunication and Information Society Day.

Gaza humanitarian update – WHO, OCHA 16 May 2025

1

1

1

Edited News | WHO , OCHA

Gaza humanitarian update – WHO, OCHA 16 May 2025 ENG FRA

Gazans ‘in terror’ after another night of deadly strikes and siege

Amid reports that Israeli strikes across Gaza into Friday killed at least 64 people, aid teams once again pushed back strongly at allegations that aid is being diverted to Hamas and pleaded for the blockade to end.

UN Human Rights raises human rights concerns about deportations from the United States of America

1

1

1

Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG

UN Human Rights raises human rights concerns about deportations from the United States of America ENG FRA

Deportations over recent months of large numbers of non-nationals from the United States of America, especially to countries other than those of their origin, raise a number of human rights concerns, the UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk warned on Tuesday.   

Gaza health update - WHO

1

1

1

Edited News | WHO

Gaza health update - WHO ENG FRA

Gaza: Over 50 child malnutrition deaths amid aid blockade; entire generation will be ‘permanently affected’ - WHO

In the aid desert of Gaza, malnourished children are dying while survivors can expect a lifetime of dire health problems, the UN World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday.