Refugee Travel Loans-WTF?

Since I started working in refugee resettlement, one of the many issues that has bothered me, is refugee travel loans. Here is a description provided by the United States Conference for Catholic Bishops (they are heavily involved in resettlement):

Refugees traveling to the United States are issued loans by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) to pay for the costs of their transportation from overseas to U.S. resettlement sites and for various medical and screening costs. The funds to cover the transportation were provided to IOM by the Department of State’s Bureau for Refugee Programs.

A promissory note is signed by every refugee 18 years and over. This note confirms the refugees agreement to make regular monthly payments to the sponsoring agency – the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). These payments will be used to reimburse the U.S. government for the funds it provided to IOM for refugee transportation.

This just grates on me. The vast majority of refugees arrive in the US with the clothes on their backs, and nothing else. Many come here having lost family members to conflict, disease or displacement. Some have been tortured and can barely cope. Others have spent fifteen or twenty years living in a refugee camp, without any way to develop skills or live independently. Then they arrive here, and the International Organization for Migration saddles them with a huge loan to repay (but don’t worry, it’s interest free!), which they should begin payments on within six months. What the hell?! Like refugees don’t already have enough to deal with while they are acclimating, trying to find jobs, learn English, and survive on extremely low benefits which run out rapidly!

The apparent wisdom behind this loan program, is that the repayment money allows the “U.S. government to continue assisting more refugees.” If the US government is so impoverished that the only way they can assist future refugees, is off the backs of newly arrived migrants, then something is seriously wrong with program funding.

According to the director of my resettlement agency, the default rate on these loans in very low-less than 10%. This makes sense, given that when you default, the Credit Reporting Agency is informed, and you will have a negative credit history until such time as you repay the loan. Way to make new arrivals feel welcome in America!

If anyone has an informed argument as to why refugees should be made to repay these loans, I would truly love to hear it.

Pray the Devil Back to Hell: Film Review

• Pray the Devil Back to Hell
• Fork Films
• Produced by Abigail E. Disney, Directed by Gini Reticker
• Run Time: 1 hr. 12 min.
• My rating: 4 out of 5 chapatis

I’ve been waiting to get my hands on a copy of the documentary ‘Pray the Devil Back to Hell,’ for a while now. Thanks to Netflix, I was able to watch it this evening.

The film chronicles the story of  ordinary Liberian women who created an extraordinary peace movement during the country’s bloody second civil war. Using graphic footage from the war, along with testimonies from the women who led the peace movement, ‘Pray the Devil Back to Hell,’ effectively pulls viewers into the tense and passionate struggle to end the violence. Tracing the peace movement from its fledgling beginnings as a daily protest by the roadside along President Charles Taylor’s motorcade route, to a dramatic sit-in at the 2003 Accra Comprehensive Peace Agreement talks, the documentary shows that these efforts were certainly instrumental in bringing about a negotiated end to the war.

If you are looking to be informed and inspired, look no further, ‘Pray the Devil Back to Hell’ will do both. A word of caution, however, the film contains many scenes and descriptions of graphic violence, so be advised before watching.

Cellphone Cameras and Human Rights Abuses

Cell phones are ubiquitous, and most of us now carry one with the ability to capture pictures and even video footage. It’s fun and easy to whip out your cell phone, take a picture of your friends, and then email it or post it on Facebook, Flickr, etc. But some people also use their cellphone cameras to document human rights abuses or breaking news. This happens in the US and abroad. A recent example of this, is the shooting and death of a young Iranian woman named Neda, during political protests. A brief cellphone video which captured her shooting and final moments, was posted to the internet, and quickly made its way to viewers around the world, galvanizing  further protests in Iran and other countries.

But when it comes to human rights abuses, what is appropriate to document with a cellphone camera? The recent case in Guinea where a stadium full of opposition supporters were attacked, raped, and murdered in full view of crowds on September 28, provides a salient example of what the repercussions can be for the victims whose images are captured on cellphone videos.

During the chaos and violence that erupted in the stadium and the outlying streets, many women were sexually assaulted by soldiers. These assaults were witnessed by many fleeing Guineans, some of whom used cellphone cameras to snap pictures or film video of the assaults. While it is likely that this footage was collected in order to provide proof of the horrific crimes that were being committed, the photos and footage were unregulated and made their way to the internet.

National Public Radio correspondent Ofeibea Quist-Arcton observes,

Rape is surely horrific, but becomes even more so when the images of alleged crimes are recorded on cell phones, because the alleged rapes happened in the middle of the day, in public.

The sometimes grotesque photos are then splashed on the internet, a record of the humiliation and shaming of women, making the violations even more painful.

How would any of us feel if the worst moment of our lives were captured on film and posted to the internet, shattering our anonymity, and leaving traces that will remain on the web forever? This additional loss of control for people who have already been victimized, is horrible.

While it is understandable that people will want to document human rights abuses with any means at their disposal, including cellphone cameras, sexual assault should NEVER be broadcast on the internet under any circumstances. If people have footage of abuses that they feel will make a case against a government or other another group, they should provide the footage to rights organizations like Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch or give it to a lawyer for safekeeping.

A Debit Card for Somaliland?!

There’s lots of news out of Africa to cover, as usual, but one particular piece by the BBC about a money-transfer company which is introducing a debit card to Somaliland, caught my eye. Dahabshiil, a firm with a long history in the horn of Africa, has dreams of creating a cashless society there.

Anyone who lives or has spent a serious amount of time in sub-Saharan Africa, most likely understands what functioning in a cash-driven society entails. For example, there are countries like Tanzania, whose largest monetary denomination is a 10,000 shillingi note, roughly equivalent to about $7.50 US. In Tanzania, many everyday transactions are made in small change, and any major purchases often require large amounts of cash. While there are banks and ATMs in the largest cities, customers must often contend with long lines and machines that are subject to power failures. If you happen to carry a VISA, American Express or other ‘universal credit card,’ you may find few places where you can actually use it, other than high-end hotels, tourist enclaves, and pricey retail outlets.

A child in Harare holds Zimbabwean dollar notes acquired by begging on the streets. In 2008, when this photo was taken, the county’s rate of annual inflation was over 100,000%. (Associated Press)

Then there are countries like Ethiopia, which lack ATM machines altogether, and whose largest denomination, the 100 birr note, is roughly equivalent to $8 US. Not to mention places like Zimbabwe, where rampant inflation has necessitated the use of the black market, with US dollars and South African rands being traded against quickly depreciating Zimbabwe dollars.

So what would a ‘cashless’ society in Africa look like? Would it be possible to create one, with such a dependence on small change and currency, and with such a lack of infrastructure like banks, ATM machines, and businesses which can process card transactions? Would any new attempts to unveil a system of debit and credit cards simply create a similar situation to that of Tanzania: where some people can access cash at a small number of ATMs, but where there are few outlets equipped to actually use credit?

Dahabshiil, Somalia’s largest money transfer company, is currently rolling out an electronic cash system in Hargeisa, the capital of Somaliland. A press release from the website notes,

The General Manager of Dahabshiil Money Transfer, Abdirashid Mohamed Saed said the computer generated Internet based system will allow their customers to obtain debit cards to withdraw funds from Automated Teller Machines.

The ATMs will be placed in secure places such as hotels and business centers. Customers will be able to purchase items with their debit cards.

“We started this project in Hargeisa (Somaliland) because of the stability and the good internet connections but we’ll spread it to other safer areas of the country,” Saed told VOA Somali Service.

It will be the first time in the history that e-cash card system is launched in Somalia.

Dahabshiil made their mark in the private money transfer business in Somalia. Relatives and friends of Somalis who live abroad, use the service to send money home. The BBC observes that some estimates place the transactions at as much as $1 billion.

I’m personally thrilled to see a debit card system being offered in Somaliland. I hope that the user fees are fair and reasonable, and that many people will have access to this service, not just elites. While the prospect of ATMs placed at hotels and business centers for security reasons makes sense, this restricted access, will likely keep services out of the hands of many people who could benefit from the machines, and who don’t have the extra money or confidence to travel to a wealthy enclave to access cash. Just a thought. Also, as long as access to ATMs and credit processing machines is limited, it will be difficult for Somalis to truly benefit from these cards in a substantial way. But as with any new technology, it will takes time for it to infiltrate society. Hopefully, Dahabshiil will be able to promote access to debit and credit cards as well as places equipped to process them.

All currency calculations are via The Currency Converter at coinmill.com

What do you think?