WORLD RELIEF

NEWS RELEASE

http://www.worldrelief.org

World Relief Protests Low Allocation on Refugee Admissions

BALTIMORE, October 22, 2002- World Relief, the only evangelical refugee resettlement agency authorized by the U.S. Department of State, is protesting the low admissions allocation placed on refugees by the Presidential Determination on Refugee Admissions for fiscal year 2003.

President Bush signed the FY03 Determination on October 16, setting the target for admissions at 70,000, but indicated that only 50,000 of those refugees may be admitted. The remaining 20,000 are "unallocated."

The low admissions allocation has a profound impact on those seeking refuge from religious persecution and terrorism, as well as those refugees already settled in the U.S. Thousands of refugees deal with the stress of family separation and endure hardships as they await the release of relatives from refugee camps.

The U.S. has historically been committed to sheltering the persecuted from harm. However, the State Department's ceiling for allocated refugees has dropped by 50 percent in the last decade, from 142,000 in 1992 to 70,000 in 2002, with only 28,000 of last year's quota actually admitted.

The signing of the FY03 Determination is evidence of declining U.S. resolve to continue its heritage of providing refuge for those in need. World Relief recommended that in FY03, 100,000 refugees be admitted to include the 75,000 previously forecasted for FY03 and 25,000 to make up for the 2002 shortfall.

"We are saving lives and reuniting families who have been persecuted," said World Relief's Director of Advocacy and Policy, Galen Carey. "It is unconscionable to allow even one refugee to die unnecessarily or languish indefinitely in a refugee camp when we have the capacity to help."

Since 1978, World Relief has officially resettled more than 175,000 refugees from more than 30 countries with help from thousands of church and community volunteers.

For nearly 60 years, World Relief has worked with local churches to create sustainable solutions that help the desperately poor. Operating in more than 20 countries and 26 cities in the U.S., World Relief's programs include disaster relief, refugee assistance, AIDS ministries, urban ministries, community health, agricultural development, child survival, and community banking.