The AMB and the metropolitan city councils commit with the refugees' Human Rights
| Subject: International Cooperation
A new metropolitan programme wants to raise awareness for the importance of safeguarding the Human Rights with a local-global perspective.
The war in Syria, which began in 2011, has already internally displaced 7.6 million people and made 4 million people refugees.
This morning, in Torrelles de Llobregat, the presentation took place of the programme "Tenim Drets, Teixim Llibertats" (We have rights, we weave freedoms), which was launched by the AMB and the smaller municipal councils, with fewer than 10,000 inhabitants: Begues, Cervelló, El Papiol, La Palma de Cervelló, Sant Climent de Llobregat, Santa Coloma de Cervelló and Torrelles de Llobregat, in defence of human rights at the local level.
The International Relations and Cooperation Area of the AMB together with the municipalities, is commited to global justice. This new metropolitan programme, "Tenim Drets, Teixim Llibertats", aims to promote citizens' critical awareness towards inequality and global conflicts as well as benefit the social transformation.
Raising awareness for the humanitarian crisis in the Mediterranean
Since last year, and given the critical situation of vulnerability of thousands of people in the Mediterranean area due to war conflicts on the Middle East, the first edition of the programme "Tenim Drets, Teixim Llibertats" is focused on the promotion of refugees' human rights. During 2015,
According to figures from the UNHCR, approximately 322,000 people crossed the Mediterranean towards Europe in 2015, fleeing violence and persecution, and this number has continued to increase in recent years. The war in Syria, which began in 2011, has already internally displaced 7.6 million people and made 4 million people refugees.
The UN Refugee Agency indicates that at the end of 2015 there were 65 million people that saw themselves forced to flee their homes. This is, 1 out of 113 inhabitants of the planet are asylees, refugees or displaced.
The programme, through various activities and workshops with citizens of all ages from all the participant municipalities, promotes knowledge of refugees' and asylum seekers' living conditions, and aims to promote understanding and respect and foster a change in attitudes.
This morning's event included a round table discussion moderated by the journalist Adrian Bas, with the participation of Nour Al Chikh Oughlli, an eyewitness from Syria, and Fernando Pujol, from the NGO Proactiva Open Arms.
The launch of this new metropolitan programme is the AMB's first steps in an area of work involving Education for Global Justice. Among the activities of this new area of work, there will be the production of information and awareness for citizens, the design and organisation of activities within the metropolitan region, adapted to various age groups (children, young people, adults, groups of women, disabled, and groups of people of diverse origins...). This kind of activities help increase interest for Human Rights to metropolitan citizens.
One of the most important initiatives will be the final event of the programme "Tenim Drets, Teixim Llibertats", which will take place on the beach in Barcelona on 14 May, where representatives of the AMB and the 7 municipalities, as well as citizens of the metropolitan area, will knit a giant tapestry from pieces of fabric containing demands and desires that have been collected during all the activities. During this event, other activities will also take place.
