UNHCR receives Charter of Merit of the Republic of Croatia

Zagreb, Croatia, October 2009 - On 21 October, and on the occasion of the 130th anniversary of the Croatian Red Cross (CRC), the Charter of Merit of the Republic of Croatia was bestowed on UNHCR by President Stipe Mesic. UNHCR's Director of the Bureau for Europe, Pirkko Kourula, received the Charter on behalf of the High Commissioner.

The Agency was presented with the Charter due to its special contribution in providing an effective response to displacements in the 1990s armed conflict in Croatia.

"Even after the armed conflict, UNHCR continued assisting refugees, internally displaced persons (IDPs) and other people in need, including return of refugees to their countries of origin," Kourula stated. "In cooperation with state institutions, and particularly with the Croatian Red Cross, solutions were found for thousands of refugees," she added.

Cooperation between the Croatian Red Cross and UNHCR began in 1992 through providing humanitarian assistance to refugees and IDPs in Croatia. That year, UNHCR's assistance distributed by CRC to IDPs and refugees amounted to 70,000 family parcels and 1,000 MT balk food per month and in 1993 much more with the increased number of persons in need.

Later, the CRC and UNHCR jointly created and implemented first community services programmes for IDP and refugees in collective accommodation, but also in private accommodation where 70% of the displaced had been living. The community services programme included activities for women and children to alleviate harsh living situation and help their integration into local communities.

The programme nowadays includes mobile teams that provide technical assistance, in house help and facilitate the health care provision to returnees and vulnerable persons living in remote villages. This includes distribution of humanitarian relief, small home repairs, water well sanitation and delivery of drinking water.

In the last couple of years, the cooperation between UNHCR and the Croatian Red Cross expanded also to building an effective asylum system, which in 2003 resulted in the foundation of the first Asylum Center for asylum seekers. In 2007, however, the Ministry of Interior took over the responsibility for care of asylum seekers from UNHCR and CRC, thus assuming its obligation and in that way fulfilling its international obligation.