Violence in Iraq has escalated refugee crises, which is also creating instability in the province. The dislodged women, children and youth are becoming more susceptible to exploitation and abuse.
According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, tens of thousands of Iraqis are fleeing the country every month and majority of the displaced are women and children.
Carolyn Makinson, executive director of the Women’s Commission for Refugee Women and Children asserted,
‘the rampant insecurity within Iraq and the lack of humanitarian assistance in neighboring countries, puts women and children at great risk of abuse. There are already reports of Iraqi women and young girls forced into prostitution or sex to survive and children forced into labor and other forms of exploitation’.
Syria and Jordan are apparently, becoming inundated with the influx of refugees and so have placed certain restrictions on the services provided to them.
Education for children is becoming a major cause, firstly, because of the lack of accommodation and secondly, the high affordable prices of private schools. Syria allows Iraqi refugee children to attend public school but families often cannot afford the supplies and school uniforms their children need.
Scores of refugee families are experiencing financial crunch. Generally, they cannot legally work and have no way to support themselves and their families. Women who cannot provide for their families are particularly vulnerable to exploitation and abuse.
To guarantee protection of Iraqi refugees and internally displaced Iraqis and to help ease the great strain on countries receiving refugees, the United States and international community must significantly increase its funding for humanitarian assistance programs and regular monitoring of the allocated funds is too required.
