Team 5: David Tutunzhiu, Soravis Junior Sangvacharakul, Juan Duran, Shirley L.

, Saber,

Compelling Question: How do religiously-based conflicts influence the forced displacement of people?

Introduction: While religion is a source of inspiration and solace for many people, it can also be a source of conflict and dissension
where differing viewpoints exist across the world. As religion and politics become intertwined, the resulting conflicts often force people
from their homes. For example, a recent religious conflict in Nigeria has resulted in the forced internal displacement of over 1.7 million
citizens to neighboring countries in the Lake Chad Basin region. Even though these people have been acknowledged as refugees, thanks
to work done by the United Nation, they still lack the security of their basic needs being met, such as clean water and adequate food
("Nigeria Emergency"). Not only do religious conflicts influence the forced migration of people, but they also impact refugees'
acceptance in host countries. For example, the Executive Order signed by U.S. President Donald Trump in early 2017 stopped the
admission of refugees from seven, predominantly Muslim countries: Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Somalia, and Yemen (Executive
Order). Many critics believe that this order from President Trump is religious discrimination cloaked in the verbiage of national security.
While policies for refugees may be accepting on paper, the real-world implementation of these policies can often be discriminatory
against particular refugee groups. With the recent influx of migrants and asylum seekers from Africa and the Middle East, the European
Union's policy of non-discrimination based on race, religion, or ethnicity has been put to the test when it comes to the asylum
adjudication process. In Hungary, the Prime Minister is refusing to accept additional refugees, calling them "poison" and saying that the
refugees pose a threat to Europe's "Christian values" (Walker). The Prime Minister's comments are clearly fueled by the primarily Muslim
background of the refugees seeking entry to the country. Although religion's role in the forced displacement of people is often obscured
by political rhetoric, religious beliefs frequently play a role in why certain groups are forced to flee and also with regard to their acceptance
in host countries.

Claim 1: Religious conflicts are a factor in the forced displacement of people.

Warrants and Evidence: According to Religion and Spirituality in Forced Migration, “many politicians and leaders ignore the flexible use of
religions as a source of emotional and cognitive support, a form of social and political expression and mobilization, and a vehicle for
community building and group identity ” (Gozdziak). This is to say, due to the decision by politicians to use religion not as a method of
healing, but rather as a weapon in political battles, thereby sparking conflict. Societies are capable of lasting indefinitely, provided that
they are not attacked from within or outside by hostile powers. Often the focus of these attacks is the community's finances,
communications, technologies, and resources. However, the most critical target of destruction for a society is its religious experience. As
J. Milton Yunger argues, “Where one can undermine religious institutions then the entire fabric of the society can be quickly subverted or
brought to ruin.”
The most serious and apparent religiously-based conflicts are wars. The current humanitarian crisis for the Rohingya people in
Myanmar underscores the severity of this type of conflict. In Myanmar, tens of thousands of Rohingya Muslims have been forced to flee
the country by Buddhist extremists. Many of these refugees are now living in Bangladeshi refugee camps. Another conflict with religious
undertones that is causing massive loss of life and forced displacement is the bloody civil war in Syria, where members of different
religious sects have found themselves forced to flee their homes. Between 2012 and 2016, 250,000 Syrians died in the armed conflict,
which began with anti-government protests before escalating into civil war, with more than 11 million Syrians forced from their homes
(BBC). Although the ruling Ba’ath Party is ostensibly secular, religious divides continue to influence the conflict in Syria. For example,
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has used the threat of violence from Muslim extremists to justify his government’s response to unrest
throughout the country (Harvard Divinity School). And in Nigeria where a conflict between Muslims and Christians has been waging for
five years, the number of internally displaced persons has reached 1.7 million. Nigerian Muslims and Christians are filling refugee camps
across the border in Chad and Cameroon (UNCHR). As evidenced by the aforementioned examples, millions of people are currently
displaced due to religious conflict.
The legacy of religious conflicts and forced displacement can last long after the violence ends. A study of Orthodox, Catholic,
and Muslim religious leaders in Bosnia and Herzegovina found that not only do many spiritual leaders still refuse to acknowledge war
crimes committed by members of their faith during the Yugoslav Wars (1991-2001), but they appear to be actively undermining efforts at
peace and reconciliation (UNHCR). In 2005, 10 years after the Yugoslav conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina officially ended with the
signing of the Dayton Peace Accords, over 620,000 displaced persons were still waiting to return to their Balkan homelands; the return of
ethnic Serbians and other minorities to Kosovo has proven particularly problematic as ethnic and religious tensions continue to simmer
in this region (Refugees).
Armed conflicts with bases in religion contribute to many of the refugee crises currently facing the global community. Since
religious beliefs are incredibly important and deeply ingrained traditions in many communities, these conflicts often have lingering effects
that impact the long-term displacement of those forced to flee the initial violence.
Claim 2: Effect(s) OR Cause 2 OR Effect 2
Warrants and Evidence: The experiences displaced persons face vary as they seek refuge since countries have differing processes and
regulations for accepting and sorting through refugees and asylum seekers. For example, the United States has a quota for the number of
refugees it can accept within a given year, and within that quota lies a system of priorities into which each person is sorted. Priority one is
reserved for those for whom "no other durable solution exists." These people are sent to the United States by the UN Refugee Agency
(UNHCR) or are identified by a U.S. embassy or non-governmental organization (NGO). Priority two is for groups of special concern,
meaning people from the former Soviet Union, Cuba, Iraq, Iran, etc. Priority three refers to the situation in which the relatives of
refugees currently in the United States may be admitted as refugees (USCIS).
The America process starkly contrasts with the most common practices in continental Europe and in host countries in the
Middle East. In these countries, the process is that if an individual seeks asylum from persecution of religion, race, ethnicity, or from war,
then they will be admitted into the country. In Germany, for instance, asylum is seen as a right to be given to those fleeing persecution or
war-torn countries (BAMF). As a more extreme example, Jordan has no official process for refugees, allowing for refugees to enter and
take refuge as needed (King Hussein).
While America has attempted to restrict the entrance of refugees from Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Somalia, and Yemen, the
countries surrounding those targeted in the executive order have become host countries: Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, and Egypt. These
countries are places of temporary asylum as the target long-term resettlement countries are primarily Germany, Sweden, the United
Kingdom, Denmark, France, and Hungary. While these nations of temporary asylum have accepted these peoples with "open arms,
seeing them as brethren in times of need," (King Hussein); this is significant in that these host countries have predominantly Muslim
populations, a trait shared with the origin countries that many refugees are fleeing. Alternatively, in countries where Islam is not the main
religion, citizens have a fear of those who are different from them (DW).
European target countries have recently grown more resistant to the flow of refugees and migrants into their respective
countries. An example of this shift in acceptance is Germany. In the past the German populace was very open to assisting those who
needed refuge, describing asylum as "a right that is protected by the Constitution of Germany" (BAMF). This change is a result of the
recent influx of refugees into the country, particularly those from predominantly Muslim countries. Due to the difference in religions,
those in areas with fewer refugees are fearful of what they do not know, i.e. the morals of islamic refugees (DW). In recent years,
however, political rhetoric has turned more anti-migrant, particularly with the political party Alternative für Deutschland (AFD -
Alternative for Germany), who want to limit the number of refugees taken in because they are a "danger" (DW). While this position may
not be explicitly demonstrating intolerance of the refugees' religions; the reality is that most displaced persons seeking refuge in Germany
hail from predominantly Muslim countries of origin. Additionally, anti-migrant messages with religious undertones have been prevalent
in recent election campaigns, including throughout the 2016 U.S. Presidential election and the Brexit vote in the United Kingdom
(CFR)(Independent). Domestic politics influence how people receive and perceive people of differing religions and ethnicities with the
twist put on information as campaigns work to influence voters to think in their favor. With this bias in information, constituents who
trust their candidates develop a concurrent bias as well. This means that should a campaign demonize certain groups of people who
mostly share a common religion, not only will the groups be demonized in the people's eyes, but the religion as well.

Conclusion:
“Dear friends do not look away from refugees when you see them at the street and do not look away from your poor and helpless
neighbor. Try to be human toward the brothers and sisters, if you can; if you cannot, then there is no need to behave as wolves toward
them.” - Serbian Blogger Ivana Karejlic (GlobalPlus).

This quote from Serbian blogger Ivana Karejlic underscores the common humanity shared by all people regardless of their
differences, whether they are religious, political, ethnic, or otherwise, and how it is on all of us to reach out and help those in need. One
people-based approach to getting at the root of conflict, such as religious-based strife, is to engage parties who are traditionally or
typically at-odds in facilitated dialogue. A program that undertakes this mission globally is World in Conversation, a university
student-driven organization that seeks "to create conversations that allow every perspective on a topic to be heard, examined and
constructively challenged" (World in Conversation - Start Here). In terms of global dialogues, undergraduate facilitators have led
hundreds of virtual dialogues between students around the world, including university students in Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran, China, Israel,
Palestine, Pakistan, Egypt, and Qatar. Many of these dialogues revolve around the ideas of peace and conflict. This organization is also
continually looking to expand its impact, training facilitators and partnering with new organizations and people. World in Conversation's
partnership with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's (NATO) Allied Command Transformation - Future Solutions branch is an
example of this. Through the partnership's Extended Hand program, technology is leveraged to "foster understanding through dialogue
across cultures in vastly different parts of the world, pairing cadets and military personnel from NATO member countries with civilians
in conflict-torn regions to have cross-cultural exchanges" (World in Conversation - NATO Dialogues).
In addition to supporting people-based solutions, a more systemic approach is needed to mitigate the consequences of forced
displacement due to religiously-based conflicts. As an organization with international purview, the United Nations (UN) is the clear
choice for facilitating the multifaceted approach needed to deal with conflict-driven refugee crises. UN Peacekeeping provides political
and peacebuilding support and security to help countries make the difficult transition from conflict to peace. Peacekeeping has proven to
be one of the most effective tools available to the UN to assist host countries in navigating the difficult path from conflict to peace. UN
Peacekeeping missions have unique strengths, including legitimacy, burden sharing, and an ability to deploy and sustain troops and police
from around the globe, integrating them with civilian peacekeepers to advance multidimensional mandates (United Nations
Peacekeeping). However, deployment of UN Peacekeepers requires approval and/or buy-in from the UN General Assembly, Security
Council, Secretariat, troop and police contributors, and host governments. Thus, putting UN Peacekeeping missions into action can be a
politically fraught and time-consuming process. In the intermediary, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) works to "ensure that everybody
has the right to seek asylum and find safe refuge, having fled violence, persecution, war or disaster at home" (UNHCR - About Us).
UNHCR works closely with governments to ensure the 1951 Refugee Convention is honored. During times of displacement, UNHCR
provides critical emergency assistance in the form of clean water, sanitation, and healthcare, as well as shelter, blankets, household goods,
and food. UNHCR also arranges transport and assistance packages for people who return home and income-generating projects for
those who resettle (UNHCR - What We Do). As the mission of UNHCR has expanded, the resources at the organization's disposal are
no longer adequate. Thus, much of the agency's budget shortfall is made up by individual monetary donations. Focusing public attention
on the plight of the world's displaced persons through initiatives, such as the #WithRefugees Petition and the Nobody Left Outside
program, is an additional approach utilized by UNHCR to carry out its mission (UNHCR - Get Involved). We can make a difference in
the lives of displaced persons affected by religious conflict by supporting organizations, like UNHCR, through information dissemination
and monetary contributions.

For works cited, see our annotated bibliography graphic organizer.