Dearest Friends and Supports, As the new year approaches us, we would like to take this opportunity to thank you for all your help and support in the past year, share with you those activities we have been providing and once again ask for your help in our continued efforts. Since 2007, you have been with us as we have been providing humanitarian aid to the local population of asylum seekers and refugees who reside within Jerusalem. Your support and encouragement has been integral to our operations and activities. The asylum seekers and refugees, face day to day difficulties in Israel. They have fled genocide, war, and national, ethnic and religious persecution and arrive in Israel hoping for a better future and safety. Yet, their daily lives have instead been wrought with difficulties and hardship as they have no legal rights. According to the United Nations, they cannot be driven back to these countries from where they fled but face the possibility of this reality within Israel. The population of refugees and asylum seekers in Jerusalem totals around 1000, coming from Sudan, Eritrea and Ethiopia and includes families with children. The population has been weakened and excluded from mainstream Israeli society and deal with social, economic and cultural problems. The organization for refugees and asylum seekers in Jerusalem has focused their efforts first on the basic needs: refuge, food, clothing, medical assistance, and help in finding employment. Further, we have also helped with employment exploitation, difficulties with bureaucratic procedures, and other problems related to the psycho-social difficulties. In addition, we are providing language classes in both Hebrew and English where volunteers, institutions and businesses have worked together: all these have been volunteering without any pay for their contributions, but rather to help and improve the daily lives of the refugees and asylum seekers. In our continued effort to help the asylum seekers cope with their lives here in Israel, we have been listening and providing support to them face such problems that include despair, anxiety and distress with the growing racism, and the failing policies which have been set against them. The history of the Jewish people has been defined by suffering and persecution. The Jews were once a population of refugees: knocking on the doors of country after country, requesting any kind of help and shelter. The State of Israel was built and established by refugees, those who understood persecution, racism and homelessness. Therefore, the responsibility to provide humanitarian aid to those who seek it in their darkest hour must be seen as an obligation to a people who understand it better than most. We are therefore proud to provide support and refuge to those who are trying to recover form the traumas of their past and prepare for the unknown future. It is with this in mind that we are appealing to you today: please lend us a hand: Our program for refugees and asylum seekers is in need of volunteers and donations in order to continue with our activities and respond to this community. Due to the absence of institutional response, we find it our responsibility to continue our efforts and provide these services in the new year. Please feel free to pass this along as well to those who may be interested in donating or volunteering. For more information on how you can contribute to the community of asylum seekers in Jerusalem please contact: Scheikele@gmail To join our mailing list please contact: refugeesjerusalem@gmail like us on Facebook: Refugees and Asylum seekers in Jerusalem We wish you all a good new year- filled with peace. Thank you!
Posted on: Thu, 29 Aug 2013 16:45:36 +0000
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