Spend Refugee Week in Darfur

BY BIANCA BIRDSALL
Bondi Junction’s Oxford Street Mall will be filled with celebrations of Darfuri culture this month in recognition of World Refugee Day.

The Festival of Darfur on June 20 will feature music, singing and dancing in traditional dress. Darfuri children will perform a play and there will be  speeches about the refugee experience from Darfuris living in Sydney.

The eastern suburbs will also get a taste of Darfuri cuisine with an exhibition on how to prepare ‘asida’, a diet staple, and other food and beverages on sale. . 

The Festival of Darfur was organised by the Darfur Australia Network (DAN), with support from Waverly Council. DAN aims to raise awareness about the conflict and assist in the resettlement of Darfuri refugees in Australia. 

Sydney coordinator Gillian Cook said the festival was about promoting the cultural heritage of refugees.  ‘The Festival of Darfur is a way for the Darfuris to celebrate the city they now call home, while reminding the wider public not only about the humanitarian crisis in Darfur and the challenges of the refugee journey but also about the beautiful and interesting culture that makes them who they are,’ said Cook.

The festival will commemorate the resilience of the Darfuri people who have fled the conflict in western Sudan. Already more than 400,000 have died, and 3 million are displaced in what some have termed genocide. UNAMID, the United Nations/African Union hybrid peacekeeping force, was set up on December 31, 2007. While it was authorised to mobilise up to 19,555 military personnel under Security Council Resolution 1769, only 9,237 have so far been deployed.     

The theme for Refugee Week this year is A Place to Call Home. The Refugee Council, which sponsors the events, is hoping to encourage Australians to consider their obligations to refugees and displaced peoples. More than 700,000 humanitarian migrants have settled in Australia over the past 60 years.   

There are more than 20 million refugees worldwide, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) helps more than 32 million people each year. The 2008 World Refugee Day on June 20 is focusing on refugee protection in recognition of the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. 

For information visit the Refugee Council of Australia website at www.refugeecouncil.org.au.