Save the Children marks World Refugee Day with special programs

In Bucharest, refugee children opened an exhibition of photographs, drawings and artifacts they had made, as well as a competition of pavement drawings. The other locations hosted traditional dance shows, concerts, trips to tourist attractions and sporting competitions.
Over 100 children and young refugees and asylum seekers who are part of the educational and social programs of Save the Children were expected to take part in events with their families.
In the past ten years, Save the Children has assisted over 1,000 refugee children and 400 parents in the program The Integration of Refugee and Isolated Children into Romanian Society. “With the services we offer, we try to facilitate their integration into Romanian society and offer them opportunities for education and a safer future,” says Gabriela Alexandrescu, executive president of Save the Children.
According to statistical data from the Romanian Office of Immigration, 940 requests for asylum were registered in 2008, a 45 percent growth compared to the previous year. In 2007, the number of asylum requests was 657. The requests in 2008 came mainly from Pakistan (247), India (134) and Iraq (127). Up to this date, there were 352 requests for asylum of which only 44 were approved. Most came from Afghanistan (53), Pakistan (39) and Turkey (34).
Otilia Haraga