Today, the Ministry of Interior organized, today, Tuesday, in cooperation with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, a workshop entitled "Refugee rights among itsapplications and laws."

The Secretary General of the Ministry of Interior, Khaled Abu Hammour, said in a speech that opened the workshop in the presence of UNHCR Protection Officer Mira Sabounji that Jordan at the official institutional and public levels has dealt with refugee crises and the needs of refugees as a humanitarian message and noble mission.Jordan also dealt with the human rights as the cornerstone of building of any society or the success of any country, something thatemphasized always by His Majesty King Abdullah II always.

He added that organizing this activity in conjunction with the International Day for Human Rights comes to confirm that human dignity and nature of mankindhas been and still to be the main axis in the components and priorities of the Jordanian administration in which the administrative governorplays the main role through his leadership of administrative work in keeping with the human dimension.

Abu Hammourindicated that the burdens placed on Jordan have become more urgent in fulfilling the Kingdom's humanitarian obligations towards refugees and bear the enormous economic burdens resulting from the waves of refugee to Jordan, which have affected all aspects of life and have had a deep negative impact on all sectors such as health, education, infrastructure, the labor market and high Levels of unemployment, social security, water and energy in addition to the burdens on the security services.

Mr. Abu Hammour pointed out that the burdens incurred by the Kingdom as a result of hosting the Syrians on its lands were formulated in accordance with the response plan in cooperation between all concerned national institutions and international partners, which affected all aspects of life, and the implication and material impact of the crisis on the Kingdom have been estimated at a direct cost of nearly ten billion dollars. In addition to the requirements to meet the needs of Syrian refugees, estimated according to the national response plan for the years (2018-2020) at more than seven billion dollars, wherethe level of the international community’s response to the plan was only 22 percent until last November.

He stressed that Jordan with all its institutions is working to try to reconcile and achieve a balance between the need to protect the rights of refugees on the one hand, and to maintain national security and State capabilities on the other hand, with certainty that human security and the system for preserving human rights does not conflict with national security.

Abu Hammouralso commended the partnership that brings together the UNHCR and the Ministry of the Interior, especially in the areas of capacity building and enhancing the skills of the Ministry's employees.

On his part, UNHCR representative, FirasMalkawi said that Jordan has consistently taken steps in dealing with refugee issues and has never hesitated to receive refugees and provide protection and assistance to them, which has made it a role model in dealing with refugee crises, especially its respect for the principles of protection, non-expulsion and the principles of international custom.

Mr. Malkawi added that Jordan is making distinguished efforts to promote and protect the rights of refugees in particular and human rights in general, where Jordan has been dealing in a spirit of legal texts with refugee crises and finding solutions to many challenges, noting in this regard that giving Jordan a period to regularize the conditions of thousands of refugees and their families, which has positively reflected on the life of the refugee as a legal status and enabling it to obtain basic services such as health, education and family reunification.

He pointed out that the Jordan-UNHCR partnership constitutes a practical reality in standing close to all issues and challenges, and he called also for increasing Jordan's support in this field.

The workshop will discuss topicsover three days centered on the reality of human rights in Jordan, the tasks of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, international humanitarian law and humanitarian media. It also discussed determination of refugee statusand the national methodology in dealing with refugee crises, the response of the international community to refugee crises, the Jordanian response plan and the management of local crises in the light of national legislation l and the Syrian refugee crisis.

A number of district administrator in the Ministry of Interior and representatives of civil society bodies, the United Nations and some ministries and national institutions will participate in this workshop.