On the protection of children and women, Geneva Call raises awareness and promotes dialogue in the Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon

During a visit to Lebanon in early February, a Geneva Call delegation presented its programme on the protection of children and women. Its objective was to raise awareness and reinforce the capacity of civil society and relevant non-State actors to better respond to humanitarian needs and to improve the protection of Palestinian refugees living in the camps in southern Lebanon.

Geneva Call initiated a dialogue in Lebanon on these initiatives, and meetings were held in Beirut and in the refugee camps of Ain al-Hilwah, Mar Elias and Miye Miye with high-level representatives from Hamas, Fatah, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, Islamic Jihad, the Coalition of Islamic Forces in Ain al-Hilwah refugee camp, and the Palestinian security forces of the Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon.

There were productive exchanges of views in which all those present acknowledged the need for Geneva Call’s work and expressed their willingness to pursue further dialogue on these areas of humanitarian concern. Geneva Call looks forward to further productive exchange in due course.

The refugee camps were established in 1948, following the creation of the State of Israel. Since that time there have been numerous occurrences of armed violence in the camps, exacerbated notably by continuing pressures brought about by the severely restricted socio-economic outlook for those living in the camps and the limited civil rights afforded to them.

Geneva Call has established respect for international norms against the use of anti-personnel landmines through its Deed of Commitment under Geneva Call for adherence to a total ban on antipersonnel mines and for Cooperation in Mine Action, which has been signed by more than 40 armed non-State actors around the world. On the basis of the success of this innovative approach, Geneva Call created a new Deed of Commitment on Children and Armed Conflict in 2010, and is preparing a further Deed on the protection of women.

For further information about Geneva Callʼs work, or to find out how you can help, please contact Tim Carstairs at tcarstairs@genevacall.org or +41 22 879 10 50