UNITED NATIONS POPULATION INFORMATION NETWORK (POPIN) UN Population Division, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, with support from the UN Population Fund (UNFPA)

Statement by Dr. L. Kordic, Refugee Representative

******************************************************************

This document is being made available by the Population Information 

Network (POPIN) Gopher of the United Nations Population Division, Department 

for Economic and Social Information and Policy Analysis, in collaboration 

with the United Nations Population Fund Emergency Relief Operations.

******************************************************************

AS WRITTEN



                            Statement by

                                  

                        DR. LJILJANA KORDIC

                     Marie Stopes International

                                  

                       Refugee Representative



                             to the



     Inter-Agency Symposium on Reproductive Health in Refugee Situations

                       Geneva, 28-30 June 1995





Ladies and Gentlemen,



It is a great privilege to have been invited here today. Not many

refugees have the opportunity to come to the place where decisions

are taken which are supposed to change our lives.



On the other side, I have a big responsibility today to represent

hundreds of thousands of women who left Bosnia. Many of us have

been moved more than three times since the conflict started. The

majority have been forced to leave their homes at short notice due

to ethnic cleansing or the proximity of the front line.



Many have suffered sexual abuse or witnessed severe human rights

violations during flight or whilst being held prisoner. Our homes

have been destroyed or occupied, families separated and the

majority have suffered multiple bereavements.



We arrived in other parts of Bosnia or in neighbouring Croatia.

Now, we are privately accommodated or living in collective centres.

Usually, families are crowded into small spaces which were intended

for two or three people. We feel that we do not belong to the

environment or any community any more. Local people blame us for

the bad economic situation.



We are "labelled" people. The best example is that I almost didn't

come here, because I had a problem getting a visa for 7 days. I

think just because my address in my passport is Sarajevo, Bosnia.



Working with hundreds of refugees and displaced persons each day

from the beginning of the war, I have found that food and shelter

are priorities in aid, but also at the same time, women need

reproductive health care.



Prior to he war, the country had an extensive and sophisticated

health care system, and world renowned medical institutions. With

international donor support, health services have continued to

function adequately. But, I have to add that services are

overstretched or close to being broken down due to the pressure of

population increase.



Government policy is to provide Primary Health services to the

refugees and displaced, but there are sometimes problems with

implementation and accessibility at the local level.



In addition, natality became a strong political issue in wartime

when political leaders are concerned to increase the population of

their countries as rapidly as possible. In these conditions,

contraceptives and abortion can be regarded as unpatriotic and

doctors are under pressure to support this movement.



My experience is that a special problem, which I would like to

point out, is bad information and educational systems about

reproductive health care issues among young refugee and displaced

girls.



Refugees and displaced persons are needy populations and they still

expect help, especially from NGOs and UN organisations.



1. Reproductive health care should be included in humanitarian

assistance for refugees and displaced persons in an appropriate

way.



2. International presence is important. It is not realistic to

expect help for the refugees from countries which are still in the

war.



3. A lot of effort should be put into information about

reproductive health care among young refugee and displaced girls,

as well as among women. From my point of view, it could be done

very easily. We have human resources who are or could be trained

for this purpose. Also, it could be done by free publications which

could be distributed through collective centres, schools, centres

for social care, etc.



4. Reproductive health care in refugee situations must be organised

in a way which will have good access to the target population.