Doha
30 March 2017
(MOI)

A two days workshop on “the legal prospects for asylum” held recently in Doha. The workshop was organized by Human Rights Department at the Ministry of Interior and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. Officers from the Ministry of Interior, representatives from Qatar Red Crescent, National Human Rights Committee and Qatar Social Work Foundation attended the workshop.

Among the participants attended opening session of the programme included Brig. Abdullah Saqr Al Mohannadi, Director of Human Rights Department, UNHCR’s GCC Regional Representative, Khalid Khalifa and Head of the International Organization of Migration Kuwait office Eman Erekat.

Brig. Abdullah Saqr Al Mohannadi said that the workshop was organized as a result of joint efforts between the Ministry of Interior and the Regional Representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in the GCC. He emphasized the importance of building up the capacity of police personnel in the field of human rights and to establish effective partnerships with regional and international bodies to achieve this goal highlighting the connection between the themes of the workshop and the Arab Human Rights Day on importance of peaceful coexistence as it is related to the human rights of refugees.

He pointed out that peaceful coexistence includes in its broad meaning the countries, individuals and groups on the basis of acceptance of diversity and difference as the fundamental pillar of societies at all political, economic, social and cultural levels. Any tensions at these platforms will constitute a serious challenge to peace and social security, as well as a major source of conflict and crisis-producing phenomena of asylum and displacement.

Khalid Khalifa, UNHCR’s GCC Regional Representative said that the workshop comes as part of extended partnership and cooperation between the UNHCR Regional Representative and the Ministry of Interior Qatar in order to contribute its responsibility to raising awareness and knowledge about asylum issues and to contribute to the building of national cadres, exchanging experiences and finding the best ways to cooperate with them.

Hajar Musa, Senior protection officer at the Regional office the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in the Gulf Cooperation Council, Dr. Yousif Al Daradkeh, protection officer at the Regional office atUNHCR in the Gulf Cooperation Council, Dr. Khalid Diyab from Qatar Red Crescent, Dr. Osama Al Alousi from Human Rights Department, Naha Maarof from the protection office at the Regional office at UNHCR are among the participants in the workshop.