Current response to the Migration Crisis Evangelical Lutheran Church in America Global Mission Unit I am Reverend Martina Helmer-Pham Xuan. I represent the ELCA – that is congregations like Prince of Peace, and synods, like Minneapolis Area Synod, to our European Lutheran churches, fellow members of Lutheran World Federation, in Europe. It is my distinct honor to stand in front of you all this morning to thank you for your commitment in raising funds for this astounding and overwhelming migration crisis in North Africa, the Middle East and Europe and to offer an update on our response to what the United Nations calls the biggest humanitarian crisis of our era.

Let’s just start with some maps to re-acquaint ourselves with the size of the crisis. Here we see the various routes into Europe – you can see the significant migration pattern is coming from the Middle East to Turkey to Greece into the Balkans and eventually to Germany. This map just shows the first 6 months of 2015. By November of 2015, nearly 867,000 refugees and migrants arrived by sea into Europe, 82% of them came through Greece. It is estimated that 3,500 people have died or gone missing at sea in 2015. Why this apparently sudden crisis? The refugee camps closest to Syria lost significant funding and war continues to wage in Syria, forcing many to leave. In addition to Syria, there are conflicts in South Sudan, Central African Republic and Ukraine. In addition, there is protracted displacement of persons, such as the Roma, from earlier economic, social and political upheaval.

From the BBC and UNHCR – and just focusing on the Syrians, who have endured a blood civil war since 2011. Since 2011, over 690,000 Syrians have sought refugee in Europe. According to the UN, Serbia and Germany have received 52% of the Syrian asylum applications. Overall, 9 million Syrians have fled their homes since 2011; 6.5 million are internally displaced; and over 3 million have Turkey Lebanon and Jordan - countries that border Syria. In the Middle East, we partner with Lutheran World Federation and the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Jordan and the Holy Land. Since 2011, the ELCA has given $1 million dollars to the Syrian war, and in October we gave $50,000 to the Za’taari Refugee Camp, managed by LWF

This is an aerial view of the Za’taari refugee camp, which holds 120,000. But only 20% of the refugees are in camps, 80% are living outside of the camps, in the host countries, living in varying conditions from being homeless to living in cramped small apartment. Jordan, Turkey and Lebanon, according to the Migration Policy Institute have yet to provide the full legal status or rights entitled to refugees under the 1951 Refugee Convention, including the all-important right to work. This is a significant delay given the length of the Syrian civil war. With few opportunities to resume a normal life or economic self-sufficiency in first-asylum countries, Syrians are choosing their own solutions in Europe.

Here are refugees between the borders of Croatia and Serbia Here are refugees between the borders of Croatia and Serbia. The refugee and migrant crisis came to global awareness in the summer of 2015, but in Europe churches have been dealing with migration for several years.

In terms of the response thus far – the ELCA has given 55,000 to Hungarian Church Aid, a social service partner to the Lutheran Church of Hungary that helped with immediate emergency services in the fall; $50,000 to Church World Service in Serbia, partnering with the International Red Cross for food, sanitation items, and helping with emergency winter shelter; as I shared earlier, $50,000 to the refugee camp to help improve conditions and now $70,000 again to the refugee camp to help especially vulnerable women and children with education and cash assistance.

Here our presiding bishop, visiting the Zataari refugee camp in December. We have received $724,000 dollars for this crisis. And specifically we’ve received XXX from Minneapolis Area Synod – thanks in large part to your dedication of raising the matching grant. Thank you.