IN a bid to bridge the cultural and social gap between asylum seekers, refugees and members of the local community, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) held a friendly football tournament at the Eddie Hart recreation ground, Tacarigua on Sunday to commemorate World Refugee Day.
Observed globally for the first time on June 20, 2001, World Refugee Day "celebrates the strength and courage of those forced to flee their homes due to conflict or persecution."
This year, World Refugee Day aimed to focus on solidarity among refugees to "envision a world where they are warmly welcomed."
In friendly, yet intriguing action in east Trinidad on the weekend, refugees and asylum seekers from countries such as Cameroon, Cuba and Venezuela rubbed shoulders with their Trinidad and Tobago counterparts in a sport that unifies nations and breaks down otherwise challenging language barriers.
Hary Boys, MV Strikers and Combined were the teams that participated in the three-team, hockey-sized posts tournament, with the ever-popular sack race and draughts board game also among the activities which saw the young and not-so-young all trying their hand.
The youngsters who played on the day may not have understood the full nature of a friendly football clash, as they pulled out all the stops to try and emerge as victors.
Communications Associate at the UNHCR Kalifa Clyne said it was imperative to integrate the youth into the World Refugee Day activities.
"The thing is, 25 per cent of the people who are refugees and asylum seekers are children. This is an issue which impacts them in such a big way," Clyne said. "They need access to education so they can grow, learn, play and interact with children from TT, so they can also develop themselves and just create a community."
[caption id="attachment_1092235" align="alignnone" width="1024"] A group of UNHCR volunteers attend the World Refugee Day friendly football tournament on June 23, 2024. - Photo by Angelo Marcelle[/caption]
With the 2024 CONMEBOL Copa America tournament in full swing, a couple of diplomats also took to the playing field to show their nifty touches with the ball at their feet, as Argentine Ambassador Gustavo Martínez Pandiani and Flavio Gonzalez Hernandez, the Head of Trade, Cooperation and Cultural Affairs at the Mexican Embassy, both made cameo appearances.
Chatting to Newsday, Hernandez said the significance of the day was not limited to sharing camaraderie while playing the beautiful game.
"We think of the people in the centre as humans. All the rights are for everyone," Hernandez said.
"These kinds of activities will be good because we can locate the people in the centre with activities and recreation. It's about building a community...the refugees need to have a good space to recreate themselves and have access to education and health because these are human rights."
The UNHCR collaborated with the Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean, the Heroes Foundation and the Pan-American Development Foundation (PADF) to
