Ireland today joined its EU partners in the launch of an awareness campaign to tackle the negative stereotyping of refugees and asylum seekers in Europe.
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The campaign also aims to combat racism, discrimination and prejudices towards people applying for asylum so that they can fully integrate into European society.
The European Information Campaign for People in Need of International Protectionwas organised by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) in partnership with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) with the support of the European Commission.
The Irish publicity campaign was formally launched by the head of the IOM’s London office, Ms Diane Grammer, and the Head of the UNHCR’s Irish office, Ms Pia Prütz Phiri, in Dublin today.
At the launch Ms Grammer said the campaign hopes to dispel the myths surrounding asylum seekers and refugees in Europe.
"It is crucial to remind people that those seeking sanctuary in Europe may have been forced to flee persecution or torture in their country of origin. Their flight from their homeland may not have been a matter of choice," she said.
The initiative is directed at the negative attitude towards refugees and asylum seekers, while highlighting the positive contribution immigrants can make and how everyone will benefit from their full integration into European society, she said.
TV, radio, and poster advertisements will run for the next six months promoting the acceptance of refugees and the better understanding of the environment they came from.
Funded by the European Commission, the campaign was also launched today in Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, and the UK.