We must all help to solve the refugee crisis, says Angelina
ANGELINA Jolie yesterday accused Europe’s leaders of neglecting the refugee crisis triggered by the civil war in Syria.
The Hollywood star, married to Brad Pitt, said the crisis represented a “oncein-a-generation moment when nations have to pull together”.
Ms Jolie, who is the United Nation’s special envoy for refugees, said that concerns over uncontrolled migration had allowed a politics of fear to grow.
She was speaking in a keynote address as part of a BBC day dedicated to issues raised by the mass movement of people around the world. She said the responsibility to help refugees is one for ordinary people as well as the authorities, telling the audience, which included schoolchildren: “This is a duty that falls on all of us.”
Recognising the fears of people who feel “angry” and “cheated” by the huge numbers crossing borders, she said this had eroded confidence in the ability of institutions to deal with the issue.
She said: “It has given space to a false air of legitimacy to those who promote the politics of fear and separation.
“It has created the risk of a race to the bottom, with countries competing to be the toughest in the hope of protecting themselves whatever the cost...”
The mother-of-six insisted that every refugee is a person who deserves respect, adding that society will “fail the basic test of humanity” if we discriminate “on the basis of religion, race or ethnicity”. She said every refugee is “a person with an equal right to stand in dignity on this planet”.
Later she revealed that she finds it “hard” to hear comments made by US presidential candidate Donald Trump, who has called for a temporary ban on Muslims coming to the US. UN special envoy Angelina Jolie warned yesterday that fears over migration have allowed a ‘politics of fear’ to develop