Do you think you know exactly who a refugee is? And how about a migrant or an asylum seeker? Do these words mean the same? Have you ever heard about statelessness and internally displaced persons? Let's check and learn together!
A few weeks ago we already said - a refugee is someone that was forced to flee their home, city, country, very often suddenly, because of war, violence.
A migrant is someone that chooses to move within or outside his/her country, very often because of economic reasons - to look for a better job, seasonal work, education, etc.
An asylum seeker is someone looking for international protection from violence in his/her home country, but whose claim for refugee status has not been determined legally.
A stateless person is someone not considered as national by any state. Very often they are a minority living somewhere but not given this place’s nationality.
An internally displaced person is someone forced to flee his/her home - just like a refugee - but also someone staying within the borders of his/her country. It is important to see the difference between the internally displaced person and a refugee, especially that it’s easy to make a mistake here.
Is it more clear now? Remember you can always ask us about things you don't understand!
Let's learn together and stay in solidarity!