Our goal is to restore peace and normalcy for refugees, where it was lost

Cologne. With nearly 60 million refugees, fleeing from violence and armed conflicts in their homelands, a peaceful life is far from reality. On World Peace Day (September 21st), Malteser International’s Secretary General, Ingo Radtke, is calling on the global community to make peace more than a word, and in doing so address the root causes of flight and expulsion.

„In our work with refugees around the globe, we see the disastrous consequences of a hostile environment on these people. They have had terrible experiences and are heavily traumatized, and peace is only a word, not a way of life for them,” says Ingo Radtke, Secretary General of Malteser International.  “At Malteser International, along with our relief efforts, our goal is to work as hard as we can to restore peace and normalcy for refugees, where it was lost.”

With the civil war in Syria in its fourth years and the renewed outbreak of violence in Iraq last year, it is especially necessary to reinforce efforts for sustainable solutions in these conflicts, which will bring peace to people, countries and entire nations.

Since the outbreak of violence, Malteser International is active in the Middle East, providing aid for refugees in northern Iraq, Lebanon and Turkey. Since August 2014, Malteser International in cooperation with its local partners has provided medical treatment to around 45,000 sick, wounded and displaced people, as well as distributed emergency aid and hygiene kits with essential aid supplies to almost 10,000 people. Around the globe, Malteser International provides aid to refugees in other conflict regions, such as Uganda (ensuring water supply for South Sudanese refugees) and to Burmese minorities in camps near to the Thai border.