On the occasion of World Refugee Day – June 20 – the partner organizations participating in the UNICEF program in Debrecen presented their activities and organized a family day for those living in the Dorkász Reception Center on June 20, 2023.
A UNICEF representative also took part in the event. Ábel Lukács Kiss, the director of the Dorkász Service Foundation, emphasized: with this program, their goal is to make them happy even in this difficult situation, that Debrecen was able to provide a home for the refugee families, and that they are safe in Hungary. He also highlighted the importance of the so-called ABCD (Asset Based Community Development), resource-based community development, in their activities at the reception center, the essence of which is that the emphasis is not on aid, but on helping their beneficiaries discover their inherent resources and abilities. With this positive attitude, they focus on the solution, not on the problems. In this way, they also help the refugee families here, and in this process, work, kindergarten, school, and Christian values play a key role. Their goal is to use positive samples to achieve a long-term positive change in the lives of their beneficiaries. Currently, 39 families – a total of 200 refugees, including nearly 100 children – are cared for in the reception center. Ábel Lukács Kiss thanked UNICEF for its support, as well as the cooperation and help of partner organizations.
Diána Széles, deputy mayor of Debrecen, said, among other things, that the Russo-Ukrainian war, which lasted almost a year and a half, created a new situation for all of us, and that Debrecen’s social and health system also had to adapt to the care of refugees. With the help of UNICEF, the city can implement an international-level program that can help refugees to catch up with society. Nowadays, fewer refugees come to us than before, so attention can also be paid to their socialization, so that they will be able to return to their country after the end of the fighting – hopefully as soon as possible – with new skills. Those refugees who now live in Debrecen can feel safe, and this is confirmed by the self-absorbed squeals of children heard on family day. However, the daily lives of those living in a war zone are filled with fear.
Diána Széles – linking to the government’s propaganda – said that the pursuit of “peace” should be strengthened as much as possible, as widely as possible. At its June 22 meeting, the Debrecen General Assembly will vote on joining the parliamentary resolution urging “peace”, created on the occasion of the first anniversary of the Russian-Ukrainian war. The deputy mayor expressed his hope that his fellow politicians would all support the joint resolution for the sake of “peace”. If she mixed it up in her words like this, Diána Széles did not demand the withdrawal of the Russians from Ukraine (which would be the basic condition for real, not the “peace” that the government’s parrots are repeating to the point of boredom) this time either it will happen
According to Aurélia Orosz, head of the Family and Child Welfare Center of the City of Debrecen County, the cooperation between the social and charitable organizations operating in Debrecen has been good so far, but this program has given us an irreplaceable opportunity through daily contact. In order to help refugee families, a very close cooperation based on trust and increased attention to each other is necessary. The head of the institution also emphasized that the enforcement of children’s rights plays an important role in the framework of cooperation.
Evelin Kovács, the program coordinator of the Debrecen Primary Care and Health Development Institute (Daefi), reported that they are constantly monitoring the health status of children and adults living in the reception center: cardiovascular risk screening, ophthalmic examination, hearing screening, ECG examination, lung screening were performed. Health promotion programs – both exercise and mental health programs – have already been held. Two specialists help with health care in the reception center, and thanks to the support of UNICEF, the first unit of the medical container arrived today, which will soon be able to provide the right conditions for care locally.
(Debrecen City Hall)
