Maronite Bishops Say 'Heavy Burden' Syrian Refugees 'Risk Losing Their Identity'
The Council of Maronite Bishops stressed Wednesday the need for Syrian refugees to return home, warning that they are facing “the risk of losing their identity” if they stay in Lebanon.
“While underscoring humanitarian and social solidarity with the Syrian refugees, the fathers stress the need for them to return to their homeland, because they have become threatened with losing their identity and are representing a heavy burden for Lebanon at all levels,” said the Council in a statement issued after its monthly meeting in Bkirki under the chairmanship of Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi.
“This refugee situation heavily impacts the Syrians themselves, especially those of them who were born on Lebanon's soil,” the Council added.
“Should the crisis persist, there will be a generation of refugees who have no national identity, so how would they be able to take part in Syria's future?” the bishops went on to say.
And while calling for “a safe refugee return supervised by world powers,” the Council warned that “every day of delay is separating these people from their vital space and from their national dignity and future.”
At least one million registered Syrian refugees live in Lebanon, almost 25 percent of its population. Many more are believed to live unregistered, straining the country's already fraying infrastructure.
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