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Michel Gabaudan
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Michel Gabaudan became president of Refugees International in September of 2010, leading RI forward in its mission to bring attention and action to refugees and displaced people worldwide. Prior to his role with RI, Michel served as the United Nations High Commission on Refugees (UNHCR) Regional Representative for the United States and the Caribbean. Michel’s career with UNHCR spanned more than 25 years, including international service in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Pacific.

Trained as a medical doctor in addition to holding a master’s degree in tropical public health, Michel spent a decade working in Guyana, Zambia, Brazil, London and Yemen before joining UNHCR as a Field Officer in Thailand in 1978. His UN career took him to field operations in Cameroon and Pakistan as well as several years at the agency’s headquarters in Geneva, where he served as the first public health advisor to the organization. Subsequently, he served as a Secretary to CIREFCA, the International Conference on Refugees in Central America, where he led a joint UNHCR- UNDP team for a year and a half, supporting peace processes in Latin America. He was then assigned as Charge de Mission in Guatemala where he negotiated the first phases of the return of refugees. In 1995, he was appointed as the Regional Representative in Mexico responsible for all Central American countries. He then went on to become head of UNHCR’s funding and donor relations service at headquarters in Geneva. Between 2001 and 2004, Michel was the Regional Representative in Australia. Prior to coming to Washington and serving in his current capacity, he served as the Regional Representative for UNHCR in Beijing.

Blog Entries by Michel Gabaudan

Syrian Refugee Crisis: The View From the Turkish Border

(12) Comments | Posted April 5, 2013 | 1:03 PM

There are now roughly 200,000 Syrian refugees in 17 camps throughout southeastern Turkey, and this week a Refugees International team visited one such camp in Kilis Province.

It must be said that standards there are extremely high, and staff have provided much needed support to the most...

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Kenya: Punishing Refugees Won't Stop Terror Attacks

(0) Comments | Posted December 20, 2012 | 9:39 AM

The neighborhood of Eastleigh, in the Kenyan capital Nairobi, is home to tens of thousands of Somali refugees. It is one of many cities around the world -- from Minneapolis to Toronto to Helsinki -- where Somalis have settled in large numbers and built communities of their own. In recent...

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Rohingya Must Be on Obama's Agenda in Burma

(2) Comments | Posted November 16, 2012 | 10:52 AM

For generations, the Rohingya of western Burma were a people beyond all help. They lived lives of extreme deprivation and injustice: stripped of their citizenship; barred from traveling, marrying, or worshipping freely; and subjected to terrible abuse by members of the Burmese military, the government, and even their own neighbors....

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As Region Scrambles to Shelter Syrians, Israel Shuts the Door

(325) Comments | Posted July 23, 2012 | 2:30 PM

Last week's showdown over sanctions in the UN Security Council demonstrated once again that the world can't agree on how to stop the bloodshed in Syria -- which raises the question, "Whither Syria?" Or, perhaps more importantly, "Whither the Syrians?"

The UN Supervision Mission in Syria (UNSMIS), which...

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An Empty Anniversary for Afghanistan's Displaced

(3) Comments | Posted October 7, 2011 | 11:40 AM

Today we observe the tenth anniversary of Operation Enduring Freedom, the U.S.-led campaign in Afghanistan. It is an anniversary that is important to many. For the American military and its allies, this is a time to reflect on sacrifices made during this long and difficult war. For the Karzai government,...

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Libya: A Revolution's Endgame

(1) Comments | Posted August 24, 2011 | 5:48 PM

Yesterday, I watched the images of Libyans celebrating in Tripoli's Green Square as opposition forces took control of large parts of the city. After six months of intense fighting, it seems as though the regime of Moammar Gaddafi is coming to an end. As I witnessed the pure joy on...

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Somalia: A Man-made Famine

(1) Comments | Posted July 27, 2011 | 6:14 PM

Today, more than eleven million people are desperately trying to survive the drought affecting the Horn of Africa. Tens of thousands have already died.

While it is true that droughts are an act of nature, there is nothing "natural" about the resulting famine in Somalia -- the only country...

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Libya: What Few People Witness

(3) Comments | Posted March 24, 2011 | 7:02 PM

It is said that people during times of conflict vote with their feet. As such, monitoring the movement of people is often a good barometer of the nature of that conflict. However, the images of people fleeing Libya into Egypt and Tunisia do not show us the whole story of...

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Somali Refugees in Dadaab Need More Support

(0) Comments | Posted November 8, 2010 | 11:37 AM

The Dadaab refugee camp in Northeastern Kenya is over 20 years old and has received successive waves of refugees, reflecting the political turmoil and violence against civilians that continues to engulf Somalia. I visited the camp this week and met with many Somalis who have fled civil war and sought...

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African Leaders Must Follow Through on Kampala Convention

(0) Comments | Posted October 27, 2010 | 2:19 PM

Co-authored by Michel Gabaudan, President of Refugees International, and Kate Halff, Head of the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre.

Imagine having to leave your home in a hurry, bringing hardly anything with you. Imagine building a flimsy shelter, out of old rugs, branches, and, if you are lucky, plastic tarps. Imagine...

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