International

From 9th to 12th January SP Member of Parliament Sharon Gesthuizen visited Lebanon, a country in which, to the normal population of 4.5 million must now be added 1.6 million Syrian refugees, many of them living under wretched conditions. ‘I travelled with the Refugee Foundation to a number of places including Bekaavallei in the east of Lebanon,’ Gesthuizen explains. ‘What we encountered there was unbelievably sad. It had been snowing really hard and the storm kept up during our visit. I’m extremely concerned about these refugees. They need urgent help to be able to protect themselves against the cold.’

‘The Russian annexation of the Crimea, the Russian-backed armed rebellion in the country’s east and the enormous flood of refugees form an acute menace to Ukraine’s stability. The same can be said of the spreading corruption and the absence of an independent judiciary, and the fact that as things stand the country is virtually bankrupt. Europe can’t just look away and must show solidarity.’ So said SP Senator Tiny Kox during a working visit to Kiev with a delegation from the Council of Europe. In Kiev Senator Kox spoke with the   president, prime minister and parliament of the unstable country.