When Refugees Are Abandoned

In the modern world, we often hear beautiful speeches about human rights, refugee protection, and global solidarity. But for many political refugees, these words are just empty promises. I am writing this not as a complaint, but as the voice of someone who has spent more than a decade trapped in silence and injustice.

Since 2013, I have lived as a political refugee, forced to escape my homeland, Algeria, after exposing corruption and speaking the truth. My punishment for standing up against a system built on lies was not only exile but also being banned from obtaining a passport — a basic human right. This single act of state repression has locked me in a vicious cycle of isolation, poverty, and fear.

Ignored by the System Designed to Protect Us

In the last few years, I’ve contacted over 50 international organizations—every major refugee agency, charity, and human rights group you can imagine. Only a few replied, and even those told me they only assist refugees who are within their country’s official care. My desperate reality was simply outside their guidelines.

Not stopping there, I sent appeals to more than 40 governments across Europe, North America, and other regions. I wrote to heads of state, prime ministers, ministers of immigration and citizenship, and explained in detail the danger I was facing. I shared that the Malaysian Royal Police had offered me temporary protection after confirming the death threats from Algerian intelligence agents, and even advised me to search for a permanent solution. But without a passport, I am trapped in limbo.

Most governments replied the same way:

"Only the UNHCR can help you."

But the UNHCR — the very organization built to protect refugees — has ignored my case for years. They did not respond to my emails, my calls, or even the Malaysian police's advice to them about my urgent need for protection.

Betrayed from Within

Recently, the nightmare reached a new level. I discovered shocking evidence that a UNHCR employee in Malaysia was directly communicating with an Algerian intelligence officer about me. She reportedly told him that I had filed a complaint against her with the Malaysian police and warned him that if something wasn't done to silence me, her role in this corrupt relationship could be exposed.

Even more chilling: she suggested a plan. Since UNHCR cannot defend refugees accused of criminal acts like theft or drug possession, she advised fabricating such a charge against me, allowing the Malaysian authorities to jail me and eliminating the "problem" I represent — permanently.

A Refugee's Life: Fear and Isolation

I never imagined that as a refugee, my biggest enemy would be both the system designed to protect me and the regime I fled. Stuck in Malaysia without a passport, ignored by the UNHCR, hunted by agents of the very country I escaped, and abandoned by a world that claims to care.

This is not just my story. This is the hidden reality of many refugees who suffer in silence, ignored by global organizations, betrayed by governments, and used as pawns in political games.

A Call for Justice

I am not asking for charity. I am asking for the world to open its eyes and stop the hypocrisy. Refugees are not numbers, files, or cases to be ignored or buried. We are people. We have stories. We have rights.

And we deserve to be heard.