A Maltese lawyer whose family fell victim to an arson attack has been named by the UN Refugee Agency as the winner of the Nansen Refugee Award, which is given to individuals and organisations that have distinguished themselves in work on behalf of refugees.
Katrine Camilleri has demonstrated her dedication, not only in a decade of work with the Jesuit Refugee Service but to continue in the face of threats that included an arson attack on her car and home, said the UNHCR.
“The committee has chosen Dr Camilleri of Malta in recognition of her exceptional dedication to the refugee cause and her outstanding contribution through Jesuit Refugee Service in the protection and assistance to refugees and displaced persons,” said the official selection decision.
“The committee notes with appreciation the tireless efforts of Dr Camilleri to lobby and advocate for refugees and is impressed by the political courage she has shown in dealing with the refugee situation in Malta.
By awarding Dr Camilleri for her civic courage and for the inspiring example set by her actions, the Nansen Refugee Award Committee would like to honour all individuals who are working to improve the well-being of refugees,” said the UNHCR.
The annual award, formerly known as the Nansen Medal, includes a $100,000 grant from Norway and Switzerland for a refugee-related project of the winner’s choice and is scheduled to be presented in October during the annual gathering in Geneva of UNHCR’s governing executive committee.
“Katrine Camilleri has worked courageously to protect refugees and asylum seekers,” said Antonio Guterres, UN High Commissioner for Refugees.
Dr Camilleri and the JRS are key partners in helping UNHCR to fulfil its goal of assisting governments to identify refugees caught in migratory movements and responding to their needs.
Dr Camilleri first came into contact with refugees in 1994. After helping to prevent the deportation of a Libyan asylum seeker who risked persecution if returned home, her interest grew and in 1997, she started to work with the Malta office of JRS.
First as a volunteer, then part time and eventually full time, Dr Camilleri helped to expand JRS’s assistance. In 2000, she was referred the case of an asylum seeker in detention and others soon came forward to ask for legal assistance. JRS became the first organisation to offer a professional legal service on a regular basis to detainees.
Dr Camilleri leads the JRS Malta legal team of two lawyers and two case workers, who apart from handling asylum claims, challenge detention in individual cases and monitor the treatment of those in the centres. Conscious of the need for more lawyers trained in refugee law, she helped set up a study unit for law students at the University of Malta in which students take cases, thus coming into contact with asylum seekers.
Over the last year, JRS and Dr Camilleri have faced a series of attacks. Nine vehicles belonging to the Jesuits were burned in two separate attacks. And this April, arsonists set fire to both Dr Camilleri’s car and her front door, terrifying her family trapped inside.
The incident, she said, shattered her own children’s sense of invulnerability, but has not altered her desire to help asylum seekers risking their lives in flimsy boats to reach safety.
“I’m always impressed by how much hope they have and how much capacity in a sense, not only to keep hoping against hope, but to really make things happen,” Dr Camilleri told UNHCR.