Photo by Nitsan Tal
**NEW** APRIL 16, 2013 – Asylum Access Ecuador (AAE) and USCRI launch our report on “Refugee Status Determination in Latin America: Regional Challenges and Opportunities”. With an analysis of national processes for refugees to secure legal status and avoid deportation, the report aims to strengthen due process and improve RSD standards across the region. Read the report in English or Spanish, or take a look at our Executive Summary for a brief overview. Stay tuned for our launch event in Washington, DC in late May. (Details TBD)
Asylum Access Ecuador (AAE) is an Ecuadorian-registered NGO and part of the Asylum Access family of organizations. Founded in 2007, AAE is a response to the critical gap in rights-based refugee assistance in Latin America.
Ecuador is home to an estimated 250,000 mostly Colombian refugees, the largest population of refugees in Latin America. Of these, approximately 60,000 are recognized refugees. Most refugees in Ecuador lack legal status. As a result, many find it difficult to work, enroll their children in school, access healthcare, and seek protection from further injustice. In addition, misinformation and fear deter many refugees from seeking status and widespread discrimination marginalizes refugees in Ecuadorian civil society.
AAE provides individualized legal advice and representation to refugees, helping them navigate the refugee status determination (RSD) process and access rights protected by Ecuadorian laws. Our Volunteer Legal Advocates (VLAs) provide personalized legal counsel and representation, conduct Know Your Rights workshops, and engage in policy advocacy and strategic litigation to promote greater fairness in the RSD process.
AAE also helps refugees resolve other human rights violations. We help refugees assert rights to police protection, safe and legal employment, public education, and social services. We also bring personalized legal services to refugees who are unlawfully detained and to locations across the country through Mobile Legal Clinics in San Lorenzo, Esmeraldas, Guayaquil and Lago Agrio.
Through Know Your Rights trainings, AAE enables refugees to understand their options and how to exercise them. Through policy advocacy and strategic litigation, AAE transforms laws and policy practices for all refugees. For example, our advocacy led to the inclusion of refugees’ right to work in the Ecuadorian Constitution, enabling refugees to access safe and legal employment for the first time. We have also successfully advocated for improvements in transparency and accountability in RSD proceedings, helping refugees launch informed appeals for negative RSD decision.
In 2010, AAE began providing specialized services for refugee women survivors of gender-based violence. The “Encuentros de Mujeres” (Convenings of Women) provides a safe haven for refugee women to focus on healing and find the strength to pursue their rights. Led by an external psychosocial specialist, the Encuentros have helped an average of 100 women overcome trauma and take back control of their life each year.
News and Updates from Ecuador
Are you a refugee in Ecuador? Contact our office by calling us at +593.2.2.545.914, e-mailing ecuador@asylumaccess.org or visit our office in Quito.
Want to contribute to the global refugee rights movement? Find out how to get involved or join us as a Volunteer Legal Advocate.
You can also find out more about our work in Thailand, Tanzania and Global Policy Advocacy.
