What are opinions on the UNHCR?

Answer 1

I am not very satisfied with the UNHCR organization. I'm sure that it is a legitimate organization, and that they do use efforts to protect and rescues the refugees. However, I am not happy with the way they handle their donations and people who donate. I was approached by a UNHCR employee while I was on ASU campus. (It's very difficult to avoid them; they're literally everywhere.) He stopped me and began to talk to me about the organization. I listened to him and was impressed at all the work they did, however, I knew that I was unable to donate at that time--I'm a student and need to pay for school, rent, and food.

I thanked him for his time and told him that I would not be able to donate. Thinking that our conversation would be over, I began to inch away. However, he continued to talk to me and actually started to guilt trip me into donating. He said things along the lines of, "these people are in dire need," and "women and children are in trouble everyday." I continued to decline his offer and told him I was a student and was unable to donate. He then told me, "you can donate as little as 50 cents a day. You should be able to afford that."

Eventually I was harassed to the point of putting my name down on paper, thinking that I could just remove it later. However, when I tried to contact the agency later, I received no replies whatsoever. I contacted multiple people and used all of the emails and telephone numbers I could find. I received no answers.

They are not a very friendly organization. They swarm college campuses and track down every student who is not preoccupied. They harass you and guilt trip you into donating money for the refugees. And they do not respond to your emails or phone calls. I would say it is not a very good organization, but that was just my experience.