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Dispatches No. 240
Up | June 30, 2008
REFUGEE NEWS BRIEFINGS
UPDATES ON JRS PROJECTS AND ACTIVITIES
REFUGEE NEWS BRIEFINGS
KENYA: INSECURITY KEEPS DISPLACED IN CAMPS
According to news agency IRIN, on 24 June, more than six months after the outbreak of post-election violence, insecurity is still keeping many internally displaced persons (IDPs) in camps. Many are holding out to be resettled in other areas where they feel safer.
A large number of IDPs are returning to areas of displacement, but not all farmers are able to access their land due to insecurity, lack of shelter, inadequate food supplies and other constraints.
Some IDPs had said that it was the treatment they received when they returned that has made them reluctant to return. Nevertheless, of the 11,000 registered in two camps in Naivasha in the northwestern Rift Valley Province, just over 4,400 remain. An estimated 201,000 IDPs have been resettled, leaving approximately 40,000 still in camps. The government offered 166 US dollars to those leaving the camps, and has set aside 11.6 million US dollars for 70,000 households.
However, according to an update in early June, by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), uncertainties over access to education in areas of return and resettlement have contributed to the reluctance of IDPs to leave the camps. Vandalised schools are re-opening, although often in very poor conditions, with roofs, windows and doors missing. Access to water is also an increasing problem.
JRS is concerned that a food crisis is looming in most return areas and camps hosting IDPs who have no where to go to. Cases of malnutrition are on the increase particularly among older people, children and breastfeeding mothers. Though a few medical agencies are trying to address this issue, most will have pulled out by the end of June. Returnees in most areas have not received food rations for a month, and in some instances, periods exceeding a month.
Education for children is also being affected. In some areas, teachers have been personally affected by a lack of food and proper housing. Students lack basic learning materials and desks have been destroyed, some being used for firewood. Certain schools in return areas, such as Salama primary school hosting 2,572 returnees in the western district of Kwanza, are being used as transit sites. In addition, 1,908 returnees are being hosted in the market centre. Some people do not feel safe to return home.
The outbreak of violence after the presidential elections last December led to the death of an estimated 1,300 people and the displacement of a further 350,000.
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DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO: TEMPORARY AID CUT AFTER UNRESTS IN NORTH KIVU
On 25 June, the UN news agency, IRIN, reported that a number of humanitarian agencies temporarily suspended their activities in the town of Rutshuru, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, after two days of riots against the UN Mission in the Congo (MONUC). The UN World Food Programme (WFP) was forced to adjourn the distribution of food items in the area for two days due to the prevailing insecurity. Aggravating the problems, demonstrators had pillaged one lorry laden with food supplies which swept away one third of the food aid for the area.
On the nights of 23 and 24 June, residents of Mutabu ambushed MONUC personnel, throwing stones at the UN peace keepers demanding their immediate retreat. After clashes between government forces and troops loyal to General Laurent Nkunda on 18 June, with the help of international mediation, the warring parties reached an agreement that MONUC would replace government forces in Mutabo. The population is believed to fear that Nkunda's forces were going to retake the territory.
JRS Grands Lacs expressed concern that the prevailing insecurity exacerbates the existing food crisis. Due to the worldwide food crisis, WFP took a decision to halve food rations, and in some cases even suspend food distribution for the displaced population in the North Kivu. According to WFP, the situation is unlikely to improve before September.
In the camps around Goma, the capital of North Kivu, the situation is alarming, especially in terms of food security. Prior to the reduction, the quantity of food provided to internally displaced persons (IDPs) was already insufficient. Now that the rations have been halved, the situation has deteriorated considerably, a JRS staff member based in Goma said.
In mid-June JRS received reports that some IDPs were returning to their home villages in search of food despite the security risks. According to an international NGO working in four camps near Goma, one such person has already been confirmed dead and another was shot and wounded.
In addition, JRS is concerned that the food shortage may aggravate problems, such as the widespread sexual violence in the region. Even when they are in receipt of assistance, women have felt the need to collect fire wood around the camps and sell goods in the local markets to improve their living conditions. Consequently, several cases of rape and harassment of women have been reported. The reduction in humanitarian assistance in camps is likely to worsen the situation.
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SOUTH AFRICA: NEARLY 200,000 ZIMBABWEANS DEPORTED LAST YEAR
On 19 June, Human Rights Watch condemned the South African authorities for violating international law by continuing to deport Zimbabwean asylum seekers last year. It called on the government to grant temporary residence to all migrants fleeing violence and economic collapse.
According to the human rights organisation nearly 200,000 Zimbabweans were deported last year from South Africa, some of whom may face persecution. Approximately 20,000 Zimbabweans apply for refugee status in South Africa every year.
Human Rights Watch urged the South African government to implement a comprehensive policy that temporarily ceases deportations, grants Zimbabweans the right to remain and to seek paid employment in the country.
Meanwhile, thousands of foreign nationals have left South Africa since the recent wave of xenophobic violence in May. Yet despite the numbers leaving, there are still 65 makeshift shelters throughout the Western Cape, housing over half the 14,647 still displaced in South Africa. Having already fled appalling conditions at home - like the ongoing violence in Zimbabwe and Somalia — many have no other choice than to remain in the shelters, unable to go home or restart a life in South Africa.
An estimated three million Zimbabweans have fled to human rights abuses and extreme poverty in recent years. However, thousands have returned due to attacks on Zimbabweans and other African migrants throughout South Africa in the last month. At least 62 people were killed in the violence.
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CHAD: AID RESUMES AS CONFLICT ABATES
On 19 June, and as conflict abated in the east of the country, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) resumed its humanitarian operations in all 12 refugee camps along Chad's eastern border with Sudan.
Two days earlier UNHCR had temporarily suspended operations in eastern Chad after some of the camps in which it works were directly affected by fighting between rebel and government forces. However, it did not launch a full evacuation as it did when the capital was attacked by rebels in February.
Calm was restored as the Chadian government claimed victory following fighting with rebels in Am Zoer, a town 89km northeast of Abeche. According to military sources the fighting left 161 rebels and three government soldiers dead. These figures have not been confirmed by rebel leaders.
The military stated it had seized 61 vehicles, as well as weapons and ammunition, during the fighting. According to a journalist in Am Zoer, dead bodies and burned vehicles can still be seen on the town's streets.
The Chadian authorities described events in the last few days as the end of the Sudanese adventure. The Sudanese government has repeatedly denied accusations that it was involved in assisting the rebels. According to government sources, rebels are now scattered across the area and some have returned to Sudan.
Rebel columns entered eastern Chad on 13 June, and seized control of Goz Beida, Am-Dam, and Biltine towns. Goz Beida, host to more than 15,000 refugees in Djabal camp and approximately 40 000 internally displaced persons (IDPs), have been the scene of heavy fighting. Consequently, humanitarian staff were evacuated to the military camp of the EU peacekeeping force (Eufor).Rebel spokespersons repeatedly stated their objective was to seize control of the capital, N'djamena.
JRS Chad teams, based in Abeche, Goz Beida and Koukou, deliver education services to internally displaced persons in Dar Sila region, train refugee teachers in the 12 camps in eastern Chad and work with the UN children’s agency (UNICEF) in implementing demobilisation, disarmament and reintegration programme.
Although a resemblance of normality has returned to the region, it is difficult to predict what will happen next in this volatile region.
Some 250,000 Sudanese refugees live in a dozen camps in eastern Chad alongside around 180,000 IDPs.
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SRI LANKA: NO PEACE IN SIGHT AS FIGHTING CONTINUES
On 23 June, fighting between Sri Lankan military and the insurgent Tamil group, the LTTE, cost the lives of an unconfirmed number of militants, rebels and civilians. The fighting in several northern districts is part of the government strategy to gradually retake the LTTE northern stronghold.
The consequent hardship faced by the civilian population continues to be ignored. Neither side has promoted new peace initiatives acceptably to the other, as displacement and rising inflation become the norm in this part of the island nation.
According to church sources in the northern Jaffna peninsula, more than 15,000 fishermen have been affected by restrictions imposed as a result of recent fighting. The local church informed Dispatches that most of the families have no other means of livelihood and face difficulties accessing food. They also expressed concern about the increasing prices of essential food items.
Nordic truce monitors, who blamed troops and rebels for repeated abuses, were banished by the government after President Mahinda Rajapaksa formally scrapped a 6-year truce in January.
An estimated 70,000 people have died since the civil war began in 1983.
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THAILAND: MORE THAN 30,000 REFUGEES RESETTLED
On 25 June, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) announced that 30,144 Burmese refugees living in camps in northern Thailand have been resettled in third countries since the programme began in January 2005.
Burmese refugees are said to be leaving Thailand for resettlement at an average rate of more than 300 a week. A UNHCR statement described it as the world's largest refugee resettlement operation. Most of the refugees are ethnic Karen people and had been sheltered in nine refugee camps along the Thai-Burmese border.
Nearly 21,500 of the resettled refugees have gone to the US, while Australia has received 3,400 and Canada 2,600. Other resettlement countries are Britain, Finland, Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway and Sweden.
Many Burmese refugees have been in the camps for nearly two decades. Others were born and brought there, and are now raising their own families in the same camps. However, the camps remain home to 123,500 refugees and asylum-seekers.
The prospects for the refugees either to return to Burma or integrate permanently in Thailand were considered faint. For them resettlement offers a way out of the camps and the opportunity for a fresh start in life.
The United Nations and human rights groups say that over the years the Burmese military has burned villages, killed civilians and committed other atrocities against the Karen, who have long fought for autonomy from the central government.
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INTERNATIONAL: NUMBER OF FORCIBLY DISPLACED PERSONS INCREASES
According to the data released by the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre and the UN refugee agency (UNHCR), the number of forcibly displaced persons worldwide increased from 41.8 to 44.3 million last year.
After five years of successive drops, UNHCR announced on 20 June, World Refugee Day, the number of refugees increased from 17.4 to 18.3 million. In addition, according to the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre, the global number of people affected by conflict-induced internal displacement increased from 24.4 to 26 million.
The causes for the latest series of displacement include bad governance, increased competition for scarce resources and extreme price increases.
The largest refugee groups are Afghans, around three million, and Iraqis, some two million. These groups were followed by 552,000 Colombians, 523,000 Sudanese and 457,000 Somalis. The top refugee-hosting countries in 2007 included Pakistan, Syria, Iran, Germany and Jordan.
Of the internally displaced persons (IDPs), three million were reported in Colombia, 2.4 million in Iraq, 1.3 million in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, 1.2 million in Uganda, and one million in Somalia. Other increases, or new displacement situations, were also reported in the Central African Republic, Chad and Sri Lanka. However, more than 2.8 million IDPs and refugees returned home last year, and 75,300 refugees were resettled in third countries.
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UPDATES ON JRS PROJECTS AND ACTIVITIES
ITALY: DO YOUR NATIONAL SERVICE WITH REFUGEES
On 23 June, JRS Italy made a public offer to young Italians interested in working with refugees and asylum seekers.
Young Italians between 18 and 28 years old are being offered an opportunity to meet and assist asylum seekers and refugee for a period of one year. JRS offers these young men and women an opportunity to acquire new skills, and receive training and professional career advice.
Those undertaking national service with JRS Italy will receive training on: wars and conflicts in the world and the right to asylum, and information on the circumstances in which refugees live worldwide. They will also receive practical training to work with asylum seekers and refugees in the JRS canteen, accommodation centres and Italian language school. Volunteers will also be offered an opportunity to help in the editorial department of the JRS magazine, Servir, in its documentation centre and on its awareness activities.
All applicants need to have completed obligatory education and be in receipt of the diploma. Successful candidates receive 432.82 euro per month. For all those interesting in participating in such a programme, the closing date for applications is the 7 July.
For further information, contact Donatelli Parisi astalli@jrs.net
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EUROPE: FURTHER COMPREHENSIVE RESEARCH ON DETENTION ANNOUNCED
On 27 June, JRS Europe announced its plans to launch a large scale research project, the "Detention of Vulnerable Asylum Seekers" (DEVAS) this September.
The project, partially funded by EU Commission’s European Refugee Fund (ERF), will bring together one partner organisation per country over an 18-month period to examine the situation and conditions which vulnerable asylum seekers and migrants face in detention in 23 EU states. The ERF seeks to support and encourage the efforts of member states in the reception of asylum seekers, integration of refugees and voluntary repatriation projects.
This latest research project follows on from the finding of a JRS Europe report, published last December, on the administrative detention of asylum seekers and irregularly staying third country nationals in the 10 new Member States of the European Union. The report found that in spite of good practice in some states, the situation of migrants in detention in the 10 new Member States remained one of hardship, poor conditions and severe restrictions on personal freedom. This document prompted the Jesuit organisation to look at the conditions for particularly vulnerable groups in a larger number of EU states.
The steering committee will be led by JRS Europe and comprise one representative from each of the 23 partners. The research process will culminate with the publication of a regional report, setting out the findings from each country and offering analysis of the policy and legal implications of how detention conditions affect particularly vulnerable asylum seekers and migrants in Europe. The report will be presented in a two-day conference in Brussels, attended by EU-level policymakers, politicians, NGOs, academics and journalists.
As the EU moves towards the adoption of a common European asylum system, the European Commission seeks to introduce legislative instruments that, among other things, strengthen standards for vulnerable asylum seekers in detention. Thus, the daily experiences of JRS staff visiting detention centres throughout Europe, places the human rights organisation in a unique position to make a detailed contribution to the existing political agenda.
The principle objective of DEVAS project is to determine criteria to highlight under which circumstances vulnerable asylum seekers should not are detained. It also seeks to identify the minimum conditions for vulnerable groups held in detention and their particular needs. The report will make policy recommendations to improve the standards in centres.
JRS Europe is concerned about the administrative detention condition of irregular migrants who are also often in need of international protection. As such the research report will also examine the conditions facing the vulnerable members of this group. JRS Europe expects to make the findings of the report available to the public before the end of 2009.
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INTERNATIONAL: RISE IN FOOD PRICES FURTHER HURTS REFUGEES
Food prices have risen by an average of 83% since 2005, particularly affecting key staples such as wheat, rice, corn and milk. As a consequence of this ‘silent tsunami’, an additional 100 million people, including refugees and other displaced persons, risk being pushed into poverty.
On 20 June, World Refugee Day, JRS urged governments worldwide to increase humanitarian aid to populations in vulnerable situations and to take measures to boost food production in developing countries. JRS reminded governments of their obligations to protect refugees and encourages them to take measures to promote self-sufficiency among displaced persons.
Many refugees are forced to live in camps where their freedom of movement is restricted. They are denied the opportunity to cultivate their own food or to work in paid jobs and are almost entirely dependent on food aid for survival. Increased food prices have led to reductions in their rations to unsustainable levels, resulting not only in hunger but also affecting their protection as well.
Guaranteeing food security to displaced persons in conflict zones is a constant challenge. Violence, inadequate infrastructure, lack of humanitarian workers, political factors, and environmental conditions are ever-present obstacles to providing protection to refugees. Insufficient food assistance compounds these difficulties, affecting most severely those in the most vulnerable circumstances, particularly children.
Food aid is also urgently needed to prevent new displacement crises. Many individuals living in extreme poverty are being forced to flee their countries of origin as a result of political instability caused by food scarcity. Donor governments need to take steps to prevent the current food crisis from resulting in further displacement. In addition, farmers in affected countries need to be given the financing and technical assistance necessary to help them to boost food production.
For the full statement see www.jrs.net/statement/
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