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Dispatches No. 258
Up | April 30, 2009
REFUGEE NEWS BRIEFINGS
UPDATES ON JRS PROJECTS AND ACTIVITIES
REFUGEE NEWS BRIEFINGS
KENYA: LEVEL OF SERVICE PROVISION INSUFFICIENT IN KAKUMA CAMP
"Service provision in Kakuma camp needs to be scaled up to meet the needs of the refugee population", JRS Eastern Africa Director, Frido Pflueger SJ, told Dispatches on 24 April.
Given the expected arrival of large numbers of Somali refugees and the increasing heterogeneity of the camp population, JRS is actively taking steps to scale up service provision in the camp in northwestern Kenya. While Fr Pflueger SJ applauded efforts to serve the mainly Sudanese population, he stressed that a new approach is needed to make services suitable for the specific needs of Somali refugees.
Repatriation has led to cuts in services
Following the successful repatriation of Sudanese refugees in recent times, camp the population has dropped from more than 95,000 to 50,000. The level of service provision no longer corresponds to the needs in the camp.
While four years ago there were four secondary, 25 primary and seven pre-schools, today this number has been reduced to one secondary, five primary and six pre-schools for 20,000 children. The number of health clinics has also been cut from five to two, making access to hospital services extremely difficult.
Last February, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) announced that some 50,000 refugees are to be relocated from Dadaab camp in northeastern Kenya, which already hosts 250,000 refugees, to Kakuma. With expected arrivals of 500 Somalis per month, the population is expected to grow by approximately 10,000 this year.
Repatriation slows as uncertainty increases
Even though approximately 45,000 refugees are believed to have returned home from Kakuma since the 2005 peace agreement between the Sudan People's Liberation Army/Movement (SPLA/M) and the Sudanese government, the number of returnees has slowed in the last 12 months. While a further 10,000 were expected to return this year, UNHCR in Kakuma now believes this number may be closer to 5,000.
Refugees, who are usually in touch with friends and relatives in Sudan, fear growing insecurity and uncertainty about the future. Moreover, after years of living in a camp, many refugees have become dependent on the services provided by relief agencies and feel unable to survive on their own.
"With such increases in refugee arrivals and the substantial drop in repatriations, there is every reason to believe that the camp population will soon reach pre-2005 levels. Unfortunately, most agencies are ill-prepared to meet this challenge as they had not budgeted for increasing their services and now lack the necessary funding", JRS Kakuma Project Director, Elizabeth Ogaye, told Dispatches.
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BURUNDI: RECOGNITION OF REBEL GROUP AS POLITICAL PARTY OFFICIALLY ENDS CIVIL WAR
On 21 April, the Forces for National Liberation (FNL), the last active rebel movement in Burundi, was recognised as a political party.
This move officially brought an end to the civil war which cost the lives of some 300,000 people and displaced many thousands more since 1993. The decision to official recognise the FNL as political party, in time for next year's elections, was preceded by a ceremony on 18 April during which former rebel leader Agathon Rwasa symbolically laid down his arms.
In a statement issued on 23 April, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon congratulated the FNL for completing the disarmament.
In line with an agreement reached under South African mediation in Pretoria on 8 April, the government agreed to reintegrate 3,500 ex-rebels into the national police and defence forces. Another 5,000 ex-combatants will receive a demobilisation package, including six months' salary and 600 US dollars to start a business. The rest are expected to return home immediately after demobilisation with a promise to receive 80 US dollars this June. The FNL claims to have 21,000 fighters in its ranks, a number the government has questioned. The government has also been called upon to provide 33 posts in the administration for FNL leaders and release all political prisoners.
Civilian fears of human rights abuses
According to press reports, Burundians living near the demobilisation camps fear ex-combatants who do not receive much support may continue to harass the local population already struggling to earn a living in one of Africa's poorest nations.
According to the recently published 2008 annual report of ITEKA, a local human rights NGO, FNL fighters looted and recruited the local population, and government forces carried out reprisals against civilians suspected of supporting the former rebel group. Both sides have rejected these allegations.
The possession of illicit arms has also contributed to the worrying human rights record. Banditry, violent land disputes and violence against women have increased the list of human rights violations in the country. Furthermore, the press, opposition parties and civil society activists continued to be harassed by the authorities while exercising their right to freedom of speech and freedom of peaceful assembly.
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CHAD: SERVICES FOR DEMOBILISED CHILDREN DECREASE
"Officially, children no longer take part in the armed conflict in the east of the country; but they can still be seen everywhere wearing military uniforms", JRS staff working in eastern Chad told Dispatches on 27 April.
According to the UN children's agency (UNICEF), approximately 10,000 children are still involved in rebel groups and the armed forces. NGOs working in the conflict area believe the phenomenon is increasing, and Sudanese children living in refugee camps along the border between the two countries are being targeted.
Following a peace agreement between the government and various rebel groups, 496 children were released in May 2007. The following year, the figure dropped to 59. Since then no children have been released from the armed forces or rebel groups. Nearly 90 percent of the children already released were demobilised from rebel groups.
The JRS approach
In May 2007, five transition and orientation centres were established to host demobilised children. One of the centres, closed last December, was managed by JRS. In less than two years it helped to reintegrate 183 children back into their families and communities of origin.
The children were offered education or vocational training services. The older children usually received literacy classes and vocational training – to become tailors, chefs, mechanics or carpenters – while the younger children were integrated into schools. All the children received psychological care. Unfortunately, as children were no longer being released by the armed groups, three of the five centres were closed, including the JRS centre which closed last December.
To combat child recruitment, JRS is still determined to increase the provision of education in eastern Chad. Two years ago, school attendance rates in the conflict-affected region were less than 10 percent. Working with the families of former child soldiers, JRS opened six community schools and two more are being opened. Staff continue to pay regular visits to these families and their communities, raising awareness of the dangers of conflict and the importance of education.
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SOUTH AFRICA: TEMPORARY RESIDENCE PERMITS FOR ZIMBABWEANS
On 3 April, the South African Department of Home Affairs announced the introduction of a permit to regularise the legal status of thousands of undocumented Zimbabweans.
After meeting with the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) and members of civil society, the authorities agreed to introduce a temporary residence permit of at least six months, granting Zimbabweans the right to live and work in the country and access to healthcare and education, effectively putting an end to mass deportations. However, due to the need to secure additional resources, no formal timeline has been set.
According to the Consortium for Refugees and Migrants in South Africa (CoRMSA), applications from Zimbabweans form the bulk of asylum applications, creating a backlog of nearly 90,000 in 2007. The idea of granting them some form of temporary residence is not new and organisations like CoRMSA, JRS and UNHCR have been calling for it for years.
"We welcome this move and hope the government quickly implements its promises, both with documents for Zimbabweans, and instructions to law enforcement agencies about the change in policy", JRS Geneva Representative, Michael Gallagher SJ, told Dispatches on 29 April.
Exceptional times require exceptional measures
While many organisations accept that Zimbabweans are often not the target of individualised persecution as defined by the Geneva Convention, the complete collapse of the economy and the extreme level of human rights abuses in the country mean that they are in need of some form of temporary protection.
Section 31 of the Immigration Act allows the home affairs minister to grant permanent residence to a category of foreigners for a specified period, in special circumstances. According to the Organisation for African Unity Convention, similar provisions granting certain groups temporary refugee status have been a common response to large-scale migration on the continent.
Up until now, the approach of the authorities has been largely "arrest, detain and deport", which has meant that undocumented migrants have been arrested by police and detained in repatriation centres before being deported. Figures collected by the International Organisation for Migration reveal that by June 2007 approximately 17,000 Zimbabweans were being deported monthly.
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SRI LANKA: CRISIS CONTINUES AS 'SAFE ZONE' IS ANYTHING BUT SAFE
According to a statement by the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) on 27 April, more than 150,000 civilians fleeing fighting between the Sri Lankan government and the Tamil rebel group, the LTTE, are being hosted in 38 camps in the northeast of the island nation.
According to UNHCR, overcrowding is a major worry as shelters designed for four to five people are hosting eight to 10. Many displaced persons have no shelter from the sweltering heat.
More deaths and suffering
Meanwhile, conditions for those still trapped in the combat zone, the so called 'safe zone' are said to be appalling. Sources on the ground told Dispatches that as many as 200 civilians were killed and 1,500 injured in heavy artillery shell attacks and aerial bombardment in the Mullivaikal, Irrataivaikal and Salampan areas in the 'safe zone' on 27 and 28 April
UN estimates put the number of civilian deaths at more than 6,500 since the end of January and the injured in tens of thousands. The same estimates reveal that between 50,000 and 100,000 civilians remain trapped in the safe zone, now believed to be less than six square kilometres situated between a lagoon and the sea.
Conditions in the 'safe zone'
Civilians go for days without food and drinking water. Those who try to get out of the Vanni area, where the fighting is taking place, risk their lives. Only the seriously injured are allowed to leave the safe zone.
JRS sources on the ground say that civilians are being affected by both war and weather. Heavy rain has damaged the temporary tarpaulin shelters. The close proximity of living quarters, as well as the fact that temporary wells are situated close to overflowing improvised toilet pits, is such that contamination is inevitable. The civilian population is subject to constant bombing and shortages of food, medicines and medical staff. Although food deliveries have arrived, the quantities are insufficient, and children, pregnant and feeding mothers, the sick and older people are the worst affected.
Before the latest fighting broke out, JRS had more than 330 staff and volunteers in the Vanni area, providing education and training services, as well as small loans to start businesses and other livelihood projects. Many of these people continue to accompany the population in the safe zone.
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SRI LANKA: CARITAS DIRECTOR SERIOUSLY INJURED
On 23 April, Fr T R Vasanthaseelan, the local Caritas director of in Sri Lanka's war-torn Vanni region, was severely injured in the ongoing fighting between the government and Tamil rebel forces, the LTTE.
Fr Vasanthaseelan suffered injuries in both legs after shells hit St Anthony's Church in Valaignarmadam. Subsequently, one of his legs was amputated. Tens of thousands of innocent people, including women and children, are trapped in a small pocket of land. Many have sought safety in St Anthony's Church.
The security forces have captured almost all the territory controlled by the rebels and are now entering the 'safe zone' where the LTTE is using civilians as human shields.
Fr Vasanthaseelan has been living in Vanni, providing humanitarian assistance to the civilian population. Fr James Pathinathan, a member of the National Commission for Justice, Peace and Human Development, was also injured and brought to hospital in Anuradhapura a day earlier.
Caritas calls for action
According to Caritas Internationalis director, Leslie Knight, the fact that aid workers are suffering only underlines how civilians, including women and children, are being injured and killed in Sri Lanka's civil war and reinforces international appeals for an immediate ceasefire.
She added that both the government and the LTTE rebels have obligations to protect the lives of civilians and allow humanitarian access. She urged the UN and the international community to hold them to these commitments.
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USA: NGOS URGE OBAMA TO SAFEGUARD REFUGEE RIGHTS IN THE AMERICAS
On 17 April, Refugee Council USA, a coalition of 25 US-based refugee NGOs including JRS USA, wrote a letter to President Barack Obama to highlight the situation facing forcibly displaced Haitians and Colombians in the Western Hemisphere.
The members of the Refugee Council urged the US president to raise their concerns at the Summit of the Americas the following week.
Hidden displacement in Colombia
According to the NGO coalition, most discussion on Colombia focuses on relative improvements in security. It ignores the fact that last year alone an additional 300,000 persons were forcibly displaced from their homes and land, bringing the total number of internally displaced to an estimated four million.
An additional 500,000 to 750,000 Colombians, they added, have sought refuge in other countries in the region, namely Venezuela, Ecuador, Panama and Costa Rica. The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has expressed concern for their physical security, as irregular armed groups operate on both sides of the Colombian border, infiltrating the communities where refugees have sought protection. In Ecuador and Venezuela, the Colombian population is largely unregistered and unassisted by UNHCR. In light of growing xenophobia, unaccompanied minors, women-headed households and Afro-Colombians are particularly vulnerable.
Halt deportations to Haiti
The NGO coalition also drew the newly elected president's attention to the dire circumstances in Haiti, where approximately one-third of the country's population has been internally displaced and thousands more have crossed the border into the Dominican Republic or have sought refuge further a field. The lack of central government control over much of the country and the devastation wreaked by four deadly storms since September last have left tens of thousands without food, water, shelter or healthcare.
Under the circumstances, the NGO coalition urged all American states to cease the deportation of Haitians in order to allow the Haitian government to invest its limited resources in rebuilding damaged infrastructure and offering emergency relief to its suffering citizens. In particular, the human rights organisations highlighted their concern regarding the treatment of Haitian migrants and refugees in the Dominican Republic. They asked President Obama to raise awareness of the need for the Dominican Republic to allow UNHCR to re-establish its office in the country.
For the full version of the letter click here.
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UPDATES ON JRS PROJECTS AND ACTIVITIES
SUDAN: COUNTYWIDE EXAMINATION A SUCCESS
Nearly 2,000 secondary students passed the first ever countywide exams in the southern Sudanese county of Yei.
The results of the exams, organised by JRS and the local education office, were made public just Christmas. This meant that for the first time parents could assess the performance of their children and compare it to others not only at the same school but also in other schools in the county.
Motivating students and schools
"It was such a success that school and education officials have already agreed to continue with the joint exam system this year. The benefits are obvious. It encourages healthy academic competition among students and schools and challenges and motivates teachers to improve the quality of their work. It also facilitates the introduction of a common curriculum throughout southern Sudan", JRS Secondary Education Coordinator in Yei, Victor Eriga, told Dispatches on 24 April.
Of the 12 secondary schools in Yei, eight agreed to participate in the process. Of 2,224 students who sat the exams, 89 percent passed, 91 percent of boys and 84 percent of girls. Final year Yei county students continued to travel over the border to neighbouring Uganda to take their O-level examinations, set by the Ugandan National Examination Board (UNEB) exams.
In order to encourage participation in the new system, JRS introduced a system of prizes for the best students. The best three students from years one to three received prizes worth 90 US dollars in the form of payment of school fees plus a small sum for the purchase of personal effects. A prize of 130 US dollars was also presented to the school with the best results in the UNEB exams.
JRS assistance extended
When JRS started working in Yei five years ago, it supported two secondary schools (St Joseph's Lutaya and Yei Girls). By 2008, this number had grown to six, in line with a shift in strategic focus to secondary education in view of the absence of other NGOs assisting this group (most focus on primary education only). Four of the six JRS-supported schools took part in the countywide exams last year. This year JRS expects all will participate.
Providing assistance to the authorities in staging countywide exams at both primary and secondary levels is a way of introducing a measure of equity in accessing JRS services – a factor particularly appreciated by the non-JRS supported schools and the County Education Office. JRS also supports 19 primary schools, reaching out to almost 14,000 students and more than 400 teachers in total.
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NEPAL: JRS PROGRAMMES UNAFFECTED SO FAR BY RESETTLEMENT
Sixteen months after the start of the third country resettlement programme for Bhutanese refugees in Nepal, JRS services for refugees remain largely unaffected.
As of April this year, nearly 12,400 refugees have been resettled in third countries, of whom 10,555 have gone to the USA.
As large numbers of refugees depart from the camps, common resources (such as firewood) will be more readily available and camp facilities less overcrowded. In addition, overseas remittances are likely to increase as refugees resettle in richer countries. However, the likely depletion of educated, skilled and experienced workers could reduce the quality of camp services, particularly in the health and education sectors.
Academic results remain as good as ever
On 23 April, with the beginning of the 2009/2010 academic year, JRS Nepal began its sixteenth year of service to Bhutanese refugees. Nearly 26,000 students living in seven camps are registered in JRS-supported schools this year, which employ 979 teaching and 146 non teaching staff.
The results of Bhutanese refugee students in the district-administered examinations continue to compare extremely favourably with those attained by local Nepalese students, and show no sign of deteriorating. Eighty percent of students sitting upper primary school (class VII) examinations last year passed, while 91 percent of those taking the lower secondary exams (class VIII) in February passed. More than 2,000 students recently sat their class X national exams. JRS is confident that the results, when available in June, will be of as high a standard as usual.
Strategies adopted to face change
According to JRS Nepal Director, Varkey Perekkatt SJ, all the other JRS activities – the disability programme, youth centre, vocational courses, English classes, children's centres – are operating at full capacity. While some experienced staff, Jesuit fathers Jomon Jose and Paul Horan and Sr Violita, have left or will be leaving shortly, Fr Perekkatt SJ said that new staff will be arriving in the near future.
If the resettlement process goes as planned, 15,000 refugees should be resettled by the end of the year, with a further 36,000 in the next two years. However, JRS is developing strategies to cope with the inevitable reduction in services, including voluntarily repatriation back to Bhutan and local integration in Nepal.
Of the more than 105,000 refugees living in seven camps in the Morang and Jhapa districts of eastern Nepal - about 800km from Kathmandu – nearly 67,000 have submitted their declaration of interest in resettlement. The refugees were expelled from Bhutan in 1990 after the government established new eligibility requirements for citizenship that effectively deprived many ethnic Nepalese, known as Lhotshampas, of citizenship and civil rights.
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ITALY: UN HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR REFUGEES VISITS JRS
On 23 April, during a visit to JRS Italy, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, António Guterres, called on Italian Interior Minister Roberto Maroni not to return asylum seekers who have come to Italy from Greece back to the Hellenic nation.
Under the EU regulation, known as Dublin II, the EU member state in which third country nationals arrive is responsible for processing their asylum applications. If third country nationals are found not to be in need of international protection, the same state is responsible for returning these unsuccessful asylum seekers and undocumented migrants back to their countries of origin.
Many asylum seekers pass through Greece on their way to claiming refugee status in other EU states. Under Dublin II, in these circumstances Greece is responsible for assessing their claims for protection. However, according to High Commissioner Guterres, there are not sufficient human rights guarantees in place to ensure that the claims of asylum seekers returned to Greece would be dealt with in accordance with international human rights law.
High Commissioner speaks to Afghan refugees
The meeting, which lasted for circa 30 minutes, took place during the distribution of meals to more than 400 refugees and asylum seekers who come to the JRS soup kitchen every day. The stories of the Afghans were of great interest to the High Commissioner. During the meeting High Commissioner Guterres spoke at length with 10 Afghan refugees and asylum seekers who regularly use JRS Italy services, including the Italian language school, dormitory, and the social and legal advice centre.
For the full article see http://www.jrs.net/reports
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