AFRICA/SUDAN - “Sudan is the country with the second highest number of refugees and displaced persons in the world” says Laura Boldrini of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees

Tuesday, 10 January 2006

Rome (Fides Service)- “Sudan is the world’s second largest “producer” of refugees after Afghanistan” says Laura Boldrini, of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees UNHCR. “At present there are over 730,000 Sudanese refugees in neighbouring countries Uganda, Chad, Ethiopia, Kenya and four million internally displaced people inside Sudan. “What is more Sudan also has refugees from Ethiopia and Eritrea”.
This situation is the result of a series of conflicts in Sudan. “At present there are three areas of crisis. The worst situation is in Darfur said to be the world’s most serious humanitarian crisis at the moment. Since 2003 this western region of Sudan has been the scene of civil war and the target of the militia is precisely the civilian population”.
In Darfur alone there are over 2 million internally displaced persons. Chad has 200,000 Sudanese refugees. “This serious crisis must be solved as soon as possible because it threatens to destabilise the whole region and involving nearby countries like Chad and Central African Republic” said Ms Boldrini.
The second area of crisis is Southern Sudan where the peace agreement signed in January last year should sooner or later lead to the return of refugees and displaced people to their original villages. There are about 500,000 refugees from Sudan in Uganda, Ethiopia, Central African Republic and Kenya.
“UNHCR has been working for some time to prepare the return of refugees. This process involves rebuilding of infrastructures such as wells, water-ways, schools and medical centres. At the moment we have what we call a “Go and See” operation. Refugees representatives are taken to see the local situation and then return to tell the people in the camps what they have seen. This is a gradual approach to overcome psychological difficulties. Most of these people have lived in camps for years and need help and time to the idea of returning to rural life in Sudan”. The programme to repatriate refugees to Sudan started in December 2005 with the 4R approach (Repatriation, reintegration, rehabilitation, reconstruction). “To help refugees return to Sudan, UNHCR appealed for a collection of 73.4 million dollars: so far 38.9 million have been promised. I ask myself if the international community believes in peace in Southern Sudan and if it is ready to invest to help these people” says Ms Boldrini.
“Refugees who return to their villages are given help to repair their home or if it no longer exists to build a new one. We give them a kit: money for the first necessities, and farming tools and seed”.
In Sudan there is also a crisis in Kassala where tension has already led to armed fighting and threatens to explode in open conflict. “In this area there are about 113 ,000 non Sudanese refugees: 80,000 Eritreans and 14,000 Ethiopians who fled war between their respective countries in 1998-2000” says Ms Boldrini.
This situation demands serious commitment on the part of humanitarian organisations says the UNHCR representative: “All three crisis areas are difficult to reach and there is also a problem of security. We have to deal with tension with local people in the paces where we set up refugee camps, particularly in Chad. Here UNHCR runs 12 refugee camps with other 200,000 people. The local village people feared the presence of so many extra people would cause water resources to dry up. We help improve the sitation of local people to lessen the negative impact of the presence of refugees”. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides 10/1/2006 righe 54 parole 704)


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