MSF says Somali refugees reluctant to return, warns against aid cut

Thursday, November 28, 2013

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NAIROBI, Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- International medical humanitarian charity on Thursday said the majority of Somali refugees living in northern Kenyan camps are not willing to return home due to insecurity and harsh economic conditions.

The Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) also warned the recently signed agreement by UNHCR, Kenya and Somali governments must not happen at the expense of providing aid to refugees.

"No one chooses a life as a refugee, and most refugees struggle to get by on what the government and aid agencies provide," MSF's Director of Operations Dr. Jean-Clément Cabrol said in a statement released in Nairobi.

"Any decision to return should be made willingly and gladly, and not be forced on them by a cut in aid. Security and dignity must be ensured for all returnees," Cabrol added.

According to the charity, assessment it conducted amongst patients in its medical facilities in Dadaab's Dagahaley camp in August found that four in five people would choose not to return to Somalia, given the current situation.

Their reluctance to leave is despite poor living conditions in the camps. Nearly half of the respondents in Dagahaley said they have no means of keeping their homes dry in the rainy season; one in ten have no access to latrines; and one in four admitted they do not feel safe.

Kenya hosts an estimated 610,000 refugees from the Horn of Africa and the Great Lakes region. Somali refugees in Kenya are estimated at 500,000 and the number has increased due to turmoil and recurrent droughts in the horn of Africa state.

The Horn of Africa nation has been torn asunder by factional fighting since 1991 but has recently made progress towards stability.

The conflict has left some 1.1 million internally displaced persons (IDPs) and over 1 million more living in exile in neighboring countries, mostly in Kenya, Ethiopia and Yemen.

Cabrol said these findings reveal how minimal care provision is, adding that the Somali government and its partners would need to guarantee that returnees have rights and receive assistance.

MSF said its over-two-decade experience of working in Somalia suggests that, given the high level of insecurity in many parts of Somalia, and the large numbers of people who are still displaced within its borders, safe conditions for the return of refugees are not guaranteed.

The medical charity which pulled out of the Horn of Africa nation due to increased insecurity said aid must continue to be provided in Kenya's refugee camps to those who don't want to go back to Somalia.

The agency said donor policies reduce funds are having concrete effects on the refugees in Dadaab, noting that funding shortages have resulted in a recent 20 percent cut in food rations, leaving refugees receiving less than the minimum daily calorie intake recommended by the World Health Organization.

The tripartite agreement, signed on Nov. 10 outlines the practical and legal procedures for the voluntary return of hundreds of thousands of refugees to Somalia, many of whom were born in Kenya's vast refugee camps or have lived there for up to 22 years.

"While reintegrating refugees back into Somalia could be part of a real and sustainable solution for Somali refugees, maintaining assistance to the refugees needs to be high on the agenda of all stakeholders," MSF said.

Cabrol said it was vital that the levels of assistance provided to refugees in Kenya are maintained.
"Reducing assistance in the camps could be seen as pressure on the refugees to go back to Somalia, and this is unacceptable," Cabrol said.

The future of the refugees in Dadaab has been under discussion for decades, and there are no easy answers.
However, possible alternatives exist, including persuading the international community to allow more refugees to resettle abroad, relocating the refugees to a safer area in camps of a more manageable size, and developing opportunities for refugees to become more self-reliant.

"These are vulnerable people who have already suffered too much. Wherever they live, their safety, health and dignity must be guaranteed," Cabrol said.

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