Photos of theweek : the UNHCR tries to reassure Burundian refugees

The High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) says it is very concerned by press articles which have recently circulated in the national and international media concerning the forced repatriation of Burundian refugees. While this UN agency reassures that no one will be forced, those concerned see it as a charade. INFO SOS Médias Burundi

In an unusual move, the UNHCR issued a lengthy statement. It says it is surprised to hear that refugees have been informed by Tanzanian authorities of the alleged intention to close the Nduta refugee camp, the largest Burundian refugee camp with more than 63,000 refugees, by the end of the year.

“The articles also claim that services to refugees will be withdrawn, with the aim of deteriorating living conditions to force refugees to choose to return to Burundi, and that refugee status will cease to be granted to Burundian refugees in the country”, says worryingly the UNHCR press release.

This United Nations agency indicates that it immediately met with the Tanzanian Ministry of the Interior to express these concerns.

“We would like to emphasize the need for all refugee returns to be voluntary and in line with the tripartite agreement on the voluntary return of Burundian refugees concluded between the governments of the United Republic of Tanzania, the Republic of Burundi and the UNHCR”, recalls the agency.

During recent discussions with the ministry responsible for internal affairs in Tanzania, reveals the UNHCR,
“The Tanzanian government reassured the UNHCR that the camps would remain open and no one would be forced to return.”

The UNHCR has also clarified the procedure to follow to invoke the cessation of refugee status, a procedure which requires time to assess the conditions and ensure that they are met, insists the UNHCR document released on May 22.

Burundian refugees denounce a charade. For them, the UNHCR’s reaction does not hold water.

“We know these people are smart. How do they claim to be our protector when they are powerless in the face of violations of all our rights here : schools are closed one after the other, as are dispensaries, crop fields are destroyed, aid is suspended, trading centers and shops are closed and destroyed,… All this to prepare for the closure of the camp at the end of this year,” say Burundians from the Nyarugusu camp.

“We had the leaked working document from the UNHCR for this year and it is this same timeline that is being followed to close schools and health centers here. Tanzanian authorities are here all the time to tell us that the end of our status is set for the end of 2024. So, what is this press release from the UNHCR aimed at if they cannot intervene on the ground in the face of all this ordeal that we are enduring?”, ask refugees from Nduta.

This timeline is one of the conclusions of a tripartite meeting held in November 2023 between the UNHCR and the governments of Tanzania and Burundi. However, they also agreed to promote voluntary repatriation to Burundi in accordance with the provisions of the tripartite agreement of May 2001.

“In the meantime, Burundian refugees will continue to benefit from international protection in Tanzania,” insists the UNHCR, which continues to promote and facilitate voluntary repatriation to Burundi for those who make the choice freely and with full knowledge of the facts.

Tanzania seems to have decided

Samia Suluhu Hassan, the president of Tanzania, affirmed last January that “we have done this very important work in collaboration with the UN agency in charge of refugees but in reality, this agency no longer has the strength and this energy of repatriating refugees as it did before is no longer there.”

“We will continue political discussions with this neighboring country to find the best way to repatriate these refugees,” she insisted in Dar-es-Salaam in a meeting with various security officials.

A week after these declarations, the Inspector in charge of refugees in the Kigoma region (northwest Tanzania where the two camps are based) toured these camps to explain to the refugees that they have just ten months to return voluntarily.

The statements of this official during his visit to the Nyarugusu and Nduta camps confirmed draconian measures taken against Burundian refugees.

“Tanzania loves Burundians in general but it doesn’t want any more Burundian refugees! Your return has already been decided by the Tanzanian government and therefore the assistance granted to refugees will be suspended after the ten month period granted to you for voluntary repatriation,” declared John Walioba Mwita to Burundian refugees.

Cries of distress from refugees

“If there are countries that want to welcome refugees, let them help us. There is no peace in Burundi. The evidence is that returnees keep returning to the camps. How can we say that this country is peaceful? We are frankly calling for the protection of the UN, which is responsible for our security. The UN must break the silence because it is our relative,” laments a mother from the Nduta camp.

And another Burundian continued with the same fears : “many people were killed when they returned to Burundi. We no longer know which way to turn. We are left to our own fate. The situation we are experiencing in the camp is pitiful. We no longer know where to turn.”

Since the start of the year, more than 4,000 Burundian refugees have been helped to return home from Tanzania, the UNHCR said.

And since the start of the voluntary repatriation exercise in September 2017, more than 230,000 refugees have returned to Burundi from neighboring countries, including more than 168,000 from Tanzania, according to the same UN agency.

The UNHCR urges the Government of Burundi and the international community to make more investments to improve conditions conducive to return to Burundi and ensure that returnees can live with dignity and thrive in their communities.

Tanzanian authorities remain determined to expel Burundians

During the second week of last May, Sudi Mwakibasi, director general in charge of refugees in Tanzania, was clearer : Burundian refugees must be repatriated willingly or by force before the end of the year.

“You are no longer among the categories of people worthy of receiving humanitarian aid. And this return package of 200 USD per person that you are receiving, I have no guarantee that you will still have it in July. Register and return. Peace reigns in Burundi,” he declared in front of refugees and UNHCR representatives in the Nduta and Nyarugusu camps on May 9 and 10, 2024.

And to be more precise : “That’s our plan, we want to close Burundian camps in Tanzania. I must be clear on this, these camps will be closed.”

An Association attacks the UNHCR

“[…] The refugees in the camps in Tanzania live like prisoners : they do not have the right to income-generating activities, they do not go out, all the shops and cultivation fields have been destroyed. the slightest fault, the punishment is to be taken to the border of Burundi In general, Burundian refugees in Tanzania are treated like prisoners. All this is with the aim of forcing them to return, which is difficult. Many refugees cannot return because of the insecurity that still reigns in Burundi and also their status. For example, ex-soldiers, politicians, demonstrators, human rights defenders. , …, are particularly targeted. The latest campaign is led by the government of Burundi, which hides behind close relations with the Tanzanian government.
The motive behind this campaign is to show the international community that peace reigns in Burundi, the evidence of which is that refugees are returning en masse,” accuses Léopold Sharangabo, representative of ABDH/VICAR, an organization which campaigns for the rights of refugees.

And to drive the point home : “in collaboration with Tanzania, the current representatives of the UNHCR are threatened with expulsion if they refuse to follow this pace. Finally, the UNHCR in Tanzania has ceased to disavow this repression. From now on, “It’s hard to differentiate the UNHCR from Tanzania based solely on their words.”

Currently, some 241,000 refugees, mainly from Burundi (more than 111,700) and the Democratic Republic of Congo, live in two camps : Nyarugusu, in Kasulu district, and Nduta, in Kibondo district.

Funding for this sector is lacking and the UNHCR regrets that as of April 30, 2024, it has received only 13% of the US$114 million needed to protect and assist refugees in Tanzania this year.

“We continue to call for more financial resources to meet their needs.”

Our photo : a Burundian woman refugee based in Tanzania prepares food for her children