Repatriation of 3,000 Southern Sudanese from Sudan to Start Soon
Khartoum – The International Organization of Migration (IOM) has completed arrangements for the transportation of 3,000 citizens of the State of South Sudan living in the State of Khartoum out of the targeted number of 12,000.
These citizens of the State of South Sudan live at open area at Al Shajara and Soba and the arrangement is taking place according to an agreement recently concluded between IOM, government and partners.
On his part, Senior Liaison – Operations Officer, Salah Osman has said the start of the trips home will begin from Al Shajarah camp for the Internally Displaced People (IDPs). All registration and medical checkup procedures for Southern Sudanese to be repatriated have been completed.
The first batch will include 3,000 IDPs who will be repatriated by train, at the rate of 8 trips for the total targeted number, six to Aweil and two to Wau. The trip will coincide with one train trip to be operated by the government of the State of South Sudan to Wau.
In a statement to Sudan Vision, Osman said IOM provides the necessary assistance for securing IDPs return to their regions in the State of South Sudan through its office in the Republic of Sudan and the State of South Sudan in coordination with Humanitarian Aid Commission at Khartoum State and the National Center for the Internally Displaced.
During a tour by SV of Shajara Camp, the scene was one of quietness with registration and medical checkup procedures for the returnees going on smoothly. However, it was noticed that tons of luggage belonging to the returnees were being piled up, something that present a great challenge for IOM.
On his part IOM Operations Officer, Mohamed El Sunni has said IOM has provided all the necessary needs of returnees who will travel by trains as well as by air for those whose health does not permit them to take the train.
He added IOM has secured the returning of the IDPs according to known standard international criteria. He added registration and medical check processes have been carried out by volunteers who have been trained by IOM.
El Sunni added that IOM has arranged with a company in the Republic of Sudan for rearranging luggage for ensuring the largest number of returnees and their luggage are accommodated in their return trips.
Government, IOM Agreement for Repatriating South Sudan Citizens
Khartoum – The Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) have signed agreement yesterday for repatriating about 12,000 displaced citizens of the Republic of South Sudan from Khartoum.
According to Salah Osman, Senior Liaison Operations Officer, arrangements are being made for repatriating 6,000 displaced citizens of Republic of South Sudan (RSS) stranded at Kosti harbor to Juba soon.
Osman added the agreement has been reached within the framework of completing IDPs’ voluntary return program.
He added IOM has repatriated about 116,000 IDP’s from the Republic of Sudan to the Republic of South Sudan since the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in 2005 within the partnership between IOM and the National Center for the Displaced (NCD).
On his part, NCD’s director, Taj El Sir Al-Omda, has said the deplorable condition in which RSS’s citizens live at open areas in Khartoum and those stranded at Kosti Harbor is attributed to the repatriation of RSS’s citizens implemented by RSS’s Commission for Reconstruction in 2010 following the referendum voting results.
He added the Republic of Sudan’s Presidency has provided SDG 10 million to the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs for implementing the program in support of voluntary return according to the directive of President Al-Bashir.
Al Omda who signed on behalf of the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs said the stoppage of the voluntary return program is attributed to non preparation of voluntary return regions and noncompliance of donors as regard their commitment in addition to tribal conflict in RSS.
He lauded IOM’s role in repatriating about 2 million displaced persons since the signing of CPA in 2005 to South Kordofan, South Blue Nile and South Sudan.
Al Omda said about 7,000 displaced persons were repatriated in mid September this year through steamers from Kosti Harbor and that the total persons who have been repatriated through river transportation stood at about 42,792 persons.
“The total number of remaining RSS’s citizens stranded at Kosti Harbor stands at about 11,000 according to latest statistics,” he said.
On her part, IOM’s director in Sudan, Jill Helke, said they have repatriated about 14,000 persons form Kosti Harbor to Juba and other regions in RSS.
She added a number of obstructions stand in the way of repatriation trips organized by IOM, the most important of which being the tons of luggage and personal belongings of the returnees, tension amongst returnees because of absence of information about procedures of their return and misunderstanding of the international community’s role with respect to their repatriation.
Helke attributed the slowness of repatriation process to reasons relating to IOM’s commitment to international standards relating to such operations with respect to security, health and safety matters.
She complained of the huge quantities of luggage and said IOM is not concerned with transporting such luggage since IOM is concerned with supporting the repatriation of the displaced.
However, she said the agreement has been reached recently for addressing this issue between IOM, NCD and RSS’s Reconstruction Commission according to which IOM has been allowed fixed percentage for transporting luggage provided RSS’ government should bear cost of transporting remaining luggage.
By Zuleikha Abdel Raziq, 05/10/2011
http://news.sudanvisiondaily.com/details.html?rsnpid=200823
By Zuleikha Abdel Raziq, 8 hours 5 minutes ago
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