Israeli foreign ministry recommends postponing deportation of South Sudan nationals
The Jerusalem District Court issued an injunction forbidding any deportation of South Sudanese nationals before April 15.
By Barak Ravid
Israel’s foreign ministry recommended Thursday that the Interior Ministry extend the protection from deportation collectively afforded to refugees from South Sudan by an additional six months. On Sunday, April 1, the collective protection for the citizens of the new nation is set to expire. This would mean that any South Sudanese citizen that will not leave ion his or her own accord will be deported.
In addition to this recommendation by the foreign ministry, the Jerusalem District Court issued an injunction forbidding any deportation of South Sudanese nationals before April 15. The state has until that date to respond to a petition by aid organizations against the Interior Ministry’s decision not to extend the collective protection.
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Sudanese refugees in Tel Aviv celebrate South Sudan’s independence, July 10, 2011. |
| Photo by: Sara Miller |
A senior Foreign Ministry official said that the recommendation to extend the collective protection for the South Sudanese for another six month is due to the fact that the conditions for their return haven’t yet matured – not on the part of Israel and not on the part of South Sudan.
“The arrangements required for the return have yet to be completed and more time is required to coordinate the arrangements with the government of South Sudan,” the source said.
The Population and Immigration Authority stated that the authority to extend the protection isn’t held by the foreign of interior ministries, rather it lays in the hands of the prime minister.
On Wednesday, a special foreign ministry delegate to South Sudan returned to Israel after a short stay at the country’s capital Juba. He held consultations with the vice president and with members of international organizations in the country, and discussed the refugees return to South Sudanese. The visit was also intended to see if the conditions in the country have improved enough to allow for their return.
On Wednesday, following three days of fighting, which included airstrikes and tank shelling, Sudan and South Sudan agreed to work together to settle their differences.
The decision to work together came after the Unaited Nations Security Council issued a statement of concern over the fighting along the border, which could deteriorate to another civil war in the region.
Court delays deportation of South Sudanese
By Ben Hartman
Only three days before South Sudanese in Israel were to face the potential of forced deportation, the Jerusalem District Court issued an injunction Thursday barring the deportations until April 15th.
The decision was in response to a petition issued earlier in the day by a series of NGOs including the Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI), the Hotline for Migrant Workers, the African Refugee Development Center, the Assaf Aid Organization for Refugees and Asylum Seekers in Israel, and Physicians for Human Rights.
The petitioners argued that returning South Sudanese at this point in time would gravely endanger their lives, considering the dire living conditions and sporadic fighting plaguing the country.
Also Thursday, the Foreign Ministry sent a letter to the Population, Immigration, and Borders Authority (PIBA) on Thursday, asking for them to consider delaying the deportations, so that the ministry can have more time to examine the situation on the ground in South Sudan.
As of Sunday, April 1st, the community of around 1,000 South Sudanese in Israel was to face forced deportation in keeping with a government decision announced by PIBA on January 31st. PIBA stated that following the establishment of South Sudan as an independent country last July, they will no longer be considered refugees come April 1st and should prepare their departure.
Foreign Ministry Spokesman Yigal Palmor said Thursday that the letter sent to PIBA asked for them to wait while the ministry discusses the matter with an envoy sent by the Foreign Ministry to Juba. The envoy was scheduled to return on Thursday, and will brief the ministry on the situation on the ground in Juba.
Palmor said the ministry asked for more time so that they can examine the envoy’s recommendations about returning South Sudanese to their country, as well as opinions from sources in the international community on the matter. Palmor said the recommendations could encourage them to request that the government extend group protection for South Sudanese.
Palmor added that the ministry did not ask for any specific time frame, as opposed to reports Thursday in the Israeli press.
Sabine Haddad from PIBA confirmed that the organization had received the letter on Thursday but added that the decision about extending group protection for South Sudanese lies with the Prime Minister’s office.
http://www.jpost.com/DiplomacyAndPolitics/Article.aspx?id=264036
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