DJIBOUTI: UNITED DONOR CONCERN ABOUT EXPULSIONS

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 DJIBOUTI 001674

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EAID PREF PHUM DJ
SUBJECT: DJIBOUTI: UNITED DONOR CONCERN ABOUT EXPULSIONS

REF: DJIBOUTI 1633


1. Summary: Donors (France, EU, U.S., UN agencies) met
September 11 to discuss the immediate problems surrounding a
makeshift transit center near the Ethiopian border and likely
impending problems attendant on forcible deportations that
are to begin September 15. Donors agreed to try to present a
united front with the Djiboutian government, in order to
forestall its capitalizing on its own ill-advised expulsion
policy and poor preparation to install another refugee camp
cum donor-aid pump. End summary.


2. Following up on ref demarche dissociating the U.S. from
Djibouti's expulsions of foreigners, we prompted UNDP chief
(UN resrep) in Djibouti, Mbaranga Gasarabwe, to host an
unprecendented round-table donors' meeting on September 11.
The meeting was attended by the representatives of UNHCR,
WFP, UNICEF, and WHO, the French ambassador and counsellor,
the EU representative, the U.S. Charge d'affaires, USAID
representative, ADCM, and poloff. The focus of the meeting
was the Djibouti government's on-going expulsions of
undocumented foreigners and consequent problems emerging from
the newly-established "transit center" at Aouraoussa near the
Ethiopian border in the district of Ali Sabieh.


3. UNHCR representative Collins Asare outlined the situation
in Aouraoussa. After the expulsion policy had been announced
on July 26 and with little advance notice from the Djibouti
government, UNHCR committed in mid-August to refurbishing
this Mengistu-era transit center, which had fallen into
disuse, to screen some 2500 asylum seekers whom it had
registered in recent years. Toward the end of August, the
government gave UNHCR representatives 36 hours' notice of
implementation of a plan to move asylum seekers from Djibouti
city to Aouraoussa. On August 28 UNHCR staff found
themselves surrounded by at least 10,000 people claiming
asylum at the debarcation point in Djibouti city (a soccer
stadium). Citing concern that the crowd would become unruly,
Djibouti authorities transported the entire group to the
Aouraoussa transit center, which was prepared to handle 3,000
people. There arose numerous problems with security,
logistics, and feeding. At present, UN representatives said
that that the primary concern was water. WFP had committed
to feeding the 12,000-15,000 people currently in the vicinity
of the camp on a temporary basis, from its food stocks
earmarked for the Djiboutian Food-for-Work and School-Feeding
programs.


4. The UNHCR representative said that of the 12,000-15,000
poeple at Aouraoussa, 2,500 (largely Oromo) were registered
asylum seekers with UNHCR. Approximately 5,000 people, he
estimated on the basis of initial screening, were
nonregistered southern Somalis who might have a claim to
refugee status. The remainder were nonregistered
Somalilanders and Ethiopians, with a few others such as
Eritreans, who would have little claim to refugee status. He
pointed out that UNHCR was suffering acute budgetary and
human-resources constraints to cope with this influx of
people, a significant portion of whom fell outside its
purview. He pointed out that the Djibouti governmental
entity in charge of refugees was pressing for construction of
permanent lodging and facilities at Aouraoussa.


5. The French ambassador expressed particular concern about
the possible worsening of the situation in the coming days,
with the ending of the "grace period" for voluntary departure
of undocumented foreigners. (The period was extended from
August 31 to September 15 by the Minister of Interior, who
declared that under no conditions would it be further
extended.) The U.S. Charge d'affaires reviewed for the round
table his demarche on the Minister of Interior September 3
(reftel) and subsequent press guidance dissociating the U.S.
from the expulsions and putting the government of Djibouti on
notice in regard to human rights violations. Discussants
noted that several international journalists had indicated
that they would be arriving in Djibouti in the coming days to
cover the expulsions. There was general agreement that the
government of Djibouti would try to pass the blame for any
future humanitarian crisis resulting from chaotic conditions
at Aouraoussa or from forcible expulsions in coming weeks on
to the international community. All concurred that it would
be important to provide a united front toward the Djibouti
government to ensure that it accepted responsibility for a
policy for which it alone was responsible. It was agreed
that the round table would reconvene September 16 to refine a
concerted strategy.


6. Comment: The Djibouti government would like to
capitalize on its own self-inflicted policy of expulsions,
its own lack of minimal preparation, and donors' reluctance
to permit suffering among a large undocumented population now
on the move, to corner donors into creating yet another
refugee camp, i.e., source of donor aid, on its borders.
SMITH