RWANDAN REPATRIATION SET TO BEING THIS SUMMER

UNCLAS MAPUTO 000547 SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR PRM/MLANGE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREF RW MZ SUBJECT: RWANDAN REPATRIATION SET TO BEING THIS SUMMER REF: A. STATE 73331 ¶B. MAPUTO 7156 ¶1. Econ/pol officer delivered points (ref A) on the 10th anniversary of the Rwanda genocide to officials from the National Institute to Support Refugees (INAR) and discussed the status of the repatriation of Rwandan refugees with local UNHCR reps. Both INAR and UNHCR noted that the repatriation process is still in the initial phase and that, as a voluntary program, large scale repatriation is unlikely in the near-term (ref B). According to UNHCR, three Rwandan refugees have been voluntarily repatriated since the signing of the tripartite agreement in December 2003. UNHCR and INAR are currently implementing an information campaign on the voluntary repatriation program which will begin in June/July of this year. Part of the information campaign will include a trip to the Marratane refugee camp in Nampula by a small group of recently repatriated Rwandans to talk about their experiences. ¶2. INAR officials are sensitive to the fact that the program is voluntary and is working closely with UNHCR on the information campaign. However, both UNHCR and INAR acknowledge that repatriation may be a hard sell. In many cases, the reluctance of Rwandan refugees to be repatriated stems from economic rather than security related concerns. A number of current Rwandan refugees at Marratane are professionals working in Nampula city. A new community center and several water/irrigation projects implemented with USG funding (septel) have also expanded work opportunities at the camp. However, with the camp close to its capacity of 5,000, (the camp currently houses over 4,800 refugees, with 100-150 new arrivals each month, principally from the Great Lakes region),successful repatriation of refugees is critical to easing the strain on camp resources.? LA LIME