IOM CHIEF ON LACK OF GOZ COOPERATION, FUNDING WOES

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 04 HARARE 000374

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

AF/S FOR B. NEULING
G/TIP FOR RACHEL YOUSEY
NSC FOR SENIOR AFRICA DIRECTOR C. COURVILLE
USAID/AFR/SA FOR E. LOKEN

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/27/2016
TAGS: EAID PHUM PREL KWMN ZI
SUBJECT: IOM CHIEF ON LACK OF GOZ COOPERATION, FUNDING WOES

REF: A. HARARE 7 AND PREVIOUS


B. 2005 HARARE 1688

Classified By: Ambassador Christopher Dell for reasons 1.5 b/d

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Summary
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1. (C) On March 22, Mohammed Abdiker, Chief of Mission for
the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Harare,
told the Ambassador that the GOZ continued to hinder efforts
to assist internally displaced persons (IDPs),many of whom
were living in dire conditions. IOM nonetheless was building
some temporary shelters in collaboration with the Ministry of
Public Welfare and local officials. Abdiker expressed
concern over the plight of former commercial farm workers,
who remained displaced years after the farms they had worked
on had been seized. In a positive development, the GOZ had
cooperated with IOM in establishing a reception center on the
border for illegal migrants deported from South Africa,
including trafficking in persons victims. Abdiker said
funding for some of IOM,s key activities was coming to an
end at a time when the situation was worsening and IOM was
launching an appeal for new donor funding to which he hoped
the USG would contribute. See ACTION REQUEST para 15. End
summary.

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IDPs Still in Desperate Circumstances
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2. (C) Abdiker described for the Ambassador in vivid terms
the horrid living conditions that IDPs, both those displaced
during farm takeovers, and those more recently displaced by
Operation Restore Order, still face in Zimbabwe. Abdiker
said the situation was especially dire at Hopely Farm near
Harare, where the government had moved some victims of the
operation to keep them from squatting in place near their
former homes in high-density areas. The displaced there had
faced further eviction from Hopely when the GOZ demanded that
each family pay to stay (ref B). The displaced had spent the
entire, particularly long, rainy season without shelter.
Some had erected low, table-like structures to protect their
heads from the rain while they slept on the rain-soaked mud
but otherwise had no shelter. In Hopely especially, but also
in other areas hit by Restore Order, there were few
sanitation, health care, or other services available for
IDPs. International food assistance continued at Hopely Farm
and was now being conducted by Christian Care.

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Limited GOZ Cooperation on Operation Restore Order IDPs
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3. (C) The Ambassador asked Abdiker whether IOM was
continuing with its efforts to provide shelter to victims of
Operation Restore Order despite the lack of GOZ cooperation
(ref A). Abdiker said IOM, with the cooperation of local
government and Ministry of Public Welfare officials, had
begun erecting temporary shelters in certain areas even as
talks with the GOZ at higher levels had ground to a halt.
Different ministries could not agree on acceptable standards
of temporary shelter, and Local Government Minister Chombo
remained opposed to everything IOM presented. The GOZ at
high levels did not want any temporary shelter and was
pretending the problem did not exist in spite of local
authorities' priority on proceeding.


4. (C) The shelters IOM was building consisted of plastic
sheeting and gum poles with zinc roofs. IOM had already

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erected 20 structures at Hopely Farm and in Hatcliffe
Extension (northern Harare),which had been hit hard by
Restore Order, as a pilot project. IOM was also continuing
to work with NGOs and churches to provide assistance to the
hundreds of thousands remaining displaced.


5. (C) The Ambassador noted that this project was consistent
with the direction of UN Under Secretary General for
Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Jan
Egeland after his visit to Zimbabwe. The Ambassador asked if
IOM was concerned that higher levels of government would
discover and put a halt to the project at Hopely, a location
where the GOZ had not welcomed foreign &intervention8 in
the wake of Restore Order. Abdiker said that both IOM and
local officials were concerned about this, but IOM was moving
ahead despite these concerns, doing all it could to keep its
efforts out of the limelight.

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More Victims Being Discovered
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6. (C) Abdiker said months after Restore Order, IOM was still
learning of other victims who needed assistance. For
example, they had just learned of 290 families living in the
middle of a remote forest in Manicaland. The government had
dumped them there during the visit of UN Envoy Anna Tibaijuka
the previous June to prevent her from seeing the full effects
on families who had lost their homes in the high-density
areas. Local officials had required the families each to pay
5 million Zimbabwean dollars for the land (approximately USD
45 at the current official exchange rate),telling them the
land would be theirs, but they remained without shelter.


7. (C) Abdiker said IOM had once again worked with local
officials to devise a solution and had initially received
approval from the governor of Manicaland to install
pre-fabricated homes. Before they could begin work, however,
the Minister of Environment and Tourism found out about the
project and told Abdiker that the people were living
illegally on protected forestland and would have to move,
notwithstanding their payment for the land. Abdiker said
several ministers, including Chombo who was opposed to the
pre-fabricated homes, were now discussing the issue and there
was a strong possibility that the families would be moved
again, losing the payment they had made for the land.

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Continued Plight of Displaced Farm Workers
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8. (C) Abdiker said there were still significant numbers of
former commercial farm workers, displaced years ago by the
GOZ,s seizure of private farms. Many of these IDPs were
descendants of immigrants from neighboring countries who had
had nowhere to go after their former employers, farms were
taken over. IOM was particularly concerned about those who
had been displaced &in place,8 i.e., had lost access to
their livelihood, food, education, and healthcare, but
remained on the farms. Abdiker said their situation was very
serious. Many families appeared to have no access to food.
IOM did not know exactly how they were surviving, because IOM
officials had no access to those persons. Because IOM staff
were overstretched and were not fully able to assess this
needs of this population, Abdiker wanted to hire an IDP
protection officer but lacked the funds to do so.

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Trafficking in Persons, Irregular Migration Increasing
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9. (C) Abdiker said the economic impetus to emigrate
increased the vulnerability of individuals in the country to
trafficking in persons. He cited a case of 22 Zimbabwean
girls who had been trafficked to China for prostitution. One
of the victims had escaped and provided officials with
sufficient information to prevent other girls from being
trafficked. However, the investigators had not been able to
develop sufficient information on the traffickers to be able
to make any arrests. Abdiker added that officials in the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs were interested in developing
legislation that specifically criminalized trafficking in
persons.


10. (C) Abdiker said IOM had built a reception center, at
Beitbridge on the border of South Africa, to deal with
Zimbabweans expelled from South Africa. It was scheduled to
open the first week of May. The GOZ had been cooperative in
setting up the center and Minister of Home Affairs Mohadi had
personally traveled to Beitbridge, his constituency, and
declared the situation a national crisis. The government of
South Africa had also been involved in discussions to create
procedures for sending the deported individuals directly to
the center. The Ambassador asked if there were signs that
South Africa was stepping up its activities against illegal
immigration. According to Abdiker, South African military
and police patrols on the border had increased and
approximately 10,000 Zimbabweans were now being expelled from
South Africa every month.


11. (C) Abdiker said the center would provide deported
families an immediate meal, transportation to homes in
Zimbabwe, and a month,s worth of World Food Program-provided
rations. The center included temporary shelter for special
cases. Counselors would be available for victims of
exploitation. There would be a child reception center,
organized with assistance from UNICEF and Save the Children
Norway, to provide special assistance and counseling to
children. The Ambassador commented that many of the
returnees might receive the assistance then turn around and
attempt crossing again. Abdiker replied that IOM planned to
keep a database of returnees to determine if deportees were
returning home or to South Africa. The government of
Botswana had asked IOM to establish a similar center at
Plumtree, the major crossing from Zimbabwe to Botswana.

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Funding Requirements
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12. (C) Abdiker said that IOM,s assistance to IDPs and its
irregular migration awareness and protection activities had
stretched IOM Zimbabwe,s resources at a time when they
needed to undertake new activities, such as hiring an IDP
protection officer. Moreover, funding for its
anti-trafficking in persons activities, for the Beitbridge
center, and for temporary shelter was coming to an end soon.
IOM was therefore launching an appeal to donors, to which he
hoped the USG would contribute. The Ambassador said he would
indicate to Washington his strong support for IOM Zimbabwe,s
activities. Abdiker invited the Ambassador to Beitbridge or
Plumtree to see the effects of irregular migration and the
need for increased IOM activity.

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Comment and Action Request
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13. (C) Roughly a year after Operation Restore Order, media
accounts of extreme privation and outrage associated with
Restore Order have died down, but conditions for the
operation,s victims remain extremely bleak. Despite some

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studies to determine how many remain homeless, the exact
number is still unknown, in large part because of the GOZ,s
desire to keep the victims hidden. Although it is clear that
the GOZ at the highest levels has an interest in obstructing
assistance to this population to keep them off-balance and
unable to organize against the regime, there is no unified
position among ministers as to how to deal with these
victims.


14. (C) In the face of government intransigence, IOM Zimbabwe
has used its flexibility to devise a winning strategy,
working with local officials to provide some kind of relief
to these victims. It is the major organization responding to
the needs of IDPs in Zimbabwe. IOM,s activities have also
been crucial in raising GOZ awareness of the problems of
irregular migration and taking the lead in efforts to combat
irregular migration,s negative effects.


15. (C) The USG provided the initial funds for IOM
Zimbabwe,s work with IDPs. Our example has led other donors
to come aboard, but much of that funding is now running out.
At a minimum, IOM needs funding for a range of non-food IDP
assistance, such as blankets and cooking supplies. Although
the provision of shelter in Zimbabwe has been controversial,
if IOM can demonstrate that its work in Hatcliffe Extension
and Hopely provides shelter that meets USG standards, we
recommend funding IOM to continue and expand shelter for
Restore Order victims. We also recommend the highest
consideration for an already-submitted proposal that would
allow IOM to continue its anti-trafficking activities in
Zimbabwe beyond this year. As the lead donor for humanitarian
assistance, it is incumbent upon the USG to step up and
address IOM,s funding needs. End comment.
DELL