CONGRESSWOMAN MCCOLLUM DISCUSSES IMPACT OF IRAQI REFUGEES

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 AMMAN 004793 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR NEA/ELA, NEA/I, PRM E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV EAID ECON PREL IZ JO SUBJECT: CONGRESSWOMAN MCCOLLUM DISCUSSES IMPACT OF IRAQI REFUGEES ON JORDAN Sensitive but unclassified; please protect accordingly. Not for distribution outside the USG. Refs: A) Amman 4773; B) Amman 4738; C) Amman 4693 ¶1. (SBU) Summary: During the November 24-27 visit to Jordan of Representative Betty McCollum (D-MN),Government of Jordan (GOJ) officials described the strain that approximately 500,000 Iraqis have been placing on the Jordanian infrastructure. All stressed that while Jordan has opened up public services to Iraqis living in Jordan, the GOJ does not want to create a separate, parallel system for fear of deterring eventual resettlement. McCollum also met with UN agencies and international NGOs, visited the home of an Iraqi family, and visited a public secondary school with 100 Iraqi school-girls. End Summary. GOJ Claims Iraqis Putting Pressure on Infrastructure -------------- -------------- ¶2. (U) In a November 25 meeting, Congresswoman McCollum and Ambassador Hale congratulated the new Education Minister Tayseer al-Nueimi, who had just been sworn into office hours earlier by King Abdullah (Ref C). Nueimi opened the meeting by thanking the U.S. for support of Jordan's educational reform program. He gave an overview of upcoming educational priorities, including creation of a productive learning environment, simplification of testing procedures, construction of new schools, integration of Information Communication Technology (ICT),and deepening the qualitative impact of reform. ¶3. (SBU) Addressing McCollum's interest in how Jordan's education system responded to the Iraqi refugee situation, Nueimi said that 24,000 students had been enrolled in Jordanian schools to date. Despite assistance from USAID, UNICEF, and UNHCR, he claimed the Iraqi students were putting additional pressure on the Jordanian educational system, requiring more teachers, labs, and infrastructure. He stressed that Jordan did not want to create any parallel system for these students. Nueimi also noted that Jordan had made available non-formal education programs, including evening classes and home study opportunities. He welcomed any opportunities for additional assistance and expanding educational exchange programs, particularly for higher education. ¶4. (SBU) During a November 26 meeting, Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Suhair al-Ali, who was reappointed to this ministry in the new government, elaborated on the pressures that Iraqi refugees have been placing on Jordan. Ali referred to the recent study by the Norwegian research institute Fafo in cooperation with the GOJ Department of Statistics that concluded the number of Iraqis in Jordan was between 450,000 - 500,000, but added that the reluctance of some Iraqis to reveal their presence might mean the number is understated (Ref A). ¶5. (SBU) Ali said that the GOJ has shown Jordanian hospitality to Iraqis and offered all services to them, who now comprise approximately nine percent of Jordan's population. She elaborated that this has not been easy for a country with a poverty rate of over 13 percent, unemployment of 14 percent, scarce water resources, a budget deficit, and current account deficit of over 15 percent of GDP, even after elimination of subsidies. Highlighting figures in the Fafo report, she noted that 22 percent of the Iraqi adults in Jordan are working - mostly in construction, painting or services - thereby taking away jobs from Jordanians. Of particular concern, she said, was that a significant percentage of those Iraqis surveyed did not want to leave Jordan. NOTE: The Fafo report concluded 95 percent of those interviewed did not want to leave Jordan before the security situation in Iraq allowed for their return. END NOTE. ¶6. (SBU) McCollum commended Jordan's efforts in assisting Iraqis, particularly in allowing children to enter public schools. She noted that Congress would be exploring the possibility of a supplemental to help with the Iraqi refugee situation, and encouraged the GOJ to provide additional input on needs through the Embassy. She also said she respected Jordan's decision to call the Iraqi refugees "guests," but then asked under what laws such individuals were provided protection, given they would not qualify under the 1951 Refugee Convention. Ali did not have an answer, but said she would raise it with the Prime Minister. Ambassador Hale also urged the GOJ to give the Iraqis legal residency, as many still harbor unfounded fears of being deported on the basis of illegal alien status even though the GOJ policy is to deport only on security grounds (Ref B). ¶7. (SBU) Nawaf Eltal, Director of the Negotiations Coordination Bureau at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, expressed similar views during a November 25 meeting with McCollum that the influx of Iraqis has overstretched Jordan's infrastructure. He suggested that any programs to address the issue of Iraqis in Jordan should be AMMAN 00004793 002 OF 002 temporary, in order to encourage resettlement in Iraq. Eltal noted that in some cases Iraqis get better treatment than Jordanian citizens. For example, he said a Jordanian child going to a public school must pay $115/year for books and other materials, but an Iraqi child pays nothing. NOTE: UNICEF has provided a $1.3 million grant to the GOJ to help cover the school fees and costs of materials for Iraqi children in Jordan. END NOTE. ¶8. (SBU) Eltal acknowledged, however, that it is in Jordan's interest to have the Iraqi children in school, as the Jordanian vaccination system is linked to the educational system, which helps control disease. He said that tuberculosis had reemerged in Jordan, which he attributed to the new Iraqi population. The UNHCR Representative in Jordan, Imran Riza, also mentioned in a separate meeting that UNHCR has seen high rates of cancer, diabetes, and heart disease in Iraqi refugees in Jordan, and was working with Jordanian institutions, such as the King Hussein Cancer Foundation, to see what sort of health care can be provided and on what terms. UN and International NGOs -------------- ¶9. (U) McCollum also met with representatives from UNAMI, UNICEF, Jordan's Red Crescent Society, International Catholic Migration Commission (ICMC),Caritas, International Organization for Migration (IOM),Save the Children, Mercy Corps, Care, and International Medical Corps. The agencies each described their efforts to register, resettle, and address the educational, health, and physical needs of Iraqi refugees in Jordan. ¶10. (SBU) One striking theme across meetings was that the exact number of Iraqi refugees in Jordan remains elusive. Most opined that the truth probably rested between Fafo's original estimate of 161,000 and the final 500,000 figure. In particular, the fact that only 24,000 Iraqi students - rather than the 50,000 expected - registered in Jordanian schools this past year continued to cast doubt on the higher estimates. Explanations included students not being registered for fear of deportation, kids working to help support their families, or some children not qualifying for entry after having been out of the school system for 2-3 years, which has led to home schooling projects. At least one international worker speculated that Jordan preferred the higher estimates as justification for requesting more money. ¶11. (SBU) All acknowledged the efforts of the GOJ to deal with the impact of the refugees in Jordan, given the strain on the Jordanian economy and the political sensitivity of accepting another refugee population. UNHCR Representative Riza said that the response of the international community was late, but efforts have now escalated. He noted that UNHCR's budget for Jordan was under $3 million in 2006, but increased to $40 million in 2007. As of November 25, UNHCR Jordan has registered over 50,000 Iraqis, and referred 7,500 for resettlement, with the U.S. being the largest resettlement country. Home and School Visits -------------- ¶12. (SBU) In addition to visiting the small, rundown home of an Iraqi refugee family in the Hashimiyah area of Amman, McCollum toured the public Bint Adi Secondary School for Girls in Amman, where 100 Iraqi students had registered this past year. She observed firsthand the overcrowded classrooms of 50 girls or more, the integration of ICT in the schools' computer labs, and areas of new construction being supported by the USG with FY07 supplemental assistance. She was also introduced discretely to a handful of the Iraqi students, who spoke positively about their learning experiences in the Jordanian school. ¶13. (U) Congresswoman McCollum cleared this message. Visit Amman's Classified Website at: http://www.state.gov.sgov.gov/p/nea/amman/ Hale