REFUGEES FACE ARBITRARY DETENTION AND A BROKEN

C O N F I D E N T I A L BEIRUT 001207 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/03/2019 TAGS: PREF PHUM PGOV SOCI SMIG EAID IZ LE SUBJECT: REFUGEES FACE ARBITRARY DETENTION AND A BROKEN SYSTEM Classified By: Ambassador Michele J. Sison for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: Iraqi Christians form a rapidly growing proportion of Lebanon's refugee population, according to UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) representatives in Beirut. Iraqis are registering more quickly with the UNHCR, but they face bureaucratic obstacles to processing them for release or resettlement. The Lebanese refugee detainment system, which is marked by extrajudicial detention, corruption and inefficiency, is further complicated by the generally suspicious and inefficient working relationship between the Internal Security Force (ISF) and the Surete Generale (SG),which controls immigration. The lack of agreed standard operating procedures for handling detainees is, in the UNHCR's opinion, responsible for much of the dysfunction in both organizations, so the UNHCR opposes donor assistance for building new prisons or detention facilities until existing cases are expditiously adjudicated. End Summary. IRAQIS FRM BULK OF UNHCR REGISTRANTS -------------- ¶2. (C) Iraqi Christians form a rapidly growing proportion of Lebanon's refugee population, UNHCR Regional Representative Stephane Jaquemet and Senior Protection Officer Ayaki Ito told the Ambassador. Iraqi Christian refugees surged from 14% of new registrants to 74% between 2007 and 2009, Jaquemet and Ito said, bringing the total of Iraqis registered in UNHCR's Lebanon database to 10,154, with 5,666 cases pending for resettlement. Other NGOs estimate that the total population of Iraqi refugees in Lebanon may range as high as 55,000, but the UNHCR representatives considered those estimates inflated by up to 40% and they hope their new census now underway will clarify the discrepancy. Jaquemet predicted that about 2,000 additional Iraqis would register with the UNHCR in 2010, a figure nearly identical to 2008 and ¶2009. ¶3. (C) Although Iraqis are registering more quickly with the UNHCR, their reasons for fleeing Iraq still vary by sect. Some 64% of known new arrivals are registering their status with UNHCR within two months of arrival, compared to 53% in 2008, which UNHCR interprets as an encouraging trend. Christians, mostly from Mosul and Baghdad, comprised 74% of the 270 new arrivals in September 2009, Jaquemet noted, and those refugees often arrived with their entire family and immediately requested a resettlement interview. Christian Iraqis claim that they have no intention of returning to Iraq due to religious persecution and describe Christianity in Iraq as "a part of the past," Jaquemet said. Shia and Sunni Iraqi refugees in Lebanon, in contrast, tend to be younger males traveling alone seeking temporary employment so that they can support their families in Iraq before returning home. DETENTION SYSTEM OPAQUE AND ARBITRARY -------------- ¶4. (C) Both the ISF and the SG regularly arrest and detain refugees, and bureaucratic obstacles hamper their processing for release or resettlement. Since the beginning of the current caretaker government in June, processing of detainees by both the SG and the ISF has ground to a halt. Jaquemet attributed that to corruption, lack of transparency and the lack of a standard operating procedure (SOP) for processing detainees and refugees at the SG, which has primary responsibility for detainees. He also pointed to the opposition-aligned SG being "difficult to deal with" at Beirut International Airport, where other government ministries lack influence. ¶5. (C) UNHCR has documented cases of Iraqi refugees being kept in detention for up to ten months without judicial action, and it estimates that over 40% of the population of Lebanon's main prison at Roumieh and at the SG detention center in Beirut are detainees who should be released. Ito blamed the prolonged detentions on the ISF's failure to transfer detainees' paper files to the SG, as well as the generally suspicious and inefficient working relationship between the ISF and SG. Some detainees find a way out of their limbo by pleading, while those considered "arrogant" are subjected to more of the same, Ito said. Both UNHCR representatives agreed that discrimination by confession was not apparent in the detention system. In addition, they said, ministers have been helpful and supportive of UNHCR's work to the extent possible, and the prime minister has cautiously weighed in on occasion. UNHCR: NO NEW PRISONS BEFORE REFORM -------------- ¶6. (C) The lack of agreed standard operating procedures for handling detainees is, in UNHCR's opinion, responsible for much of the dysfunction in both the ISF and SG. No donor should provide funding for building new prisons or detention facilities, Jaquemet emphasized, until the SG and ISF expeditiously adjudicate the cases already within their cells. Otherwise, detainees who should be freed will merely be shunted into a new prison instead of obtaining the requisite judicial review. Any new detention facilities must also be conditioned on the cessation of arbitrary detention, he added. BROKEN SYSTEM PUNISHES ALL -------------- ¶7. (C) Iraqi refugees are not alone in enduring the Lebanese refugee detention system, which also handles Sudanese, Egyptians, Syrians, Iranians and others. Ito explained that most Sudanese tell of escaping from Darfur but lack documentation to establish credibility. Egyptian refugees generally say they oppose the Mubarak regime or are fleeing persecution after converting to Christianity. The number of Syrian refugees declined in recent months, but they are generally POLITICAL or human rights activists. Iranian refugees attempting to enter Lebanon are frequently blocked by Syrian security forces, Ito said, due to the "special relationship" between the Syrian and Iranian governments. Because the U.S. refugee vetting is lengthy, both Syrian and Iranian refugees prefer to apply in Turkey rather than risk lengthy detention in Lebanon, he added. SISON