UNHCR REPORTS RISING NUMBER OF REFUGEES IN DJIBOUTI

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 DJIBOUTI 001176 SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR PRM/AFR ADDIS ABABA FOR REFCOORD E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREF PREL SMIG KTIP DJ ET ER SO SUBJECT: UNHCR REPORTS RISING NUMBER OF REFUGEES IN DJIBOUTI REF: 09 DJIBOUTI 283; 07 DJIBOUTI 1004 ¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: UNHCR Country Representative Ann Encontre and UNHCR Senior Protection Officer Periklis Kortsaris met with Ambassador, DCM, and ConOff on September 9 to discuss the current situation of refugees in Djibouti. In addition to the more than 10,000 refugees now at Djibouti's sole refugee camp at Ali Adde, more than 1,000 urban refugees have registered in the capital -- 40 per cent of whom have registered since August. The majority hail from Somalia, as the GODJ has suspended registration of non-Somali refugees since early August. Eritreans continue to be a group of special concern: UNHCR has registered several hundred Eritrean refugee cases, and continues to work on resettlement of 177 Eritrean military deserters. Encontre reported that the last 33 of 52 Somali migrants rescued at sea by the U.S. Navy in May had returned voluntarily to Somalia; the remaining 19 are asylum-seekers in Djibouti. She also reported several supply chain difficulties for UNHCR and WFP. END SUMMARY. -------------- Gulf of Aden: Somalis Rescued at Sea Returned -------------- ¶2. (SBU) Encontre reported that the last of the 52 Somali migrants (rescued by the U.S. Navy at sea on their way to Yemen, and subsequently brought to Djibouti on May 31) had now finally returned to Somalia. Some 19 were now asylum-seekers in Djibouti (primarily women and children) and the remaining 33 were returned to Bossaso, Somalia. There are two suspected traffickers related to this case, one of which was reportedly prosecuted; the other was released. -------------- Supply Chain Difficulties for UNHCR and WFP -------------- ¶3. (U) UNHCR informed Ambassador that WFP faced problems with its food supply pipeline for refugees in the Horn of Africa, and anticipated a "break" in this pipeline in October, due to the "constant influx of refugees." UNHCR was therefore supplementing WFP's budget, and had appealed to the New York-based Central Emergency Fund for $150,000 in additional assistance: $50,000 each for health, water, and sanitation. Ambassador highlighted that PRM had recently provided a $100,000 contribution to WFP for refugees in Djibouti. ¶4. (U) Encontre appealed for assistance in identifying a fuel truck to transport kerosene for cooking from the Horizon Fuel Terminal at the Port of Djibouti to the approximately 10,000 refugees at Djibouti's sole refugee camp at Ali Addeh. Finding a fuel truck to make the monthly delivery is the issue, not availability of funds. Due to the poor condition of the road to the refugee camp, the limited number of transporters in Djibouti were reluctant to traverse it. Alternately, Encontre sought assistance to improve the 22km road from Ali Sabieh to Ali Adde, noting it had last been graded in 2005. (NOTE. Encontre subsequently informed Ambassador on September 22 that UNHCR had decided to ship fuel in oil drums using a GODJ refugee agency flatbed truck, thus eliminating the need to contract a tanker truck. END NOTE.) -------------- -------------- Rising Urban Refugee Population and Employment Issues -------------- -------------- ¶5. (U) The number of urban refugees in Djibouti City was rising, Encontre said. At present, over 1,000 refugees had registered with the Government of Djibouti (GODJ), 423 of whom had registered in August alone. Those over age 18 obtained identification cards. Kortsaris noted that since early August, the GODJ had halted the registration of non-Somali refugees--a concern to UNHCR, as without registration, refugees had no access to medical care or work permits. (NOTE. The NGO AMDA, supported by the Government of Japan, provides medical services in the capital only to refugees who are either registered or referred to AMDA by the Ali Adde camp. END DJIBOUTI 00001176 002 OF 002 NOTE.) Of particular concern were Eritreans, whom UNHCR considered especially vulnerable in Djibouti. As for Somali refugees, the GODJ continued to register them twice a week at Loyada, the primary border crossing between Djibouti City and Somaliland. ¶6. (U) The right to work in Djibouti continued to be a problem for refugees. Expensive work permits and high unemployment made it difficult to obtain work. Consequently, refugees could only access the informal labor market, Encontre said. She advocated vocational training, especially for women refugees in the poorer Balbala district of the capital. Encontre also noted the need to establish a high school at Ali Adde camp in 2010, to provide secondary education to an estimated 800-1,000 refugee children. Currently, camp children had access only to a primary school at Ali Adde. -------------- Eritrean Refugees Require Resettlement -------------- ¶7. (SBU) UNHCR officials said the number of Eritrean refugees in Djibouti had increased since the June 2008 border skirmish to an estimated total of 200-300. More than 100 Eritrean cases had been registered by UNHCR in Djibouti City; another 100-200 Eritrean cases had been registered in Ali Adde camp. (NOTE: As a case could signify a family of 3-4 people, not individuals, the total number of Eritrean refugees could be significantly higher. END NOTE.) Jehovah's Witnesses, students, draft evaders, and other Eritrean civilians comprised this population. According to Kortsaris, "Eritrean agents" operating in Djibouti made such refugees especially vulnerable. Since April 2009, the Eritrean government punished those who had attempted illegal exit from Eritrea with torture. Even within Djibouti, Eritreans faced discrimination; Encontre reported that at least one Eritrean family had asked to be transferred from Djibouti City to Ali Adde camp for their personal safety, citing persecution and physical torture. ¶8. (SBU) UNHCR officials highlighted the need for a "durable solution" to resettle Eritrean refugees, noting that -- unlike for Somali cases -- Eritreans posed "no major fraud concerns." Encontre noted that the Joint Voluntary Agency (JVA) had already screened 64 of 177 Eritrean military deserters primarily being held at a GODJ detention facility at Nagad. UNHCR believes there may be more, but only has access to 177; UNHCR was also aware of 19 Eritreans being held separately as POWs by the GODJ. UNHCR had denied a request from the GODJ to obtain transcripts of JVA interviews with the deserters, but would provide a spreadsheet providing limited information, Encontre said. ¶9. (SBU) A total of 110 of the 177 Eritrean military deserters had submitted applications for resettlement in the United States. Fifty had been previously detained in Eritrea; one-third had been subject to multiple detentions (e.g., in Sudan or Egypt, as well). According to Encontre, such multiple detentions had led to at least one refugee suffering muteness, due to trauma. UNHCR was therefore working with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to provide counseling and communications with family members. Encontre highlighted the need to confirm that JVA's second circuit ride would occur by the end of the year. ¶10. (SBU) COMMENT. Although the total number of refugees in Djibouti remains small by regional standards, the relative increase is significant: Encontre anticipates the total reaching 12,000 by the end of 2009 - nearly double the 6,458 registered in April 2007 (ref B). Continued instability in neighboring Ethiopia, Eritrea, and Somalia will likely contribute to increased refugee flows to Djibouti. Earlier this year, in April 2009, UNHCR prepared contingency plans for up to 30,000 additional refugees, most of whom it anticipated coming from Somalia. Post will continue to work with UNHCR contacts to monitor the situation and host country responses. END COMMENT. SWAN