Returnees face threats and discrimination

When Julio Oliveiro (alias) came back to Angola in June 2003, he was overjoyed to be home at last and eagerly anticipated his new life. After three years in Zambia, mostly spent in the capital, Lusaka, he had picked up English and completed a course in computing. Confident he could put his skills to good use in Angola, he hoped to make a better life for his family and help his country get back on its feet after decades of war. After building a hut for himself, his wife and his child in his home village of Lumbala N'Guimbo in eastern Angola, he managed to secure a job with a demining organisation. With a reasonable salary, a home and a job, life was certainly looking up. However, all that changed when he was badly beaten up, a victim of discrimination and jealousy against educated, English-speaking returnees from Zambia. More than 12,000 Angolans came home to this remote region in southern Moxico province in 2004, usually assisted by the UN refugee agency, UNHCR. Still, with most people living on next to nothing, food scarce and the area almost completely cut off from the rest of Angola, there is growing frustration and resentment against those who manage to find work at one of the few international organisations operating here. Oliveiro found that out when, returning from church one evening, he was attacked by a man waiting for him at his home. "This guy turned and insulted me, calling me a Zambian and calling me a thief and using very strong language," Oliveiro said. "He hit me in the face and burst my lip. He started to drag me to the police, two or three km away. People around came to help and I got away, but he said he was going to come back and burn my hut." Oliveiro went to the police, but because it was a Sunday, he was told to go home and come back if there was any more "confusion". "When I got home there were 14 men and eight women waiting for me," he said. "They beat me with a stick. Then they dragged me to the police station where they forced me to lie down and stamped on me, stepping on my ribs and my arms." After five days in a hospital, his wounds were still not healing. According to a doctor's note, his ongoing symptoms included chest pains, blood in the urine and stool, bladder pain and digestion problems. He was evacuated to Luena, the provincial capital, for better medical care. His initial enthusiasm and excitement at coming home has evaporated, replaced by fear and disappointment. "I'm still sick," he said. "I'm hurting from my injuries, but emotionally, I'm sick too. "I'm scared to go back to Lumbala N'Guimbo," he continued. "My wife and child are still there and I'm worried about them. I was happy when I left Zambia because I knew I was coming back to my motherland. But now I'm frustrated and broken, both physically and emotionally." Unfortunately, Oliveiro's case does not seem to be an isolated one. He alleges that such beatings, and even rapes, are "the order of the day" in Lumbala N'Guimbo. Almost everyone here is a returnee, and many face a tough life, where food is in short supply and educational facilities and job prospects are scant. Those who used their time in Zambia to get an education and have put it to good use back in Angola face resentment and jealousy. "Some of the local communities see the returnees as 'Zambians'," said one aid worker. "The police see some of the people who are coming back as more employable by the humanitarian organisations because they have more skills and they speak English. This creates a difficult situation. "There are a lot of threats - mainly to burn down their huts," the aid worker added. "Sometimes the police get drunk and this kind of thing happens. It's not a normal occurrence, but it happens and it shouldn't." Oliveiro is sure envy was the motivation behind the attack - the second against him since he came home - but that does not make his treatment any easier to understand. "They say we are Zambians and that we're not supposed to be in this country," he said. "I think it's because I speak English. But the government wants to repatriate us, so why are the police mistreating us? I'm doing a good job. I'm helping to demine this country. I don't understand why they treat us like this." UNHCR says it is greatly concerned about the problem and wants to expand some of its training on human rights, in which it enlists the help of the traditional village leaders in the Lumbala N'Guimbo region. For now, most victims of discrimination appear to be staying put, waiting and hoping for action to be taken against such prejudice. However, Oliveiro does not intend to risk hanging around. "I'm thinking of going back home to Zambia as soon as I get well," he said. "I don't feel at home anymore. Angola's peace has been stolen from me."