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UNHCR said on Friday it planned to start returning Congolese refugees to their homes, some of whom have been in exile for 23 years.
UNHCR spokesman, Ron Redmond, said at a press briefing in Geneva that the repatriation of 1,850 refugees would begin next month. “There are an estimated 11,000 Congolese refugees still living in Angola. Of those, 1,850 have so far applied for return to the DRC (Democratic Republic of Congo),” Redmond said.
“Most of these refugees are assisted in the Viana camp in the area of Luanda. They originate either from the area of Lubumbashi in Katanga or the area of Kananga in Kasai,” he added
“Some of the refugees have told UNHCR staff that they were still uncertain about their return and that they had lost most contacts after 23 years in exile. Still, they said they would go home if UNHCR would help them,” said Redmond.
UNHCR said that because most locations of return were in government-held and peaceful areas, UNHCR would assist the refugees with transport to their town of origin. “We are currently looking at the possibility of airlifting returnees to main destinations in DRC,” Redmond added.
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