Talks underway to repatriate Sudanese refugees

Talks are going on between the Central African Republic (CAR) government and the United Nations refugee agency, UNHCR, for the repatriation of an estimated 10,000 Sudanese refugees, a UNHCR official said on Wednesday. The UNHCR representative to the CAR, Bruno Geddo, said the repatriation - scheduled to begin at the end of June - would mark the second phase of the effort that began on 2 February following the signing of a tripartite accord between the CAR, Sudan and UNHCR. "Already some 2,155 refugees have been repatriated and the CAR authorities have expressed their goodwill for the resumption of the exercise," Geddo said. The first phase of the repatriation was called off following growing insecurity in the eastern part of CAR and conflict in Sudan. Attacks by Uganda's Lords Resistance Army (LRA) rebels had also led to the death of relief workers and the destruction of materials in the villages of Yeye and Yambio in eastern CAR, near the border with Sudan, Geddo said. He said clashes between the Dinka and Zande communities in Sudan's Western Equatoria over land had also hampered the repatriation process. Geddo expressed concern over the food situation in the M'boki Refugee Camp as the refugees had stopped farming since the first phase of the repatriation in February. "We are also asking the [UN] World Food Programme to provide these people with food items pending their departure," he said. The second phase, targeting 10,000 refugees, was likely to be completed by early October, Geddo said. Before the resumption of the repatriation, he said, the UNHCR would notify the International Organization for Migration, which would provide aircraft to transport the refugees to Sudan.