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A government delegation from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is in Zambia to examine the prospects for repatriation of DRC refugees sheltering in Zambia.
The delegation, led by Katanga provincial governor Augustine Mwanke, met with UNHCR on Tuesday to “ascertain the prospects for repatriation” of 21,000 DRC refugees in Zambia, UNHCR spokesman Dominic Bartsch told IRIN. The delegation is due to visit Mwange refugee camp in northern Zambia to talk with the refugees, who fled fighting in Katanga between government and rebel forces in the protracted DRC conflict.
“For official repatriation you need a tripartite agreement between both governments and UNHCR - this could be the first step in that direction,” Bartsch said.
Over the past few months there has been a steady trickle of new refugee arrivals from Katanga, until as recently as a few weeks ago. Diplomatic sources in Lusaka told IRIN that repatriation “would be a bit premature” in relation to the fragile ceasefire in the DRC agreed in April.
“The best case scenario is there is a full commitment from all parties to the ceasefire. The worst case is that it is just hogwash and the new arrivals are a clear confirmation that nothing has changed,” one analyst in Lusaka said.
This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions
