Abuse of refugees

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan on Tuesday said the reported extortion of money from refugees by staff of the UNHCR office in Nairobi, was "abominable". "I think it is abominable that refugees who are already suffering, who are displaced, whose lives have been uprooted, should be exploited in this manner. And those responsible should be dealt with harshly," Annan said in response to questions from reporters in New York. "The moment we had a hint that some wrongdoing was going on, the local office started an investigation which was inconclusive and now we have the Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) with authorities from other governments and we are determined to go to the bottom of this and deal with those who are responsible," he added. The UN is investigating the activities of at least four staff members said to be involved in the racket, in which they demand kickbacks from the refugees in return for resettlement in Europe or North America.