Repatriation of 680 Zanzibari refugees planned

The UNHCR has registered 680 refugees who say they want to return home to the Zanzibari islands of Unguja and Pemba in Tanzania after fleeing to Kenya from political violence on the islands in late January, according to a press release from the refugee agency. Those registered to return represented all but a few dozen of the refugees remaining at a makeshift camp at the port of Shimoni, south of Mombasa on the Kenyan coast, and included community and political leaders, an agency official told IRIN on Tuesday.

Over 2,000 Zanzibaris fled a violent clampdown on the opposition Civic United Front (CUF) protesting what they considered fraudulent elections in October last. Amnesty International reported in early March that its preliminary investigation of the security forces’ strong-arm tactics had confirmed torture, including rape and beatings, as well as indiscriminate and disproportionate use of force against civilians, including women and children.

The refugees in Shimoni had previously refused to return, citing fears of political persecution and for their physical safety. They had demanded amnesty from prosecution for participation in a 27 January demonstration that sparked the violence, as well as investigations into the violence and the parliamentary and presidential elections of October 2000. The refugees - most of whom were political activists, according to UNHCR - had also called for a review of the validity of the union between Zanzibar and the Tanzanian mainland.

Their decision to register for repatriation followed indications that calm had returned to Pemba and Unguja (the larger of the islands, often simply known as Zanzibar), even in the absence of an anticipated joint declaration on the results of talks between the CUF and the government, UNHCR sources told IRIN on Tuesday.

The refugee agency stated that it would facilitate the return of the small fishing dhows which had brought most of the refugees the 40 km by sea from Zanzibar to Kenya, but would transport the remainder of the refugees on a larger vessel to avoid overcrowding.

The returnees, mostly farmers or fishermen who have missed out on three months of work, are to receive a grant of US $50 per adult and $20 per child from the UNHCR to help with their immediate needs on their return. The refugee agency says it is working on the legal and logistical arrangements, which could begin as early as next week.

A total of 505 of the Zanzibari refugees left Shimoni for pre-existing refugee camps in Dadaab, northeastern Kenya, in the past two weeks, according to UNHCR. Though there were initially no volunteers to move to Dadaab (the refugees at Shimoni went on a short-lived hunger strike in March rather than have their political leaders separated and relocated to Dadaab refugee camp), UNHCR had recently relocated those who accepted the move, because they were not optimistic about being able to return home quickly, the agency stated on Monday.

Some 1,000 other Zanzibari refugees had found shelter with friends and relatives in villages near Shimoni and were likely to present themselves for repatriation once the return operation was under way, it added.

The government of Tanzania has indicated that the UNHCR will be able to monitor the refugees’ return and reintegration on the islands, in keeping with the agency’s protection mandate. UNHCR will review the status of any individuals left at Shimoni as the repatriation process closes.