UNHCR to facilitate repatriations only to the north

The office of the High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) has decided not to facilitate the repatriation of Burundi refugees to the southern provinces of the country, a spokeswoman, Ivana Unluova, told IRIN on Monday.

During the tripartite meeting held on 3 and 4 April among representatives of the Burundi and Tanzanian governments and UNHCR, it was decided for security reasons that the southern provinces, specifically Makamba and Ruyigi, were too unsafe for repatriation to take place, said Unluova.
"For the time being, for the next few weeks, the refugees will only be returned to the north at a rate of about 500 per week," she said. "Security is of course our primary concern."

For the same reasons, only a northern border crossing between Tanzania and Burundi, located at Kobero, would be used, as security in the north remained "acceptable".

Meanwhile, on 4 April, 424 refugees were repatriated. Five hundred had been expected, but "last-minute drop outs" were always to be expected, said Unluova. The following day a further 30 returned to Burundi with a ministerial delegation - consisting of the Minister of Reintegration and Resettlement of Displaced People and Repatriates, Francoise Ngendahayo, and the Minister of Interior and Public Security, Salvatore Ntihabose - that had been attending the tripartite agreement in Ngara, western Tanzania.

As of 4 April, 50,300 refugees had signed up with UNHCR to have their return home facilitated. Unluova said the numbers had slowed down somewhat as the "first wave of interest" had declined. All these were from the "newer caseload" of refugees, who had fled to Tanzania in 1993.

A task force would be established to "review the possibility" of repatriating the older caseload of refugees, many of whom were born in Tanzania. Concerns have been voiced recently by this group, who live either in settlements or among the Tanzanian population, that they may be forced to go home by the Tanzanian government.

The next tripartite meeting will take place in May, but interim meetings will be held to monitor security and other developments, said Unluova.

The Tripartite Commission was established in May 2001 as the main body responsible for the planning and monitoring of the implementation of the Tripartite Agreement on Voluntary Repatriation to Burundi. The agreement, in line with the Arusha Peace Accord, guarantees that the return of refugees will be guided by the key principles of refugees' right to return to their homes and the voluntary character of the repatriation.

UNHCR has been maintaining the position that the current security situation in Burundi does not allow for promoting the repatriation of refugees, and that the agency is merely facilitating the return movements of those who wish to return.