Fire razes homes in displaced camp

Families facing eviction from a displacement camp near the Ethiopian capital complained bitterly on Tuesday after a mysterious fire tore through their ramshackle homes.

Hundreds were forced to quit their makeshift homes in Kaliti displacement camp on the outskirts of Addis Ababa after the midnight blaze last Saturday.

Concern is now mounting that the families, many of whom are destitute and lived on the site rent free, will end up back on the streets as beggars.

Resident Mengiste Assefa, 40, told IRIN that many of the families were now effectively homeless and could not afford to pay rent.

“We were told we would get some support but many people have received nothing,” he said, speaking at the burnt-out remains of the now demolished site. “We need support otherwise we will just end up on the streets.”

He added that some of the families were now sleeping in a hut at the local government office.

Kaliti camp – for internally displaced people – sprang up in 1991 after thousands of families fled from Eritrea following the collapse of the former Marxist regime.

In September last year, the government decided it wanted to shut down the prime site which is situated on the main Djibouti to Addis Ababa highway on the outskirts of the city.

But the families were given a reprieve while a rehabilitation programme was launched so that they could receive training and funds to help rent new homes and get work.

The rehabilitation work is being carried out by the Jesuit Refugee Service and funded by the German development agency Misereor.

However rehabilitation and rent distribution – due to start last October - were delayed for months because of changes in the city administration.

The government then ordered Kaliti to be cleared and shut down in early May despite around 150 families receiving no rehabilitation support. Families were told they had two weeks to clear out before the fire erupted.

Damena Alemu, from the district social affairs office, told IRIN the blaze was being investigated, but insisted the families were receiving help.

“The people have left the camp because of the fire," he said. “They have received some house rent and are getting support.”

He added that the government was keen for the people to leave before the start of the rainy season. Police now guard the camp to prevent families rebuilding on the site which is now littered with personal possessions.