155 Sudanese refugees in Masindi return home
Oct 22, 2006
A TOTAL of 155 Sudanese refugees left Masindi for South Sudan last week. The UNHCR head of the western field office, Adan Diis Ilmi, flagged off 10 vehicles including taxis and relief supply trucks at Kiryandongo Settlement Camp, which still hosts over 15,000 refugees.
By Kyetume Kasanga
A TOTAL of 155 Sudanese refugees left Masindi for South Sudan last week. The UNHCR head of the western field office, Adan Diis Ilmi, flagged off 10 vehicles including taxis and relief supply trucks at Kiryandongo Settlement Camp, which still hosts over 15,000 refugees.
Officials from the Prime Minister’s Office, the International Rescue Committee, Action Against Hunger and the district principal assistant secretary, Jack Byaruhanga, witnessed the repatriation of the refugees.
Ilmi said voluntary repatriation of refugees followed the return of peace in Juba, Yei and Kajo Keji after several years of turmoil.
He said the areas of Tolit and Magwi were still unsafe for resettlement.
“The registration exercise of those who want to return home is still on, but we do not want to break families,†Ilmi said.
According to UNHCR, there are 350,000 Sudanese refugees in neighbouring countries and some four million are internally displaced in South Sudan.
Since UNHCR started voluntary repatriation in December 2005, 3,000 refugees have returned to South Sudan from neighbouring countries.
So far, 27,000 of the 174,000 Sudanese refugees in Uganda have registered with the UNHCR to return home.
A TOTAL of 155 Sudanese refugees left Masindi for South Sudan last week. The UNHCR head of the western field office, Adan Diis Ilmi, flagged off 10 vehicles including taxis and relief supply trucks at Kiryandongo Settlement Camp, which still hosts over 15,000 refugees.
Officials from the Prime Minister’s Office, the International Rescue Committee, Action Against Hunger and the district principal assistant secretary, Jack Byaruhanga, witnessed the repatriation of the refugees.
Ilmi said voluntary repatriation of refugees followed the return of peace in Juba, Yei and Kajo Keji after several years of turmoil.
He said the areas of Tolit and Magwi were still unsafe for resettlement.
“The registration exercise of those who want to return home is still on, but we do not want to break families,†Ilmi said.
According to UNHCR, there are 350,000 Sudanese refugees in neighbouring countries and some four million are internally displaced in South Sudan.
Since UNHCR started voluntary repatriation in December 2005, 3,000 refugees have returned to South Sudan from neighbouring countries.
So far, 27,000 of the 174,000 Sudanese refugees in Uganda have registered with the UNHCR to return home.