Juba marks world refugee day

By Isaac Vuni

June 20, 2009 (JUBA) — Marking the World Refugee Day in the capital of southern Sudan today, Rev. Willian Chan Acuil on behalf of Government of Southern Sudan said there are 42 million victims of conflict and persecution worldwide living as refugees who are uprooted from their own countries

Although refugees while in their asylum countries need food, shelter, medical care, sanitation, security, schools for their children and other essentials, he highlighted that the most important right is protection against forcible return to their home territory where they had fled.

Rev. Willian urges individual states to work together to resolve the cause of refugee flow and share their responsibility of protecting refugees and IDPs. He noted that the second civil conflict in Sudan displaced over 400,000 refugees and about four million IDPs from southern Sudan who are in Khartoum.

He further noted that since the signing of CPA in the capital of Kenya in January 2005, there has been spontaneous return of southern Sudanese for a grand total now standing at 2,325,626 including 325,626 brought by UNHCR and IOM while about four million are still to be repatriated from inside and outside south Sudan.

The reverend said South Sudan Relief and Rehabilitation Commission and UNHCR are working in partnership to provide protection and assistance to returnees coming back after decades of deadly civil conflict.

Indeed, he said, refugees are really in need of social and economic development, education, health care, clean water, sanitation, security and livelihoods support. Rev. Willian calls upon all their partners, UN, NGOs and citizen of southern Sudan to joint hands in urgently addressing problems facing refugees and IDPs in southern Sudan.

Meanwhile, Mr. Matthew Crentsil, senior programme officer of UNHCR in southern Sudan, gave out a breakdown of 22,000 refugees in southern Sudan including 16,000 Congolese driven by the LRA insurgency, 5,000 Ethiopians and 1,000 of other nationalities.

UNHCR’s cumulative voluntary repatriation from 2005 to May 2009 totals 168,796, of which 156,474 were voluntary repatriation and 12,322 were self-repatriation assisted by UNHCR, which gave a return package and reintegration support for three months.

UNHCR could not at first construct a permanent school building at Lulugo because they were not sure of land ownership, but the agency was assured by the host community and Government of Southern Sudan that refugees are respected and will be given a go-ahead for permanent construction of a school building.

The agency’s representative appealed to potential donors to quickly come to their aid in terms of cash or material donation.

Meanwhile, a grateful head teacher of an Godo (meaning learning) primary school for Ethiopian refugees, Oceng Ojulu Akway hailed the host community and GOSS for offering them opportunity of learning for their children. “We came to southern Sudan in December 2003 but the previous government refused to support us but Goss administration gave us the ok as from April 27, 2009 and now we have 130 enrolled pupils starting from beginner to primary two.”

He was speaking at an evening occasion attended by international partners. The event was marked by a volleyball match between refugees and UNHRC staff.

(ST)