UNAMID celebrates return home of hundreds in Darfur
June 29, 2009 (ALFASHER) – A team from the UN-African Union hybrid peacekeeping operation on Saturday visited a village of Masri in North Darfur, meeting with leaders of the majority Arab tribe in the area, the Ereigat, whose households have been returning to the village.
A UNAMID team led by Head-of-Office, Mr. Miguel Martin conducted a one-day visit to the North Darfur town of Kutum, during which they headed to the village of Masri about 20 km southwest from Kutum.
The Mission says that the team aimed “to assess the extent to which life has returned to the town after the fighting.”
During the meeting, the residents revealed that about 2,300 households with an average family size of 8 individuals are in the area. Before the conflict in 2003, Masri’s population was more
than 2,500 households. The residents had been refugees in the Darfur towns of Kabkabiya, Nyala and Kutum.
“UNAMID was also informed that population have been returning since mid of 2007 where a total of 500 households returned to Masri,” stated the Mission.
The area is also inhabited by people of the Fur and Tunjur tribes.
Returnees have received assistance from from World Food Programme (WFP) and some support from United Nations International Children’s Fund (UNICEF) for the repair of a water pump. They requested to receive additional assistance for water, health facilities, plastic sheeting, food and education.
Following the meeting at Masri village, UNAMID team also visited El Manara village, about 5 km from Masri village and about 25 km south west from Kutum town where they met with local leaders and women’s groups. The purpose of the visit was to assess the situation in the area and to verify the number of returnees in order to be informed of the exact population living in the area.
The leaders in Masri told the delegation that the population in the area was at 531 households with an average family size of 6 individuals. The residents informed that before the conflict began in 2003, the area had 400 people who were displaced towards Kabkabiya area. At present, the population consists mainly of Rezegait tribes.
Some 3 million people from Darfur have been fled since 2003 to large refugee camps in Darfur, Chad or to towns in other regions. The spokesman of Darfur displaced people, Hussein Abu Sharati, spoke sceptically yesterday about the African Union’s priorities in helping people return to their homes.
Referring to an AU panel headed by former South African President Thabo Mbeki, he said “The panel, during its meeting with the IDP’s, spoke about issues like compensations, voluntary return, and peace. But the priorities for us are elsewhere.”
Abu Sharati had reacted in anger in May 2009 when the head of UNAMID, Rodolphe Adada, presented a monthly death toll to the UN Security Council that the spokesman said downplayed the true scope of suffering in Darfur.
The total number of people displaced by violence in Darfur has risen by tens of thousands throughout 2008 and 2009.
(ST)