Oxfam’s Sudan head leaves country after visa row

KHARTOUM, Dec 12 (Reuters) – The head of British charity Oxfam in Sudan has left the country, days after Sudanese officials ordered him to leave for working under a wrong visa.

A Sudanese girl waits to use toilets set up by the Oxfam charity in the Abu Shouk refugee camp. (AFP).

“Oxfam’s country programme manager has left Sudan to fulfil his visa requirements,” spokesman Adrian McIntyre said on Sunday, adding that the charity would continue its work to provide humanitarian help to 800,000 people in war-torn Sudan.

Oxfam and the Save the Children UK organisations were warned and their country directors asked to leave last month after the government accused them of violating Sudanese law by interfering in political affairs.

The expulsion orders were later frozen on humanitarian grounds.

But last week, the Humanitarian Affairs Ministry said Sudan Oxfam head Shaun Skelton had to leave immediately because he had entered the country on a visa for the remote Darfur region but stayed in the capital Khartoum to work.

It was not clear if Skelton would reapply to return as Sudan’s country director, based in Khartoum. Sudan said last week he was free to do so.

FAST TRACK VISAS

There are more than 800 international aid workers in Sudan’s remote Darfur region, and over 5,000 local staff, trying to control what the United Nations calls one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises with more than 1.6 million forced from their homes during a 22-month-old rebellion.

Sudan in May agreed to operate a fast track visa process for aid workers travelling to Darfur, with a guaranteed visa within 48 hours.

The government also promised the Canadian prime minister last month to extend these and other procedures to expedite humanitarian aid reaching those in need throughout Sudan, not just in Darfur.

The United Nations has said it is working with Sudan’s Humanitarian Aid Commission to resolve the visa problems of other aid agency staff.

But aid agencies working in Sudan said there were still problems getting visas for their staff.

“Delivering humanitarian aid throughout Sudan will be greatly facilitated when the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs takes concrete steps to implement President Bashir’s decision to fast-track visas for aid workers in all regions of the country,” said one international aid agency worker in Sudan.