Repatriation
In 2003, more than 200,000 people have
returned to Afghanistan under the assisted voluntary repatriation programme,
some 150,000 from Pakistan and 50,000 from Iran. A further 50,000 have
returned spontaneously, without receiving any assistance.
As in 2002, most Afghans returning under the voluntary repatriation programme have made for central Afghanistan (900,000). Some 440,000 have gone to the north, 410,000 to the east, 110,000 to the south, 88,000 to the west and 42,000 to the southeast.
As part of its ongoing effort to ensure that travel assistance grants are adjusted to meet changing returnee needs, UNHCR has recently announced that additional aid will be provided to returnees travelling to the northern provinces who, due to the closure of Salang Pass, now have to travel via Bamyan. Returnees setting off from Lahore in Pakistan also now receive an additional $5 per person.
Protection
Tripartite Agreements
On Monday, 16 June, the Governments of Iran and Afghanistan and UNHCR signed a joint programme for the voluntary return of Afghans from Iran. The new tripartite agreement, which was signed in Tehran, renews the accord signed in April 2002 and extends the assistance framework for the voluntary repatriation operation until 2005. The agreement also refers to a new system to resolve commercial disputes between Afghan refugees and Iranians.
Meanwhile, the Afghan Ministry for Refugees and Repatriation (MoRR), in consultation with UNHCR, has prepared comments on a draft tripartite agreement on voluntary return from Denmark.
Returnee Monitoring Report
UNHCR is shortly to publish its returnee monitoring report for the period January 2002-March 2003. The report, which is to be translated into Dari and Pashtu, will be widely disseminated throughout Afghanistan, and its contents communicated via local media such as radio and theatre. Key elements of its findings were presented to the Human Rights Advisory Group in Kabul on 12 June.
The monitoring network extends across 27 of Afghanistan's 32 provinces: Khost, Nuristan, Paktia, Paktika and Uruzgan are not covered. Some districts within the 27 provinces are also inaccessible, largely due to local security problems.
Security was the prime concern for returnees and IDPs, whose "transitional status" may make them more vulnerable. Violations include extortion of money, excessive taxation, sexual abuse, kidnapping and forced recruitment by armed groups (particularly in the northwest and Central Highlands). Concerns about disputes over land ownership, water rights, and housing are also emphasised.
Problems are enhanced by the limited availability and functioning of dispute settlement mechanisms. The formal judicial system outside Kabul has become degraded, and the strength of informal systems varies greatly. Nevertheless, three mechanisms have been established to help address returnees' and IDPs' concerns. These are the Return Commission for the North, a Return Shura for Bamiyan, and a number of provincial human rights and protection working groups. These groups are made up of representatives from UNAMA, UN agencies, AIHRC, and NGOs, and have proved effective in improving information sharing and coordination of interventions.
Consultations on the Draft Constitution
On Sunday, 8 June, the Afghan Government formally began the process of public consultations on Afghanistan's draft constitution. The creation and approval of a new constitution is required under the Bonn Agreement, and the new document draws heavily on the constitution introduced by King Muhammad Zahir Shah in 1964. The drafting process has been led by a 35-member commission made up of constitutional and Islamic law lawyers, sociologists, economists and tribal leaders.
At the end of June the commission will begin to consult Afghans inside the country and Afghan refugees in Pakistan and Iran. Constitution missions will visit major IDP locations in Helmand, Kandahar and Herat. UNHCR has been asked to help facilitate consultations within refugee communities in Iran and Pakistan, and is communicating messages via its Mass Information Programme.
The public consultation period will last for two months, with all recommendations being incorporated in the draft in August. The final draft of the constitution will be issued in September and distributed nationwide. The secretariat of the constitutional commission has already established eight offices across the country to inform the public about the process.
UNHCR protection staff have also been asked to report specifically on any threats to citizens or groups publicly expressing political opinions, during the run-up to a constitutional Loya Jirga [grand tribal council] in October to approve the document.
Reintegration
UNHCR has so far signed agreements with partners for around half of the 60,000 shelter units it plans to build in 2003.
Breakdown of UNHCR's 2003 housing plan:
| Region |
Number of housing units
|
| North |
184,000
|
| East |
137,000
|
| Centre |
382,000
|
| Southeast |
105,000
|
| South |
116,000
|
| West |
176,000
|
The Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development's National Solidarity Programme (NSP) has now been launched in five provinces (Bamiyan, Farah, Herat, Kandahar and Parwan). The $95-million programme targets 4,000 villages in these provinces, and has been specifically designed to include participation of returnees. A UNOPS-run programme to support economic recovery by paying labourers to work on secondary roads throughout Afghanistan is being folded into the NSP.
UNDP's Recovery and Employment Afghan Programme (REAP) also includes participation of returnees. Skilled and unskilled labourers are employed under this programme to carry out construction work. Vocational training courses are being carried out, with a special focus on providing training for women. Current activities include tailoring and embroidery but courses in computers and telecommunications are also planned.
IDPs
Some 145 IDP families, most of whom had come from northern Afghanistan, have now been moved from Dilaram to the Zahre Dasht camps. A further 40 families have remained in Dilaram, saying that they can survive on their own. UNHCR has now closed its field unit in Dilaram.
More than 8,000 people are currently employed under labour intensive activities initiated to provide employment in the Zhare Dasht and Mukhtar IDP settlements. Most of these (more than 3,000) are engaged in shelling peanuts. More than 1,000 are constructing a peanut processing plant. Over 4,000 women are spinning wool.
A further 121 Tajik families have returned to Bamiyan. So far monitoring of the group that returned in early May does not reveal any major protection problems.
Chaman Waiting Area
Residents of the Chaman Waiting Area are now deciding whether to return to Afghanistan, to the Zahre Dasht settlements, or whether to move further into Pakistan, to the Mohammad Kheil camp. They are to start to move on 30 June, and under initial plans convoys will leave for the two destinations on alternate days. Convoys will take groups of 100 people to Zahre Dasht one day and to Mohammad Kheil the next for the first week. UNHCR and its partners will then review the process. Almost 60 per cent of those registering so far have been signing up to move to Zahre Dasht, with the other 40 per cent opting for Mohammad Kheil.
Funding
UNHCR has now received US$68.7 million against a total 2003 budget of US$194.7 million. Of this, US $ 62.9 million (92 %) has been obligated.