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Sudan + 6 more

JRS Dispatches No. 221

(Extract)

SUDAN: DARFUR REBELS ALLOW AID DELIVERY

On 6 August, rebel leaders in Darfur ended a four-day meeting in Arusha, Tanzania, with a commitment to allow free access by humanitarian agencies to people affected by the western Sudanese conflict.

In a statement issued after the talks, the rebels pledged to stop hostilities against aid organisations and African Union (AU) peacekeepers deployed in the volatile region.

The meeting, which aimed to forge unity among the fragmented groups, brought together leading personalities from the rebel movements who took a common position on power and wealth sharing, security arrangements, land and humanitarian issues.

That position will be put forward at peace talks with the Sudanese government, to be mediated by the AU and the UN, in two to three months' time.

The meeting, convened by the AU's special envoy for Darfur, Salim Ahmed Salim, and his UN counterpart, Jan Eliasson, was, however, marred by the refusal of Abdel Wahid Mohammed Nur, one of the more influential leaders of one faction of the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army (SLM/A), to join in.

The Darfur conflict erupted when mostly non-Arab rebels took up arms in early 2003, accusing the central government of marginalising their region. About 200,000 people have died and more than two million have been displaced since the conflict broke out.

The government has been widely accused of using scorched-earth tactics in Darfur, arming Arab militias known as Janjawid to commit atrocities against civilians.

SOUTH AFRICA: GOVERNMENT REJECTS CALL FOR REFUGEE CAMPS

On 13 August, the South African minister for home affairs, Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nquakula, rejected calls to establish a refugee camp for the thousands of Zimbabwean refugees arriving into the country. The minister described such a move as a violation of UN regulations. She added that most undocumented Zimbabweans who enter the country are 'economic migrants'.

Media estimates suggest between 3,000 and 5,000 Zimbabweans cross the border into South Africa every day.

On 16 July, the Democratic Alliance (DA) urged the South African government to establish refugee camps near the border to house and feed Zimbabweans fleeing their country.

"The South African government remains faithful to its international legal obligation to allow asylum seekers to move freely within the country. It is a position which could well be emulated by other nations in the region. Yet, JRS is acutely aware that the current processing of asylum applications in South Africa leaves people in limbo and without adequate documentation for years on end. We urge the South African government to establish open reception centres for Zimbabweans seeking asylum near its northern borders and to issue them the necessary documents in an expeditious fashion", JRS South African Regional Advocacy Officer, Michael Gallagher SJ, told Dispatches on 13 August.

"We also urge the immigration department and police officials to assist Zimbabweans in registering for asylum rather than continue the practice of immediate deportation to Beitbridge in southern Zimbabwe. We believe, based on reports from African press sources, that the current conditions in the country can be justifiably described as 'events seriously disturbing public order' and thus qualify Zimbabweans for refugee status under the provisions of the African Union refugee convention", added Fr Gallagher.

The South African government minister said the situation in Zimbabwe would be at the top of the agenda at the forthcoming meeting of the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC). The focus of SADC should be to tackle the root causes of Zimbabwe's problems, she added.

COTE D'IVOIRE: CLOAKED PEACE, EX-COMBATANTS BURN ARMS

On 30 July, Ivorian President, Laurent Gbagbo, and former rebel leader, Guillaume Soro, oversaw the symbolic burning and destruction of several Kalashnikov arms to mark the country's reunification and return to peace.

This historic "Flame of Peace Ceremony", took place in Bouaké, capital of the former FN (Forces Nouvelles) rebel-held zone, before 7 African chiefs of State and several other government representatives from across the continent.

"JRS hopes that the implementation of policies agreed by the rebels and the governments, especially the issuance of national identification, will lead to fair elections. Otherwise the fragile peace will be at risk", JRS West Africa Communications Officer, Ms Ashley Gagné, told Dispatches on 9 August.

A failed coup attempt on 19 September, 2002, divided the country into a rebel-held north led by Guillaume Soro, and a government-run south, under the authority of President Laurent Gbagbo.

The political and military crisis led to the displacement of thousands. In response, JRS has initiated projects assisting vulnerable persons in most conflict-afflicted regions. An education project for women in the western city of Man was established. In 2006, management of the project was handed over to a local congregation. In Bouaké, also in the rebel-held north, JRS currently manages a socio-educational centre for women and girl-mothers, a mobile health clinic, and HIV/AIDS clinic.

After several UN Resolutions and inter-African agreements, the March 2007 Ouagadougou Peace Accord, brokered directly between former rivals President Gbagbo and Prime Minister Soro, promises the organisation of free and fair elections. The "Flame of Peace Ceremony" holds hope for a better future in Cote d'Ivoire.

SRI LANKA: SHOCKING INCREASE IN HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES

On 6 August, the international human rights organisation, Human Rights Watch highlighted the increase in unlawful killings, enforced disappearances and other abuses over the past 18 months in Sri Lanka.

According to Human Rights Watch, from January 2006 until June this year, more than 1,000 abductions had been reported in Sri Lanka.

The government admitted there were cases of disappearances but denied the security forces were involved in an increase in abuses. The government said it was taking every step to investigate. The report also accused Tamil rebels of targeting civilians, extortion and the use of child soldiers. On 7 August, John Holmes, UN Emergency Relief Coordinator, visited the northern Jaffna peninsula, to hold discussions with government and NGO representatives. However, civil society organisations were not allowed to meet him in the absence of the security forces. Human rights NGOs condemned the military interference in matters relating to civil society and NGO activity.

JRS staff speaking to Dispatches also expressed concern for ongoing attacks on ivilians. They stated that four civilians were reported injured, killed or disappeared in July.

JRS Sri Lanka also spoke of the economic and social cost of the continuing conflict. Prices of essential food items are increasing daily in the Jaffna peninsula. Though the food items and non-food items are available in the markets, the prices are high, staff reported.

MALAYSIA: AUTHORITIES ARREST REFUGEES

On 6 August, the detention of approximately 150 UN-recognised refugees during raids by the authorities the previous weekend was reported.

The Burmese refugees, from the minority Rohingya community, were among 550 migrants arrested during a number of raids by immigration officials and the volunteer security corps (RELA) in the central Malaysian state of Selangor. Children and pregnant women were among the 150 detained, all of whom were recognised by the UN refugee agency (UNHCR).

Malaysia is not a signatory to the UN refugee convention, and considers refugees as undocumented migrants who can be detained and deported. Nevertheless, the government allows UNHCR to operate in the country.

All the arrested refugees and migrants are said to be in the custody of the immigration department, which will decide whether to release or deport them. UNHCR stated it was trying to verify the number of Burmese refugees being detained but could not give further details.

Some 36,000 mostly Burmese refugees, registered with the UNHCR, are currently living in Malaysia, including 12,000 ethnic Rohingyas.

Earlier this year, both JRS and UNHCR voiced concerns over the arrests of asylum seekers and refugees, in particular women and children, urging Malaysia to uphold its humanitarian commitment to refugees.

COLOMBIA: DEMONSTRATION HIGHLIGHTS THE SITUATION OF MILLIONS OF INTERNALLY DISPLACED PERSONS

Bogotá's main square was transformed in homage to the country's displaced population, the thousands who have been forced to flee the countryside to the cities.

The event "Siembra y canto en la plaza" (Planting and singing in the square) was part of the 2007 Campaign for the Rights of Displaced People in Colombia, a year-long initiative launched by the UN refugee agency, the Catholic Church and the leading Colombian NGO, Codhes, among others. It included music, theatre and dance by both professional artists and displaced persons.

Some 20,000 people came to the Plaza Bolivar on 29 July in solidarity with the hundreds of displaced people from all over the country, who in the previous days had planted thousands of flowers and plants in the square for the occasion.

"It is important that people realise that we are here not because we wanted to, but because we had to", added a woman in her fifties who participated in the event.

The UN refugee agency spokesperson in Colombia, Roberto Meier, said the organisers wish to highlight the impact of displacement on Colombians who every month have to leave everything behind and from one day to the next wake up in a strange place they do not know.

DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO: SEXUAL VIOLENCE COMMONPLACE

On 13 August, JRS Grands Lacs published a report on sexual violence and the position of women in the Kisangani area of eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

At a series of workshops last May and June, JRS staff distributed questionnaires to the teaching staff present. The workshops, entitled 'democracy, rights, peace and teaching', were provided to 118 JRS-supported teachers working in 10 schools in eastern DRC. The workshops were designed to raise awareness of women's rights, equality, sexual violence and conflict resolution. Sixty-six teachers responded to the questionnaires.

Eighty percent declared they knew at least one woman or child who had experienced sexual violence in their community. This worrying finding of widespread sexual violence and, more generally, discrimination against women in the DRC was also highlighted last July by Ms Yakin Ertuk, the UN special rapporteur on violence against women.

The JRS report condemns the impunity which protects perpetrators of sexual crimes. JRS called on the DRC government, the international community and the religious leaders to do all they can to stop this phenomenon.

The most common types of violence were: forced marriages cited by 16.6%; and rape cited by 23%. The teachers also highlighted other forms of human rights abuses such as forced labour by 2.7%, inability to express themselves freely by 6.9%, salary differences by 2.8% and inability to access healthcare treatment.

More positively, 45% of the teachers stated they wished to work to ensure that women's and children's rights are respected. More than one third of teachers declared it was most important to raise awareness of women rights, nearly 15% saw the end to impunity as the most urgent step to be taken.

JRS DISPATCHES is sent from the International Office of the Jesuit Refugee Service, CP 6139, 00195 Roma Prati, Italy. Tel: +39-06 689.77.386; Fax: +39-06 688 06 418; Email: dispatches@jrs.net; JRS on-line: http://www.jrs.net; Publisher: Lluís Magriñà SJ; Editor: James Stapleton; Translation: Carles Casals (Spanish), Christian Uwe (French), Simonetta Russo (Italian).