Process of Refugee Integration Criticised By Leaders

The Citizen (Dar es Salaam)

George Sembony

30 April 2011

Tanga — A discussion on a four-year government strategy to integrate 162,256 former refugees from Burundi, who were granted Tanzanian citizenship last year, nearly turned the Tanga Regional Consultative Council (RCC) meeting into a stormy affair after some members of the council demanded the scrapping of the plan for various reasons.

The reasons include the fact that respective districts have not been involved fuly in the process and that it was being imposed on them from above.

Emotions that almost threatened to become sectarian began to show before the chairman of the Council, the Tanga regional commissioner, Major General Said Kalembo (rtd), took charge noting that he preferred an option suggested by Pangani MP Saleh Pamba where the refugees would be accepted only if the government could be persuaded to stop more integration.

“Let us not embarrass out President. He has already committed himself internationally,” he advised, saying that this was an exceptional situation they had to bear with.

Mr Kalembo said that the plan was a directive from above. “Let us adopt Pamba’s option as it would be a big embarrassment to the President if he refused to implement a plan he already committed himself to. I am a soldier and when I receive an order, I execute it,” he said.

The intervention ended in a watered-down resolution announced by the regional administrative secretary, Mr Benedict Ole Kuyan. The resolution suggested that the region continues to cooperate with the central government in implementing the plan. It, however, advised the government and the international community to cooperate and help increase various social services in areas where the former refugees would be integrated.

The Four Year Local Integration Plan to be bankrolled by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) aims at integrating the new citizens in 50 selected districts from 16 regions.

According to the Programme officer (Local Integration) from the ministry of Regional Administration and Local Government, Mr Augustine Kalinga, the former refugees would be integrated in five districts of Dodoma Region (3,500), five districts of Iringa (3,000) and three districts of Kagera (1,500).

In Tanga Region three districts would be expected to absorb 1,600 former refugees from Burundi. The three districts are Kilindi, Handeni and Mkinga.

Other 3,500 refugees would also be absorbed in three districts in Lindi Region, 1,500 in three districts of Manyara Region, the same number in three districts of Mbeya Region, 3,500 in three districts of Mtwara Region as well as the Coast Region which would absorb 2,000 former refugees in three districts.

The other regions are Ruvuma (3000), Shinyanga (1,600), Morogoro (1,600), Tabora (1,600), Kigoma (1,000), Rukwa (3,000) and Singida (1,600).

The MP for Kilindi, Mrs Beatrice Shelukindo, who started the ball rolling immediately after she had presented a paper to the Council said that the plan should be reviewed with the respective districts being involved in discussing the issue.

She said that Tanga should decline to receive the former refugees, saying experience showed that they have been involved in crime where they were currently residing.

She noted that the area has had it share of insecurity that was brought about by refugees during the civil war in Rwanda, adding that the President was ill-advised on the issue of integration.

Council chairman Mussa Shemdoe said that despite the fact that the government had already committed itself to integrating refugees into the Tanzanian society, the issue must be reviewed and respective districts involved in the discussions.

Lushoto MP Henry Shekifu spoke of the need for the issue to be discussed again to avoid a situation where visitors were received by the districts without the latter being prepared to do so.Stephen Ngonyani, the MP from Korogwe Rural, asked Tanga Region to outrightly refuse to receive the former refugees.

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