UN calls on Kenya to reconsider its decisions to end hosting refugees

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) on Monday called on the Government to reconsider its decision to end hosting of refugees because of economic, security and environmental burdens.

The UNHCR in a statement, also called on the Government of Kenya to avoid taking any action that might be at odds with its international obligations towards people needing sanctuary from danger and persecution.

The UN agency expressed “profound concern” over Kenya’s announcement on Friday.

Kenya’s Ministry of Interior had announced that the Government had disbanded its Department of Refugee Affairs and was working on a mechanism for the closure of the country’s refugee camps.

The UN said the move that could affect as many as 600,000 people.

For almost a quarter of a century, it added, Kenya has played a vital role in East Africa and the Horn of Africa in providing asylum to people forced to flee persecution and war.

The agency said the safety of hundreds of thousands of Somalis, South Sudanese and others has hinged on Kenya’s generosity and its willingness to be a leading beacon in the region for international protection.

Tragically, the UNHCR said, the situations in Somalia and South Sudan that cause people to flee are still unresolved today.

The UNHCR said it has been, and will continue to be, in touch with the Kenyan Government to “fully understand the implications of its statement” .

The agency also added that it recognised that Kenya has played an extraordinary role over many years as one of the world’s frontline major refugee-hosting nations, and that inevitably this has had many consequences for the country and its population.

UNHCR said that, for these reasons, it has been a prominent advocate for “robust international support” for Kenya, including support for host communities and a “careful listening to their concerns.”

In today’s global context of some 60 million people forcibly displaced,the UN agency said, it was more important than ever that international asylum obligations prevail and are properly supported.(NAN)