Chadian refugees in Darfur afraid to return

The 8,000 Chadian refugees of camp Um Shalaya in Azum locality in Central Darfur state have refused to return to Chad under the pretext of lack of security, stability, services and development. Wardi Bahar, a representative of the refugees told Radio Dabanga that a delegation from the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) headed by Mohamed Irfan, and from Unamid told them in a meeting on Monday with Sheikhs, Omdas and youth that the length of their stay in Sudan as refugees would end in January 2014. The meeting asked them to return to their home areas in Chad or to be resettled in the region. The representative explained that all the refugees refused to return due to the lack of security, stability, services, and development. They also asked for compensation or restoration of their property which has been looted by government militiamen since they fled to Sudan in 2006. The Um Shalaya representative also told Radio Dabanga about the disappearance of three Chadian refugee children. “They went out to herd their sheep on Monday and have not returned to the camp or been found so far. The three children were: Yasin Abdallah Adam (10), Yusif Mohamed Ali (7), and Mariam Mohamed Ali (12). File photo by Albert González Farran/Unamid