Kass and Kalma camp residents refuse to return

Displaced people of Shataya area, residing in Kass and Kalma camps in South Darfur refuse to return to their areas of origin. They listed five conditions for their return, in response to the decision on salary payment announced by the Locality’s Commissioner, Abdul Rahman Mohammed Gardud.

The statement described the decision on salary payments as a strategy to indirectly force the displaced to return to their areas of origin. Displaced persons of 23 villages in Shataya area stressed in a statement issued on Wednesday August 29, they will return to their areas of origin only after their conditions are acceded to.

Their conditions are the following:

• security to be provided
• the perpetrators of crimes in Darfur to be brought to justice
• militias to be disarmed
• new settlers to be expelled
• individual and collective compensation to be offered to those affected.

Locality Commissioner Gardud confirmed to Radio Dabanga, he will adhere to the decision on salary payment for staff and workers only after they return to the headquarters of Shataya Locality. He confirmed the prevalence of security in the Locality and added about one hundred workers and staff arrived and received their salaries.

He asked staff and workers, who have not yet received their salaries, to go back to the Locality for payment. He emphasized each worker or employee not arriving to the Locality’s headquarters within 45 days, of the issuance of the decision, will be dismissed.