Friday 24 December 2010

Amnesty International - Somali refugees in Kenya need protection not abuse

Kenya’s violations of the human rights of Somali refugees and asylum-seekers are putting thousands of lives at risk, Amnesty International said in a report released today.From life without peace to peace without life describes how thousands fleeing violence in Somalia are unable to find refuge, protection and lasting solutions in Kenya, due to the closure of the border between the two countries almost four years ago amid security concerns. “Continued fighting and horrendous abuses in Somalia pose a very real threat to the lives of tens of thousands of children, women and men. No Somali should be forcibly returned to southern and central Somalia,” said Michelle Kagari, Africa Programme Deputy Director at Amnesty International. According to media reports as yet unverified by Amnesty International, hundreds of Somalis were recently detained in a mass police operation targeting foreigners across Nairobi.Last month around 8000 Somali refugees who had fled across the border into Kenya from the Somali town of Belet Hawo following intense fighting there, were ordered to return to Somalia by the Kenyan authorities. Moreover, Kenyan police then forced about 3,000 of them further into Somalia, where they continue to be at risk of grave human rights abuses.
Read the complete story at Amnesty International

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