Treat Syrian and Somali refugees respectfully

This week the world has been deeply shocked by the picture of a young Syrian boy washed up on a Turkish beach.

The poignant photo has shocked European governments into agreeing to take in more Syrian refugees.

One million people will try to get into Europe this year. Most are economic migrants from Africa and Asia but the majority are fleeing Syria.

There are already a million Syrian refugees in Lebanon and another one million in Jordan, both small countries. If they can help, surely Europe should do more.

A few countries like Germany have tried but most of the 28 EU countries are doing their best to dodge their moral responsibility to help the Syrian refugees.

The world has rightly condemned those callous EU countries.

Witnessing this tragedy, Kenya should reconsider its stated commitment to close down the refugees camps in Daadab and Kakuma. The 350,000 inhabitants of Daadab and 160,000 of Kakuma are many fewer than the refugees accommodated by Lebanon or Jordan, countries whose populations are less than 15 percent of Kenya.

No refugees willingly leave their country. Those Syrians did not want to leave and will surely return once the war is over. Similarly the residents in Daadab will certainly go home once Somalia stabilises.

The costs of Daadab and Kakuma are carried by the UNHCR and international donors who spend around US$400 million (Sh40 billion) providing for them. These camps are in fact major foreign exchange earners for Kenya.

There is also no evidence that terrorist attacks originated in Kakuma or Daadab. The refugees themselves are fleeing from al Shabaab.

This is the right time for Kenya to recalibrate its attitude to refugees. Just as it is repugnant for some EU countries to ignore the plight of Syrian refugees, it is ethically wrong for Kenya to try and push its refugee population to be repatriated before the time is right.
Source: the-star.co.ke