RETURN OF REFUGEES, DISPLACED PERSONS TO HOMES CRUCIAL TO LASTING PEACE IN BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA, REPRESENTATIVE TELLS THIRD COMMITTEE

1 November 1996

Press Release
GA/SHC/3374

RETURN OF REFUGEES, DISPLACED PERSONS TO HOMES CRUCIAL TO LASTING PEACE IN BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA, REPRESENTATIVE TELLS THIRD COMMITTEE

19961101 Refugees and displaced persons must be allowed to return to their homes if there was to be lasting peace in Bosnia and Herzegovina, according to that country's representative. She told the Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) this afternoon, as it continued its consideration of refugee issues, that failure to allow refugees to return would be a de facto verification of "ethnic cleansing" and genocide. The annex to the Dayton Peace Agreement, which dealt with the return of 2 million refugees and displaced persons, had not yet been implemented, she continued. Some parties, especially the Serbian entity, were expelling members of other ethnic groups from areas under their control. Homes were repaired during the day, only to be mined and levelled in the night. Such deliberate and well-orchestrated acts posed a serious threat to the relative peace. Freedom of movement, apprehension of war criminals, land-mines and economic reconstruction also affected the return of refugees. The representative of Croatia said there were still 180,000 refugees and over 140,000 internally displaced persons in his country. International assistance covered only 30 per cent of their costs. Croatia had provided $916 million in direct assistance to these refugees, and an estimated $706 million in indirect costs. The Government acknowledged its obligation to allow the return of all Serbs who were not war criminals; however, the process was a two-way street that depended on the goodwill of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Events unfolding in eastern Zaire had the potential to spin out of control and erupt into a humanitarian catastrophe engulfing the entire African subregion, according to the representative of the Organization of African Unity (OAU). The OAU Secretary-General had dispatched a high-level delegation to Zaire and Rwanda in an effort to halt the fighting, and a regional summit was scheduled for next Tuesday in Nairobi. The Secretary-General's proposals for a regional conference on peace, security and development in the Great Lakes region of Africa would enable the parties to address the root causes of the problems of peace, security and development. Other statements were made by the representatives of Saudi Arabia, Sudan, China, Turkey, Guinea-Bissau, Nigeria, Libya, Liechtenstein, Belarus and Tunisia. A representative of the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent also spoke. The Committee will meet again at 3 p.m. Monday, 4 November, to conclude its consideration of refugee issues and humanitarian questions.

Committee Work Programme

The Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural) met this afternoon to continue its discussions on the report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), questions relating to refugees, returnees and displaced persons and humanitarian issues. (For background, see Press Release GA/SHC/3371, of 31 October.)

Statements

JAMIL MURDAD (Saudi Arabia) said more than temporary solutions were necessary to deal with the complicated nature of the refugee problem, which resulted from colonial occupation, racial and national conflicts, the residue of the conflict between East and West, and the unbalanced nature of the international economic order. It was the international community's responsibility to successfully prevent involuntary displacement and to fund human support and assistance for the suffering countries. Strong measures should be taken to deal with the basic causes of the refugee problem, including the political, social and economic factors that caused the problems of the refugees and the displaced. Constructive efforts should be made to find suitable solutions for the problems of development and poverty. Addressing the refugee problem should be a part of a comprehensive strategy for international peace and security, as well as economic and social development.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was pained by the continued suffering of refugees, in general, and the Palestinian refugees, in particular, he said. Palestinian refugees were prevented from returning to their homes, illegally displaced and arbitrarily detained. Additional dangers affected their physical and psychological well-being, and disrespect and disregard had been shown for their basic human rights. Israel, the occupying Power, was moving thousands of Jewish immigrants from all over the world to Palestine, but it refused to implement related international resolutions which granted the Palestinian people the right to return to their lands or compensate them for it. Israel's insistence on dealing with this issue from the humanitarian aspect would only prolong the suffering of the Palestinian people, and the situation would not end until all United Nations resolutions were implemented.

ALI IBN ABI TALIB ABDEL RHAMAN MEHMOUD (Sudan) said his Government reiterated its commitment to the relevant conventions dealing with refugees. The international community had a responsibility to find permanent solutions to the safe return and assimilation of refugees and internally displaced persons. The Sudan had seen great flows of refugees, including more than 1 million refugees from neighbouring countries. Currently, there were around 600,000 refugees in the country. The Sudan had signed tripartite agreements with its neighbours -- Chad, Ethiopia and Eritrea -- and the UNHCR. On the other hand, the Government had been consistently concerned with the situation

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of its nationals who were refugees in Kenya, Uganda, Zaire, Central African Republic and Ethiopia. Many of those refugees did not have adequate food or medical treatment. They were often conscripted by insurgent armies -- especially the children -- and their camps were targeted in attacks by insurgents. His Government was making every effort to overcome the conditions which had caused people to leave the Sudan in the first place. It followed a policy of voluntary repatriation, in keeping with its framework agreements with the UNHCR.

The international community bore up to 30 per cent of the cost of dealing with the refugee problem, but the amount of assistance given to his country was low, he said. More resources were needed, especially for development programmes for refugees. Recently, the Deputy High Commissioner had visited Sudanese refugee camps and met with refugees and relevant government agencies to assess the real picture and help the Government with solutions for voluntary repatriation.

YUEHUA WANG (China) said the international community had a common obligation for solving refugee problems. There should be cooperation among the countries of origin, asylum, resettlement and donor countries. At present, developing countries were the main ones receiving refugees and displaced persons. Despite great economic, social and development difficulties, they had made important contributions to the international protection of refugees. The international community was dutybound to provide them more assistance.

The ideal solution for solving refugee problems was voluntary repatriation, which, along with local integration and resettlement, should be used in a flexible way depending on the actual situation, she said. In formulating and implementing a comprehensive programme of action, the UNHCR should determine corresponding policies, according to the root causes of an exodus, as well as the different economic, social, political and environmental conditions in the countries and regions concerned. He appealed to all parties concerned to pay attention to the problems of Vietnamese boat people and refugees still in Hong Kong so as to ensure the complete success of the comprehensive plan of action for Indochinese refugees which was completed in June. Over the past decade, the Chinese Government had made tremendous efforts in receiving and providing protection to 280,000 Indochinese refugees. With the help of the UNHCR and the Laotian Government, it had cooperated closely on the voluntary return of more than 3,000 Lao refugees in China.

AHMET ARDA (Turkey), stressing the importance of the security of refugee camps, said the civilian and humanitarian character of the camps must not erode due to the infiltration of undesired elements, especially terrorists. Any armed activity in or around refugee camps must be prevented. Refugee camps must never be used by terrorists for training or logistical purposes, as well as sanctuaries. Special care should be shown by all interested

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institutions and intergovernmental and non-governmental humanitarian organizations in keeping the civilian and humanitarian character of the refugee camps intact. Turkey welcomed every effort of the UNHCR to enhance the protection of unaccompanied refugee minors, refugee women and other vulnerable groups. Member States should support the High Commissioner in creating a more effective structure to provide better protection to refugees.

With its geographical location, surrounded by volatile regions of political disturbances and conflicts, Turkey had been affected by population movements, he said. In spite of the considerable economic and social burden, Turkey had always been a safe haven for refugees. The Government had always been at the side of the UNHCR in search of durable solutions. The voluntary repatriation of almost half a million people who took refuge in Turkey in 1991 had been finalized successfully owing to exemplary cooperation between the Government and the UNHCR.

MARIA MANUELA LOPES DA ROSA (Guinea-Bissau) said that war remained one of the root causes of the displacement of people. Racial hatred and intolerance triggered armed confrontation and conflict, plunging people into despair and casting them adrift. Any approach to finding a solution to the refugee problem must first recognize the scope and seriousness of people's displacement, which was a humanitarian, social and political problem. The countries affected should be the primary actors in searching for a solution, but cooperation from the international community was indispensable as well. Institutions that provide protection of the primacy of law were essential in stopping the displacement of people. The countries of origin must create situations conducive to the return of refugees to allow people to come back to their domiciles with dignity.

In Africa, the refugee situation remained bleak, she said. Nearly 50 per cent of the world's refugees resided on the African continent, and most of those were women and children. Governments must abide by international law, and refrain from any action that might compromise constructive dialogue which would allow for a durable solution to the refugee problem. A global approach was needed, and it should take aim at the problem from three directions: prevention, the negative impact on the asylum countries, and durable solutions. Swift aid from the international community was also crucial in reigning in the refugee problem.

SAM A. OTUYELU (Nigeria) said, as a country which was once the source of many refugees and currently hosted a sizeable refugee population, it was very concerned with the increasing number of refugees and displaced persons in Africa. Intolerance and the abuse of power were among the causes for involuntary movement of people. Internecine wars and civil conflicts caused by ethnic differences and the struggle for control of resources in some countries had added to the numbers of refugees and displaced persons in Africa. The current crisis in the Great Lakes region and the reported

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fighting around Goma in Zaire was a major concern. The precarious refugee situation was worsening, and the UNHCR's work imperilled. He called on all parties to arrive at a quick settlement and urged States, which had influence over the parties in the dispute, to exercise restraint. The current critical period was not a time for political rhetoric and trading accusations, but for action to put an immediate end to the unfolding tragedy. Nevertheless, effective solutions through dialogue should be found to the root causes of the situation.

He said the ultimate goal of the international protection and support for refugees and displaced persons, irrespective of the causes of their displacement, should be voluntary return and integration into their countries of origin and usual places of residence. He urged both sending and receiving States to consider enhanced collaboration with UNHCR efforts to remove all impediments to the voluntary return. The influx of refugees put an additional burden on the infrastructure, economy and environment of the hosting countries and could create security problems, particularly in developing countries. The international community must find ways to assist those States.

ABDUSSALAM S. SERGIWA (Libya) said his Government was satisfied with the international community's recognition of the refugee problem as indicated by the contributions received by the UNHCR. The international community entrusted the UNHCR with a number of major tasks, including ensuring protection of refugees. African countries of asylum took on considerable burdens, because of the large number of refugees in their region, and many of the countries had limited financial resources. The UNHCR should continue to cooperate with the international community to ensure that asylum countries continued to receive additional financial resources. Asylum countries should also make every effort to allow refugees to return home with dignity and security.

Paragraph 192 of the UNHCR report contained an inaccurate statement about Palestinians "expelled from Libya in late 1995", he said. Libya did not expel those Palestinians from its territory. It had received and continued to receive Palestinians and provide them shelter, and it had done this according to a national law regarding Palestinians. The Palestinians mentioned in the UNHCR report decided to return to their homes after hearing that the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) had signed a peace agreement with Israel. The tragedy began when the occupation authorities refused their return to Palestine, and they remained on the Libya/Egypt border. Libya provided these refugees with food, blankets and tents. After negotiations, some returned to Libya, while others insisted on their right to return.

CLAUDIA FRITSCHE (Liechtenstein) said the capacities of the UNHCR to find durable solutions for the refugee problem was limited, especially with regard to protection. The efficiency of its activities depended largely on the political will of States concerned, and it was the intergovernmental

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bodies which faced the challenge of designing policies aimed at preventing massive refugee movements. Given the scale of the worldwide problem, solutions were urgently needed. Complex emergency situations had made it clear that peace-keeping and post-conflict peace-building could make a significant contribution to durable solutions and the prevention of massive refugee flows. Other important preventive factors included effective promotion and protection of human rights, since violation of those rights continued to be one of the main reasons people left their homes. Early- warning mechanisms were also important.

She said the vast majority of armed conflicts today were internal and had resulted in a significant increase in the number of internally displaced persons. The international community must give serious consideration to that new phenomena. The legal analysis of the complex problem by the Secretary- General's Special Representative, Francis Deng, was an important and invaluable contribution for deliberations. The international community should develop mechanisms to assist States in preventing conflicts between communities living within States.

IBRAHIMA SY, representative of the Organization of African Unity (OAU), said the events unfolding in eastern Zaire had the potential to spin out of control and erupt into a humanitarian catastrophe engulfing the entire African subregion. In response to the crisis, several urgent initiatives were being taken at regional and international levels. The OAU Secretary-General had dispatched a high-level delegation to Zaire and Rwanda in an effort to halt the fighting, and a regional summit to be held in Nairobi was scheduled for Tuesday, 5 November. The OAU also supported United Nations Special Envoy Raymond Chrétien's suggestion of convening a regional conference on peace, security and development in the Great Lakes region. Such a conference would enable all the parties to address, in a comprehensive and integrated manner, the root causes of the problems of peace, security and development in the region.

The great challenge posed by the situation in the Great Lakes region was the challenge of evolving a comprehensive and lasting solution to the problem, which included a framework for voluntary repatriation, he said. The OAU had consistently maintained that any voluntary repatriation effort by the region's nearly 2 million refugees would prove futile unless serious attempts were made to separate the bona fide refugees from the armed elements. The real refugees needed to be assured that some degree of security existed, and that they would be able to return safely to their countries of origin. The cooperation of the governments of the asylum countries and the countries of origin, in collaboration with the UNHCR, would be an encouraging step.

AZRA KALAJDZISALIHOVIC (Bosnia and Herzegovina) said,in order to make the peace durable and stable, full, rather than partial, implementation of the Dayton Peace Agreement was a must. However, annex 7, which deals with the

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return of 2 million refugees and displaced persons, had not yet been implemented. Failure to allow refugees to return would be a de facto verification of "ethnic cleansing" and genocide. Annex 7 stated that "the parties shall ensure that refugees and displaced persons are permitted to return in safety, without risk of harassment, intimidation, persecution or discrimination, particularly on account of their ethnic origin, religious belief, or political opinion".

However, some of the parties, especially the Serbian entity, had not only failed to meet those conditions, but had even continued to expel members of ethnic groups other than their own from territories under their control, she continued. In the Zone of Separation, potential returnees repaired their damaged homes during the day, only to find them levelled in the night. In the last two weeks, 90 homes belonging to Bosniaks and two mosques had been destroyed near Prijedor, a town in the Serbian entity with a small Bosniak population. Such acts were deliberate and well-orchestrated and posed a serious threat to the relative peace. There had also been recent expulsions of Croats and Bosniaks from the Banja Luka area. She appealed to the international community, the UNHCR, the United Nations International Civilian Police Task Force and the Implementation Force (IFOR) to ensure compliance with annex 7. Freedom of movement, apprehension of war criminals, land-mines and economic reconstruction also affected the return of refugees. How could refugees return to areas which were under the control of the very war criminals who had raped and expelled them?

LJUBINKO MATESIC (Croatia) said the UNHCR alone could not solve the world's refugee problem, which involved complex, and often political, issues. Therefore, the solution to any refugee problem must be sought in a comprehensive approach requiring the determination and political will of the States concerned and the international community. In order to avert the onset of a refugee crisis, preventive measures should be established to identify and help resolve potential conflicts among and within States that could lead to the flow of refugees or to the displacement of persons within a country. The international community had to act resolutely in the early phases of a problem. The precise actions would be determined by the specifics of each particular case and could include diplomatic, political or economic measures or the deployment of a preventive international military force -- with the consent of the host country -- in the more extreme circumstances. In situations where refugee problems already existed, it was necessary to transform humanitarian relief to refugees and returnees into longer-term development projects. The Government was appalled by the fact the international community was doing so little to address the developing tragedy in eastern Zaire, especially since there were numerous danger signs which foretold this catastrophe.

Croatia was currently accommodating over 180,000 refugees, most of them from Bosnia and Herzegovina, and was still caring for over 140,000 internally

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displaced persons, he said. While the Government was grateful for the assistance of donor countries, charitable organizations and the UNHCR, international assistance covered only 30 per cent of the needs of the refugees and displaced persons in the territory. Through 1995, Croatia had to provide $916 million in direct assistance to these refugees, and indirect costs were estimated at $706 million.

When Croatia liberated most of its occupied territories in 1995, approximately 120,000 ethnic Serbs left those regions, he said. These individuals left in an organized manner in advance of the Croatian military and upon orders from their leaders. The Government acknowledged its obligation to allow the return of those individuals who had not committed war crimes. As of 1 August, Croatian authorities had authorized the return of 9,253 of 16,000 applications, and it is estimated that another 2,000 to 3,000 individuals returned without seeking authorization. A process of confidence- building was necessary for a more complete return of ethnic Serbs to Croatia. However, that process was a two-way street that depended on the goodwill of the Government of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the Serbs who left, as well as Croatia.

IGAR GUBAREVICH (Belarus) said at the beginning of the 1990s there had been great flows of refugees in his region. Some 29,000 people from the former Soviet Union had applied for asylum in Belarus, which also had to deal with 4,000 refugees from Asia, 200,000 returnees and 100,000 illegal migrants. Many were not registered with the Government and viewed Belarus as a transit point for migration to Western European countries. Their presence strained social resources and caused a further rise in crime and illicit narcotics trafficking. The Government had implemented measures to deal with the onslaught of illegal immigration, to regulate migration flows, and protect the rights and conditions of asylum seekers. In February, a law had been promulgated which recognized the legal rights of refugees and put in place social guarantees for legal immigrants.

Belarus had made bilateral and regional agreements with neighbouring States to regulate refugee flows, he continued. There had to be cooperation and coordination between countries, including stepped-up information exchange, an alignment of migration legislation and preventive action to stem outflows. The May conference in Geneva between countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) was the culmination of two years of efforts by the international community and the UNHCR. It was a major step forward in dealing with the situation and in extending the application of international law. It recognized the need for solidarity to deal with migrant problems. His Government had helped initiate the conference, and both the preparatory conference and the fourth meeting of the drafting committee had been held in Minsk. The conference had found civilized solutions to the migrant situation in the region.

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WAHID BEN AMOR (Tunisia) said his Government was committed to alleviating the suffering of refugees, and it applauded the UNHCR's dedication to consolidate efforts with other United Nations agencies, including the World Food Programme (WFP) and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF). It was important that organizations stepped up the protection for vulnerable refugees groups, such as women and children, and tightened security in refugee camps must be established. National and international solidarity and the mobilization of human and financial resources were vital to an adequate response to the refugee problem.

The Tunisian Government was concerned about the situation in eastern Zaire and deplored the suffering of the thousands of refugees and displaced persons. It was committed to humanitarian principles and appealed to all parties concerned to end the combat, restore peace in the region, aid victims and avoid any increase in refugee flows. Tunisia hosted a summit meeting in March 1996 to examine situation in the Great Lakes region and believed that the international community needed to work towards establishing all encompassing measures to resolve the problems. Economic development alone could not prevent the flow of refugees. Respect for human rights and responsible conduct in public affairs needed to go hand in hand with the implementation of any economic measures, and political action must be coordinated with measures to aid any repatriation effort.

EIGIL PEDERSEN, representative of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, said the political process must be kept distinct from humanitarian assistance to alleviate suffering. Issues of asylum, assistance and protection were humanitarian, not political. Governments had to preserve the clarity of humanitarian actions in order to provide for the needs of present and future generations of refugees. However, in order to achieve this goal, the international community must take a more comprehensive approach to today's humanitarian crises, an approach that encompassed concern for justice, security, political and economic interest alongside humanitarian considerations.

The rapid and continuing deterioration of the situation in the Great Lakes region represented the most serious development since the genocide in Rwanda in 1994, and it required effective action on the part of the international community, he said. As events had developed over the past few days, it had become clearer than ever that humanitarian action could not be used as a substitute for other measures. Halting the conflict and finding a solution to the political problems was a matter for the international community of States. Therefore, the International Federation called upon the international community to make every diplomatic effort to halt the current fighting, to seek political solutions that could stabilize the situation and to use all means available to ensure the security and well-being of the affected peoples.

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