PRESS BRIEFING BY UNHCR

28 April 1997

Press Briefing

PRESS BRIEFING BY UNHCR

19970428 FOR INFORMATION OF UNITED NATIONS SECRETARIAT ONLY

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Sadako Ogata, this afternoon said that the Alliance of Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Congo-Zaire had given UNHCR 60 days in which to repatriate the estimated 80,000 Rwandan refugees that recently disappeared from encampments south of Kisangani, Zaire.

Speaking at a press briefing at Headquarters, Ms. Ogata said the Alliance had also agreed to undertake a commission of inquiry into allegations of human rights abuses in territory under its control. Antonio Monteiro, Permanent Representative of Portugal and President of the Security Council for the month of April, also took part in the briefing.

Ms. Ogata said she had briefed the Secretary-General and the Security Council this morning on the situations in eastern Zaire and in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The last time she had briefed the Council had been six months and three days ago, when fighting had dislodged some 1 million Rwandan Hutu refugees from dozens of camps in eastern Zaire. Today, some 1.2 million refugees had returned to Rwanda from Zaire and the United Republic of Tanzania, but the plight of those remaining in Zaire was precarious.

Ms. Ogata went onto say that she had informed the Council of discussions that UNHCR carried out with Laurent Kabila, leader of the Alliance, and with representatives of the European Union. An agreement had been forged whereby UNHCR would regain access to the 80,000 refugees in question, in order to provide humanitarian assistance and secure their repatriation. However, the 60-day deadline imposed by Mr. Kabila presented a daunting task.

There were huge obstacles in assisting the refugees because they were scattered over a wide area, Ms. Ogata said. The UNHCR must have unimpeded and safe access, and there was a vital need for continued pressure on all the parties. The UNHCR had received second-hand reports from many sources of alleged abuse of refugees at camps and in areas near Goma and Bukavu. The abduction of women and children from a paediatric hospital near Bukavu had also been reported. She had personally written to Mr. Kabila about the matter and he had agreed to the dispatch of a mission of human rights investigators.

The Council was also told about repatriation efforts in Bosnia and Herzegovina, which Ms. Ogata had visited two weeks ago, she said. To date, only 25 per cent of 2.2 million refugees from that country had been

repatriated. Ethnic relocation was not a solution for a peaceful and multi- ethnic Bosnia unless relocation was voluntary.

Ms. Ogata stressed the importance of the security of UNHCR civilian humanitarian staff, a matter she said was uppermost in her mind. Her staff was taking greater risks today than ever before. Humanitarian agencies should not be left alone with unresolved political and security problems, she said.

A correspondent asked whether the 60-day period imposed by the Alliance was realistic. Ms. Ogata said that while she doubted that UNHCR could have a substantial repatriation operation under way by 1 May -- the starting date for the 60-day period -- the important thing was to get the programme started. The 60-day deadline might be met, but only if international humanitarian agencies received complete cooperation from the Alliance. To meet the deadline, they would have to repatriate some 1,200 refugees per day -- a scenario she considered unrealistic.

Was Kabila in charge of the Alliance forces around Kisangani or were they under the control of the Rwandese Government or acting on their own? a correspondent asked. Ms. Ogata said Mr. Kabila had been very busy away from Kisangani but had returned to meet with the High Commissioner. The agreement reached had demonstrated that any time UNHCR needed results, it had to deal with him directly.

Asked for the rationale behind the 60-day deadline, Ms. Ogata said she did not know. The Alliance had stated that they wanted to repatriate all refugees. Everyone considered the return of the refugees to be the best solution. The question was how would they be returned, and how safely.

Had the UNHCR received credible reports of the execution of refugees? a correspondent asked. Ms. Ogata said she had received a note just moments ago stating that some 5,000 refugees had returned to one of the abandoned camps, where they found the bodies of 20 persons who did not appear to have died of natural causes.

To another question, Ms. Ogata said UNHCR was looking for the bulk of the missing 80,000 refugees in the rainforest between Kisangani and Ubundu. As to whether she expected the Security Council to reconsider the provision of additional multinational assistance to facilitate repatriation, she said that she did not.

Had Ms. Ogata told the Council that a group of Rwandan refugees moving toward Angola should be excluded from refugee protection? a correspondent asked. Ms. Ogata said that as long as they were armed elements, they might be excluded. She did not know their number, nor exactly where they were.

UNHCR Briefing - 3 - 28 April 1997

A correspondent said that over the weekend she had seen television news reports from eastern Zaire depicting healthy-looking young men of fighting age among the refugees. Could it be assumed that those young men -- who had been fed by the international community -- were members of the interahamwe militia? Ms. Ogata said she had heard of a concentration of young men some 25 kilometres south of Kisangani but did not know who they were.

Responding to a question about the Security Council's reaction to this morning's briefing, Mr. Monteiro said it had heard her message and would do everything it could to enable UNHCR to do its work in eastern Zaire.

Asked what would happen between now and 1 May, Ms. Ogata said a UNHCR mission had travelled to the region and was searching for the missing refugees. All the UNHCR warehouses had been looted, as had its makeshift hospitals. "There's not a trace of medical equipment left" she said. "It's a frantic exercise."

Was the Rwandan Government cooperating in the return of the refugees? a correspondent asked. Ms. Ogata said the Rwandan President, Prime Minister and Vice President had confirmed their support for the effort. However, the security situation in western Rwanda was fragile, so there was some concern over the repatriation. Beside the 80,000 refugees that had recently disappeared south of Kisangani, another estimated 170,000 Rwandan refugees were still missing from other camps. When added to the 40,000 Burundian refugees that were somewhere in Zaire, that came to a total of 300,000 refugees missing in the country.

Asked how the UNHCR could prevent the theft of medical supplies and food, Ms. Ogata said it did not have anyone who could pursue the thieves. As to whether the agency expected more than verbal support from the Council, she said verbal support was important because it helped mobilized the political will of States. To this, Mr. Monteiro added that UNHCR enjoyed the Council's full support. The Council was willing to do everything it could, but was realistic about what tools it might use, he said.

To another question, Ms. Ogata said she had not discussed with the Council the possibility of forming a multinational force for Zaire.

For many years, the UNHCR had shipped provisions into camps controlled by the Rwandan militias in Goma, a correspondent said. In retrospect, should it have closed the original camps? Ms. Ogata said an attempt had been made to separate the armed elements but the agency lacked the means to do so. It had always sought to maintain the civilian character of camps, but it had been in a very undesirable situation. If she had it to do over again, she would have liked to disarm the militias; but in July 1994, some 2,000 people were dying from cholera in those camps every day, so there was little that could have been done. In future, it was hoped that UNHCR would have an enhanced ability to separate armed elements.

UNHCR Briefing - 4 - 28 April 1997

Ms. Ogata went on to say that the Rwandan refugee camps in Tanzania had been closed on the agreement of the Tanzanian and Rwandan Government. The refugees in Tanzania had also been under the control of the Hutu political leadership, but the Tanzanian Government had intervened. Repatriation was often the "least worst" option. In Burundi, UNHCR was not helping refugees return, because the situation there was more serious than in Rwanda.

Asked how the refugees survived in the rainforest, Ms. Ogata said the rainforest was very rich. The refugees were living on wild bananas and had also "borrowed" crops grown by local Zairians. The power of human beings to survive was very strong, she added.

To a question about the deadline set by the Alliance, Mr. Monteiro said that the Council considered the declaration of terms by Kabila to be unacceptable.

Asked for a comment on the mission to Zaire by United States Permanent Representative Bill Richardson, Ms. Ogata said that she had high expectations. Mr. Richardson had freed many hostages in past, and she hoped he would be successful in Zaire.

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