SECRETARY-GENERAL WELCOMES REGIONAL EFFORTS TO SOLVE PROBLEM OF FORCED DISPLACEMENT IN GREAT LAKES REGION

Press Release
SG/SM/6557
REF/1161

SECRETARY-GENERAL WELCOMES REGIONAL EFFORTS TO SOLVE PROBLEM OF FORCED DISPLACEMENT IN GREAT LAKES REGION

Following is the text of remarks by Secretary-General Kofi Annan at a regional meeting on refugee issues in the Great Lakes Region, in Kampala, on 9 May:

I was in Kigali yesterday, the capital of a nation where some of the most tragic events of modern history occurred only a few years ago. As we recall those sombre days, and humbly attempt to learn lessons from the mistakes we made, we should not forget that the Rwandan genocide is at the origin of another tragedy: the flight of millions of people, refugees and genocidaires alike -- the latter using the former as a pawn and a shield.

Although most Rwandan refugees have now returned home, this region is still grappling with the consequences of that biblical exodus. Elsewhere, peace still eludes the people of Burundi, and thousands of Burundi refugees remain in exile. Unrest in other areas, particularly in the Kivu provinces of eastern Congo, threatens to cause further displacement of innocent victims.

Let me therefore say, at the outset, that your discussions are timely and important. As I said in my report to the Security Council on Africa, "the time is long past when anyone could claim ignorance about what was happening in Africa or what was needed to achieve progress". Things are changing fast. There is clearly a new, strong determination by Africans to take the future of the continent into their own hands and to find solutions to their problems. We should encourage this trend and be encouraged by it.

We all know how dramatic and divisive the refugee problem has been in this region in the last few years. Thousands of men, women and children have been the unwitting actors of some of the worst man-made catastrophes the world has seen since the Second World War -- humanitarian defeats, but even more so, defeats for all humanity. I find it therefore an extremely positive sign that thanks to your governments' willingness to support the joint efforts of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), ministries from the countries in the Great Lakes region have gathered in this room to seek solutions to the problem of forced displacement. I hope that from your open and frank discussions, new ideas and proposals will emerge. We should not say or hear any more that refugee problems in the Great Lakes region are "intractable". We should not see any more refugees being taken hostage by those whose interest is to instigate violence and to create instability.

I am pleased to be with you today; I do consider my brief participation in your meeting an important event in my trip. I would like to thank President Museveni for offering to host this meeting, and both Mrs. Ogata and Dr. Salim for planning, preparing and convening it. To be meaningful, however, your discussions should not remain an isolated event. Displacement problems can be addressed positively and permanently only if they are part of wider ranging solutions in the areas of peace and security and of economic development. In this respect, let me make three points:

First, I wish to express my firm support for the effort to reaffirm the principles of refugee law and to make them "converge" -- to use Mrs. Ogata's term -- with the concerns and interests of States. It is essential that Africa upholds the spirit of the OAU Refugee Convention -- but in so doing, that no harm should be caused to the security, economic development, and natural environment of States.

Second, it is essential to establish a firm link between your own discussions on the need to maintain the civilian character of refugee settlements, and the wider debate on peace and security in the region and beyond. The international community did not provide adequate military resources to separate refugees from genocidaires in the Kivu camps between 1994 and 1996. The consequences of this failed separation are still being felt in some countries in Central Africa. Because of it, humanitarian intervention has often been blocked by security concerns. Humanitarian assistance, on the other hand, has at times become an involuntary cause of insecurity -- a tool of war, as some have said. This must not occur again. Humanitarian agencies should not be expected to address and resolve problems which require political and military responses -- such as the separation of refugees from military elements, militiamen and terrorists.

In my report to the Security Council, I have firmly recommended that the issue of demilitarization of refugee camps be addressed as a matter of urgency, if necessary through the establishment of multinational military intervention mechanisms. It is furthermore essential that the problem of those who are found not to be refugees be resolved in ways that are both just and humane. And let me add that humanitarian action will also be ineffective or even counterproductive, unless other important security issues, such as the illegal flow of arms and the use of landmines, are addressed very urgently by the international community.

Third, it is also essential that your discussions contribute to the wider debate on reconstruction and development. No solution to refugee problems -- no solution to the conflicts in this region, I should say -- will be durable without development. Many countries represented in this meeting are in the most difficult phase -- the phase which follows a conflict. There is a necessity to link the emergency rehabilitation required to address their urgent needs -- rebuilding schools, for example -- with long-term development -- establishing effective education systems, to use the same example. I am very pleased to note that you are discussing reintegration of returnees and rehabilitation of refugee-affected areas. The United Nations will continue to work in two directions: one, try to mobilize resources for this transition phase -- often overlooked by donors; and two, establish a fuller coordination between humanitarian and development actors.

In concluding, let me once again thank the organizers for having invited me, but also -- and especially -- let me thank the governments in the region for having accepted the invitation of Mrs. Ogata and Dr. Salim. The high profile of all delegations shows the interest and commitment of your governments. I am eager to follow up on the conclusions of your meeting with you in other, broader forums. I wish you well in your discussions.

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