Somali refugees at Ifo-extension, situated in Dadaab. A report indicates that refugees are under pressure to return home (Photo/nation.co.ke)A research report by Amnesty International has revealed that Somali refugees have been under pressure to go back to their motherland.
According to a local daily, United Nations Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi said that refugees who are leaving the camp are doing so on their own volition.The report, Not Time to Go Home, indicates that the refugees have opted to leave the camp because they fear being attack by officials from the government. The refugees have also been compelled to leave because of food rationing and security-related issues as stated in the report.
The head of refugee and migrants rights at Amnesty International Charmain Mohamed said that the refugees are not ready to leave but the conditions have become unbearable.
He added that the security situation in the nation (Somali) is still pathetic.
"In its zeal to return refugees the Kenyan government has made much of small security improvements in Somalia, but the grim reality is that many parts of the country are still plagued by violence and poverty," he said, as quoted by the local daily.
The report comes at a time when the national government has been rooting for the repatriation of the refugees from the camp.