The Sudanese government's forcible displacement of Darfur civilians has lead to epic flights across Africa

June 1, 2005

Hundreds of refugees from Darfur are fleeing across Africa in search of protection. The Damanga Coalition for Freedom and Democracy spoke with more than five Darfur refugees who are now struggling to feed themselves in a camp in Ghana. Their stories provide yet more illustrations of the atrocities committed by Sudanese government forces and their allied militias, including those known as the Janjaweed. Unfortunately, their flight also reveals the failure of the United Nations, the African Union, the United States, and the international community, who have failed to stem the brutality of the Sudanese government and provide protection for displaced persons in Darfur and Chad.

Ghana is seen as a safe, stable haven by the refugees interviewed by Damanga. The people of Ghana have generally treated the refugees well, and the U.N. has arranged registration and a camp for refugees. The refugees are thankful for the welcoming from Ghanaians and the assistance of the U.N.

There were 209 Darfur refugees in the Sanzule Krisan Refugee Camp on May 18, Damanga learned in a telephone conversation with Issac Malwal Kulang, who was appointed by other refugees as the general secretary of the camp. Most of these refugees were "recognized" by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) after passing through a screening process, he said.

However, there are problems, said the sources Damanga reached by telephone on May 17, 18, and 19. Residents of the camp are going hungry because they do not receive adequate food rations, and they are denied their rights as refugees to leave the camp to work and to try to locate food. In addition, some 253 Sudanese refugees have been detained by Ghanaian authorities in an old jail that was used to hold slaves in the colonial era.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sudan attacks civilians, who then flee

All the refugees Damanga spoke to fled their homes, and eventually Darfur, because of attacks from government forces and their allied militias, such as the Janjaweed. They said their fellow refugees in Ghana also fled due to attacks or atrocities committed by government forces or the Janjaweed.

Malwal Kulang fled attacks on his home village in South Sudan, arriving at the displaced persons camp in Nyala. There, he was arbitrarily arrested and detained by Sudanese officials for collecting money to help a child rights association. He escaped from jail and fled first to Chad and then to Ghana.

Al Tahir Mohamed Geddu, 35 years old, was one of the first refugees to reach Ghana. In March 2003, he fled the village of Marriga in North Darfur when it was attacked by Sudanese military planes. A joint ground attack of government and Janjaweed soldiers followed the air attack. Many villagers were killed, and survivors were scattered into the surrounding desert. They lost their homes, animals, and all of their possessions. "The government suspected we were rebels," Geddu said, "but I know the people in my village, and we don't have guns." He was a school teacher in the village, which, with 110 or more family huts, was considered to be one of the larger ones in the Medope tribal area.

Geddu, members of his family, and some other villagers initially stayed in the desert, struggling to survive. But the government and Janjaweed "cleansed" the area during the March to May 2003 period, forcing most survivors to flee the region. Geddu fled to Khartoum, where he was arrested, blindfolded, and taken to a secret detention facility in the neighboring city of Omdurman. He managed to get out, and he traveled back through Darfur on his way to Chad, because it was the only way he knew he could flee the country.

Government helicopter gunships and ground forces attacked the village of Tertie, which is near Mistray, a town south of El Geneina in West Darfur. The attack forced 45 year old Koku Bashir Ibraheim, his wife, their four children, and his mother to flee to Chad on 18 May 2004.

Abdullah Muhtahr Yahya Ishaq, a 24 year old farmer, fled on 15 August 2003 from Beida, a town south of El Geneina in West Darfur. Beida was attacked by government aircraft followed by ground forces.

One year later, Khamis Ibrahiam was forced from his home in Terbaiba, a village west of Mistray, by a coordinated government-Janjaweed attack. Janjaweed forces on camel and motor vehicles followed an initial attack by aircraft. Ibrahiam and his wife walked to Chad.

The refugees described indiscriminate attacks that forcibly displaced civilians, which violates both general human rights standards and humanitarian law (laws of war). The fact that this disparate group of refugees from different villages across Darfur all fled attacks or abuses by the government and the Janjaweed is further evidence of the widespread and systematic campaign of human rights violations by the Sudanese government.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Insecurity in Chad and journeys to Ghana

The refugees fled to Chad as the fastest way to escape Sudan and the immediate danger from the government and its allied forces. However, Chad was not a safe haven, due to cooperation between Sudanese and Chadian authorities, as well as incursions across the border. Living conditions were also poor, and aid was insufficient. The government of Chad agreed to deliver Darfur rebel suspects to Sudanese officials, according to Geddu, but "everyone from Darfur is suspect." The refugees felt insecure in Chad, but there were numerous routes out of the country and to Ghana.

Ibrahiam and his wife found no fixed refugee camps where they were in Chad, and they were not allowed to travel to larger towns, so they stayed in villages. Ibrahiam also knew of the Chad-Sudan agreement and was suspicious of the Chadian government returning him to Sudan. He said he feared being associated with a rebel movement and did not feel safe in Chad, so he and his wife walked much of the way to Nigeria. They spent a short time in Gambaru, Nigeria, but did not feel safe there either because of tensions between Muslims and non-Muslims. They took a succession of truck rides to Lagos, Nigeria, then to Kotonue, Benin, and then through Togo to Ghana, arriving 22 September 2004.

Geddu spent one week in Chad before hitching a truck ride to Niamey, Niger. When he arrived, he could not find anyone who he could speak with using Arabic or his limited English. Going hungry, he caught a ride out of Niamey on a truck transporting horses, and he watched the horses in exchange for the ride. He arrived in Ghana on 28 November 2003, wanting to find a safe place where he could build a life. He did not know there were other Sudanese in Ghana or that there was a U.N. office. At first, he lived on the streets and was generally treated well by the local people. When he learned about the existence of the U.N. office in Accra, he registered with it.

Ibraheim traveled from Chad to Tawha, Niger, where he and his family stayed a couple of weeks. They then traveled through Benin and Togo before arriving in Ghana and applying at the U.N. office in Accra on 10 June 2004.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Safety in Ghana but rights deprivations and limited aid bring complaints

Once in Ghana, the refugees Damanga spoke to said that most refugees found their way to the U.N. office in Accra. From there, they were transferred to the Sanzule Krisan Refugee Camp, which they described as one and a half hours east of Takoradi and five to six hours east of Accra. They described a feeling of initial happiness at finding peace and security in Ghana and being decently treated by Ghanaians. While the camp was initially tolerable, the refugees reported that over time, primitive conditions and a lack of refugee rights to movement and work increased the sense of deprivation.

Most fundamentally, they all said they were going hungry, and Geddu said the water supply is "unhealthy." He reported that the refugees receive the following rations on a monthly basis: 3 cups of rice, 1 liter of oil, 3 cups of beans, 3/4 kilo of sugar, 2 cans of sardines, 8 kilos of corn, and a small bag of salt. In addition, he said they receive a quarter of a small bag of coal to cook with and one bar of soap for washing clothes. Refugees are also given one mat and blanket to sleep on when they first arrive. The refugees scavenge for fruits and nuts from the surrounding jungle to supplement their diet.

Because diet and physical conditions are so poor, health problems are multiplying, Geddu said. It rains frequently and the camp is usually wet, and as a result, mosquitoes are constantly present and many people suffer from malaria. Many also apparently suffer from Guinea Worm Disease, an insidious disease where larvae are laid inside the body and cause fever, nausea, and secondary infections, as well as burning pain. The worms eventually emerge through a painful blister on the skin, where they can be slowly extracted. They can be as long as three feet and take up to two months to remove. There is limited local health care available, and the health professionals at the local facility are alarmed at the poor health of the refugees, according Geddu.

All of the refugees Damanga spoke to complained about the lack of Arabic translators.
The little English that some of the refugees do speak has not helped with their efforts to communicate.

Furthermore, they are not allowed to travel or even leave the camp, which violates their refugee rights to movement and work. Even if they are recognized by the U.N., it is illegal for refugees to leave the camp, said Yahya Ishaq. Several refugees emphasized that if they do leave, they can be arrested and jailed. They can only leave with special permission. Being isolated from the larger Ghanaian community makes the refugees feel as though they are in a kind of prison.

The refugees' confinement was emphasized by a recent incident involving eight residents, all recognized by the U.N., who were arrested and detained by Ghanaian authorities. They obtained work in a local salt mine but were arrested at the work site, said Malwal Kulang, the aforementioned general secretary for the refugees in the camp. The salt mine owner was heavily fined, he added.

These eight refugees and 245 others who have not yet been recognized by the U.N. have been detained since 18 May 2005 in a facility that handled slaves in colonial times, said Malwal Kulang. The refugees in this facility are apparently housed in tents. Those who gain recognition by the U.N. are moved to the camp, refugees told Damanga. However, it is unclear what will happen to the eight former Krisan residents who were arrested for working. All the refugees Damanga spoke to decried the arrests and detention by Ghanaian authorities.

Refugees seek greater and better quality aid from the U.N., Damanga was told. They want recognition of their rights to work and movement from Ghanaian authorities. If they could leave the camp and work, they could begin to help support themselves. In the meantime, Abdullah Muhtahr Yahya Ishaq and many other refugees in the Krisan camp ask the U.N. and the international community to consider three simple requests for help. They are as follows:

1. Improvement of the quality and quantity of food aid,
2. Support for medical treatments, and
3. Clean drinking water.