At least 138 Tanzanians are in refugee camps in
Rwanda after being mistakenly sent there in course of the ongoing
deportation of illegal immigrants, the Legal and Human Rights Center
(LHRC) has reported, blaming it on ‘hatred by some ward executives and
other local government leaders’.
“We have sent our team to Rwanda to assess the situation and according to preliminary information from the victims it seems that Ward executives and other local leaders are responsible for their wrongful deportation due to various reasons including personal misunderstandings between them and the victims…” LHRC Executive Director Dr Helen Kijo Bisimba announced yesterday in Dar es Salaam.
She was speaking during the commemoration of the Centre’s 18th anniversary where she revealed that the dispatched officers are reporting that the victims are in two separate camps, 81 in the first camp and 57 in a second camp.
“As we know these victims own properties which they earned over a long time so before forcing them to leave the country there is need to have reliable evidence that they are really illegal immigrants,” she said adding: “…and even if they are illegal immigrants still, we need to settle the issue of their belongings.’’
However, Home Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Isaack Nantanga has denied any knowledge of the report, but nonetheless, he promised to look into it and if found to be correct, the victims will be brought back home.
“The operation did not intend to torture or make room for personal vengeance… so if it will be discovered that some people are using the operation for personal gains, then the government will not hesitate to take strict legal steps against them,’’ he said.
The first phase of operation ‘Kimbunga’ ended on September 20 this year with 194 illegal immigrants declared stateless citizens after the country they claimed to belong refused them entry.
The commander of the operation to weed out illegal immigrants, Assistant Commissioner of Police, Simon Sirro in a statement last week conceded that although the operation was partly successful but his team faced major difficulties in tracking the illegal immigrants because of the lack of national IDs.
He confirmed the alleged personal vendettas, saying there were instances of malice where neighbours issued false reports of illegal immigrants against legitimate citizens.
Since its establishment, LHRC has been a leader in educating the public on their legal and civil rights, fighting against human violence, monitoring various elections in the country and is a key monitor of the ongoing constitution review.
“ However, we have faced our share of challenges, from threats to actual abductions and torture of our colleagues…some people interpret us as biased with self interest but that is far from the truth,’’ Dr Bisimba said.
LHRC Board Chairperson, Bishop Dr.Elinaza Sendoro urged wananchi, especially youth, to fight for human rights and be ambassadors of human rights. He urged government leaders to fight against corruption which he identified as the main source of human rights violations.
“We have sent our team to Rwanda to assess the situation and according to preliminary information from the victims it seems that Ward executives and other local leaders are responsible for their wrongful deportation due to various reasons including personal misunderstandings between them and the victims…” LHRC Executive Director Dr Helen Kijo Bisimba announced yesterday in Dar es Salaam.
She was speaking during the commemoration of the Centre’s 18th anniversary where she revealed that the dispatched officers are reporting that the victims are in two separate camps, 81 in the first camp and 57 in a second camp.
“As we know these victims own properties which they earned over a long time so before forcing them to leave the country there is need to have reliable evidence that they are really illegal immigrants,” she said adding: “…and even if they are illegal immigrants still, we need to settle the issue of their belongings.’’
However, Home Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Isaack Nantanga has denied any knowledge of the report, but nonetheless, he promised to look into it and if found to be correct, the victims will be brought back home.
“The operation did not intend to torture or make room for personal vengeance… so if it will be discovered that some people are using the operation for personal gains, then the government will not hesitate to take strict legal steps against them,’’ he said.
The first phase of operation ‘Kimbunga’ ended on September 20 this year with 194 illegal immigrants declared stateless citizens after the country they claimed to belong refused them entry.
The commander of the operation to weed out illegal immigrants, Assistant Commissioner of Police, Simon Sirro in a statement last week conceded that although the operation was partly successful but his team faced major difficulties in tracking the illegal immigrants because of the lack of national IDs.
He confirmed the alleged personal vendettas, saying there were instances of malice where neighbours issued false reports of illegal immigrants against legitimate citizens.
Since its establishment, LHRC has been a leader in educating the public on their legal and civil rights, fighting against human violence, monitoring various elections in the country and is a key monitor of the ongoing constitution review.
“ However, we have faced our share of challenges, from threats to actual abductions and torture of our colleagues…some people interpret us as biased with self interest but that is far from the truth,’’ Dr Bisimba said.
LHRC Board Chairperson, Bishop Dr.Elinaza Sendoro urged wananchi, especially youth, to fight for human rights and be ambassadors of human rights. He urged government leaders to fight against corruption which he identified as the main source of human rights violations.
SOURCE:
THE GUARDIAN
