Military

DATE=1/26/03

TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT

TITLE=U-N-H-C-R/RWANDA REFUGEES (L-O)

NUMBER=2-298824

BYLINE=LISA SCHLEIN

DATELINE=GENEVA

CONTENT=

VOICED AT:

INTRO: The U-N refugee agency says it is making arrangements for the voluntary return of more than five-thousand Rwandan refugees living in camps in western Zambia. Lisa Schlein in Geneva reports that the agency has signed an agreement with the Zambian and Rwandan governments, making the repatriation possible.

TEXT: The U-N refugee agency says it is shifting its repatriation policy to actively promote refugees to return to Rwanda.

U-N-H-C-R spokeswoman Millicent Mutuli says the agency believes it is safe for the Rwandan refugees to return home. She notes there have been no reports that any of the more than one-million Rwandans who have returned home during the past few years have been persecuted.

/// MUTULI ACT ///

There have not been persecutions. We do not have such reports. We have had the return of some 20-thousand Rwandan refugees from Tanzania, just in December. And, again, there are no reports. I think there is a strong indication that people can return home, and there are no repercussions on their return.

/// END ACT ///

The U-N refugee agency expects to begin repatriating the refugees in April. In anticipation of this, it is launching an information campaign to inform refugees of the agency's plans.

Ms. Mutuli says the Rwandans will be told about travel arrangements and what they can expect to receive in terms of assistance in Rwanda.

In addition, she says, U-N-H-C-R will arrange for refugee leaders in the Zambian camps to visit Rwanda so they can make informed decisions about their return. She says the agency will bring returnees to the camps to tell the refugees what they will find when they get home.

/// MUTULI 2nd ACT///

It is a necessary to-ing and fro-ing because we need to build confidence. Often times refugees have information based on hearsay. A lot of times it is inaccurate. Sometimes there are people who do not have an interest to go back and who are giving stories that do not depict the actual situation on the ground. We do not want to give information that refugees might dismiss as propaganda.

/// END ACT///

Many of the Rwandan refugees arrived in Zambia more than seven-years ago in the wake of the 1994 Rwandan genocide. That tragic event killed an estimated one-half million people and led another two-million to flee into neighboring countries.

There are up to 60-thousand Rwandan refugees scattered in countries throughout the African continent. U-N-H-C-R spokeswoman Mutuli says the agency hopes to run simultaneous repatriation operations from several countries. She says U-N officials are talking to the Ugandan government about returning Rwandan refugees. (SIGNED)

NEB/LS/ALW/RAE