Charting a Path Forward for Ethiopian Refugees in Somalia
By. Ibrahim Sultan
First
Published on July 14, 2023
Because of fighting
in Ethiopia’s Tigray region, thousands of Ethiopians fled to neighboring
Somalia.
In 2020, when
intense fighting in
Ethiopia’s Tigray region broke out between government forces and the Tigray
People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), thousands of Ethiopians were forced to flee
their country. While some Ethiopian refugees have decided to return home, many
thousands still live in neighboring countries like Sudan and Somalia. While
Sudan became a destination for nearly 60,000 refugees, thousands of Ethiopians
also crossed into the Puntland region in northeastern Somalia.
One local, weaving
through the city’s streets, shared with me, “Don’t you see Ethiopian refugees
pouring into the city? I think there is a conspiracy and buses unload them on
the outskirts.” On probing this rumor further, I found it echoed by other
locals. A wizened local confided, “Someone is directing them via cell phone;
take that road, live in that neighborhood.”
This begs an
intriguing question: why are Somalis so taken aback by these refugees when many
of them have known the tribulations of displacement and asylum for decades?
Countless Somalis are refugees themselves, scattered across Ethiopia, Europe,
and North America. The reason for their flight? It parallels why Ethiopians now
seek shelter in Somalia: human suffering that needs no further philosophizing.
Their exodus is a result of endless wars, famine, drought, climate change, and
political repression. After all, asylum is a universal human right upheld by
international law and customs.
Clutching her
little girl close, one Ethiopian refugee, Fatima, recounted her arduous journey
in a video interview. “If it were not for the war, I would not have come from
my country,” she admitted. In the same video, the Somalis I interviewed were
torn between those extending a warm welcome to refugees and those skeptical of
their burgeoning numbers.
According to data
from the UNHCR, the UN’s refugee agency, “Somalia was host to 35,381 registered
refugees and asylum seekers, mainly from Ethiopia and Yemen.” However, the
actual count likely exceeds this. Cities like Hargeisa, Bosaso, and the capital
Mogadishu have harbored substantial Ethiopian communities for decades. The
majority belong to Ethiopian Muslim ethnicities. While the UNHCR commends Somalia’s
open-door policy for refugees, more work remains to be done.
What fuels Somali
apprehension about Ethiopian refugees? The answer resides in the echoes of
historical conflicts. Long before European colonization, Somali sultanates and tribes had
battled Ethiopia’s expansion toward the Indian Ocean’s shores. Following
independence, two fierce conflicts unfolded between the fledgling Somali
Republic and Ethiopia.
To dissolve this
air of distrust, strengthening community understanding and regional cooperation
through the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), the African
Union, and other institutions, is crucial.
Concerning refugees
from Ethiopia and beyond, what measures must be implemented?
Firstly, legal
matters such as documentation should be settled. Secondly, basic services like
shelter, healthcare, and education should be extended to refugees, in
collaboration with international organizations. Thirdly, refugees and their
representative committees must be given a platform to bring their issues and
priorities into the limelight. Fourthly, fostering local community
participation in volunteer work will aid refugees, welcome them, and help teach
them the Somali language, facilitating their integration into society, since,
physically, there’s little to distinguish the two peoples. Fifthly, caution is
necessary against rhetoric stoking violence against refugees, particularly
those exploited by political parties for their own ends. Sixthly, equipping
refugees with job skills will enable them to contribute to Somalia’s economy.
Lastly, I believe
the intertwining of Somali and Ethiopian societies—accelerated by urbanization,
shared ideas, and intermarriages—can bloom, given a peaceful environment,
public education, and robust law enforcement.
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