According to the UN agency, 4 thousand people from different nationalities can’t return to their countries of origin and are trapped in the Libyan borders
Jamil Chade, Estado de São Paulo – July 02, 2011.
(Translated by Julia Mandil)
Brazil has accepted the UN request to receive Libyan refugees. The government will be able to provide refuge for those who are considered by the organization “neglected victims of conflict”. They are Sudanese, Ethiopians, Nigerians, Algerians and families from other nationalities that, in face of the chaos of their countries, can’t return and are now trapped in Libya.
“We have indicated (to the UN) that we are willing to study the cases”, said to the newspaper Estado the Executive Secretary of the Ministry of Justice, Luiz Paulo Barreto, President of the National Council for Refugees. According to him, Brazil hasn’t defined yet how many refugees it will receive. “Our commitment is to help. Even if we do not agree with the war”, he said.
Despite accepting the refugees, Barreto is emphatic in criticizing the Europeans position, which, according to him, are bombing Libya and, at the same time, closing their doors to the refugees. “There is an international obligation to help”, he affirmed.
The Representative of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Johannes van der Klaauw, confirmed that he will present the cases to the Brazilian Government next week.
Overall, the NGO Doctors Without Borders estimates that the number of refugees in Libya is of one million people. From that amount, 600 thousand would be foreigners. Many would have already returned to their countries of origin. The UN estimates that 4 thousand people do not have a place to go.
A month ago, the United Nations sent a letter to 20 countries, within them, Brazil, asking for help. Overall, the governments offered to receive about 900 people. “The number is short and we need more collaboration”, said Ven der Klaauw.
In the camps, the reports are of despair. “We are here for months. People lost their families and documents. Now, their beginning to lose reason”, said Emmanuel, a 40 years old refugee from the Democratic Republic of Congo, in statements gathered by the DWB in the refugee camp of Shousha, in the border with Tunisia.
“I stayed four months in prison in Libya and I was frequently beaten. For three weeks I could not stand up. I had to bury seven people, including three pregnant women” said Abdul, from Ivory Coast, refugee in the same camp.
With the arrival of summer, the situation is even worse. The camp is in the middle of the desert, exposed to high temperatures and sand storms, The lack of hygiene starts to worry and violence marks the daily violence marks the camp. In May, protest for better conditions ended with the death of six people.
Jornalista, 44, com mestrado (2011) e doutorado (2015) em Comunicação e Cultura pela UFRJ. É autor de três livros: o primeiro sobre cidadania, direitos humanos e internet, e os dois demais sobre a história da imigração na imprensa brasileira (todos disponíveis em https://amzn.to/3ce8Y6h). Saiba mais: https://gustavobarreto.me/