Let refugees Drown, It’s Better In The Long Run
Countries around the world are coming up with new policies to save themselves from a growing problem that insecurity has caused: the refugee situation. Kenya itself has demanded that the UNHCR shut down the quarter century old Daadab Refugee camp citing that it is ‘ A nursery school for Al Shabaab.’ This decision has been met with mixed reactions from Kenyans and the international community, nearly half saying it wouldn’t be right for us to turn away future refugees and kick out those currently here; the other side saying that if the camp keeps growing at the rate it has, the number of terror attacks within our borders will also grow.
“We have asked the UNHCR to relocate the refugees in three months, failure to which we shall relocate them ourselves,” Deputy President William Ruto , Kenya.
Further North another controversial decision is being contested- the decision to cease all rescue operations in the Mediterranean by the EU late last year. Earlier this week an estimated 700 migrants drowned when the boat they were crossing the Mediterranean in capsized. The Italian Coast Guard launched rescue operations on Sunday but as we write, only 28 survivors had been found and 24 bodies recovered.
“The scale of what is happening in the Mediterranean isn’t an accident, it’s a direct result of our policy. How many more innocent children and their families must die before our leaders act?” Justin Forsyth CEO, Save The Children.
It is hard to argue with the argument that Save The Children puts forth. More than 1750 immigrants have died since the start of the year according to the International Council For Migration. 30 times more than during the same period last year. So why did they withdraw from the policy that has been responsible for saving thousands of lives?
“We understand that by withdrawing this rescue cover we will be leaving innocent children, women and men to drown who we would otherwise have saved. But eventually word will get around the war-torn communities of Syria and Libya and the other unstable nations of the region that we are indeed leaving innocent children, women and men to drown. And when it does, they will think twice about making the journey. And so eventually, over time, more lives will be saved.” Foreign Office minister, Lady Anelay UK.
So essentially the accident in the Mediterranean could also be termed a massacre because it seems to be exactly what a large number of EU governments wanted to happen. A large number of deaths that will (hopefully) discourage more immigrants from making the crossing away from their war torn nations towards what seems like a better life but often leads to death. When we look at the policy implemented in the Mediterranean we see a lot of similarities between the EU decision late last year and Kenya’s own barely weeks ago.
The forced repatriation of Somali refugees back to Somalia might not only lead to more rampant radicalization of camp youth but also to a large loss of life. There’s a reason why they left their homes and came here and there’s a reason why despite the harsh reality of camp life the camp’s numbers of 350,000 people keep growing. Simon Allison, a writer for the South Africa based Daily Maverik, calls the Daadab refugees ‘convenient scapegoats’. Scapegoats who have been chosen to show that Kenya has made a real effort in the war on terror and scapegoats who once forcibly returned to Somalia will face real threats to their lives and freedoms. Will Kenya someday in the near future cringe as it hears news of mass deaths in Somalia after Daadab was closed down or will the government conveniently paint over it as the EU has with this recent event?
Only time will tell.
