Those cannibals come to Somalia to beg in our streets and we deported them daily
Puntland, Somaliland act on migrants, IDPs
Mohamed Amin Jibril/IRIN
HARGEISA/NAIROBI, 14 September 2011
Authorities in Somalia's self-declared independent Republic of Somaliland have given a month's notice to an estimated 80,000 illegal immigrants - mostly Ethiopian - to leave the region.
"After evaluating the status of the illegal immigrants, we realized that these people have no benefits for the country; on the contrary, they are a problem in terms of security," said Osman Garad Sofe, Somaliland's Deputy Interior Minister. "For this reason, the government of Somaliland has given a month's notice to all illegal immigrants to leave the country. Those who do not leave will face legal charges and be deported."
Sofe told a news conference in Hargeisa, the Somaliland capital, that those targeted did not include registered refugees or Somalis displaced from the larger Somalia.
Ahmed Elmi Barre, the director-general in the ministry, said: "We recognize only 1,772 Ethiopian refugees out of 80,000 to 90,000 illegal immigrants in Somaliland. And the decision will affect those of every nationality living in Somaliland illegally."
Ibrahim Bulshaale, chairman of the Organization of Ethiopian Refugees in Somaliland, told IRIN: "Fewer than 2,000 Ethiopians are recognized by Somaliland; most of these arrived in 1991 while others came in the 2000s. In 2006, Somaliland informed UNHCR [UN Refugee Agency] that it did not have the capacity to host any more refugees; for this reason, no asylum seekers are accepted any more in Somaliland. The process of seeking asylum started at the Ministry of Interior and the ministry has already closed its doors to any more refugees. Those who are recognized as refugees have legal cards identifying them as members of our organization."
An Ethiopian immigrant, Mohamed Ali, 20, who works as a car-washer in Hargeisa, said many Ethiopians in the region were from Oromia, which is badly affected by an ongoing drought that has undermined livelihoods.
"Because of the drought, many of us had nothing to eat and nothing to do; when we came to Somaliland, we found that life is better, we can survive," Ali said. "Now the Somaliland government says it does not want us, what can I do? I will simply obey and leave."