UNHCR PRESENTS BOSNIA REPATRIATION PLAN

17 January 1996

Press Release
REF/1131

UNHCR PRESENTS BOSNIA REPATRIATION PLAN

19960117 GENEVA, 16 January (UNHCR) -- The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Sadako Ogata, today unveiled plans for the return of more than 2 million refugees and displaced people in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Details of the repatriation were presented at a meeting of the Humanitarian Issues Working Group of the International Conference on the Former Yugoslavia. Ms. Ogata, who chairs the Working Group, said that, in many ways, consolidating the peace would be even more challenging than UNHCR's efforts over the past four years to provide over 1 million tons of humanitarian aid in the middle of a brutal war.

"During these past four years, as my office struggled against all odds to deliver humanitarian aid in the midst of conflict, what motivated us was the thought that, one day, we would be able to provide durable solutions to these innocent victims of war", she said. "That day has finally come. Ironical as it may seem, our work in this time of peace will, in many ways, be more complex than it was in war. The obstacles ahead are enormous ..."

Some 40 governments and 20 agencies were invited to the one-day meeting, which also focused on the future of hundreds of thousands of people from the former Yugoslavia currently being given temporary refuge in several European nations.

The UNHCR, which, under Annex 7 of the Dayton Peace Accords, is responsible for the repatriation of refugees and the displaced, has been the lead humanitarian agency in the former Yugoslavia since 1991. This year, its operations will undergo a transition from relief and assistance to the return and reintegration of refugees and internally displaced people. The High Commissioner warned, however, that refugees will return only if it is safe, and if they have something to return to.

In all, an estimated 2 million Bosnians have been forced form their homes by the war. About half of them remain displaced within Bosnia and Herzegovina itself, and another 1 million are refugees within the region of the former Yugoslavia or elsewhere in Europe. The UNHCR plans a phased and orderly voluntary return programme which would focus on three broad categories of returnees:

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-- An estimated 1 million internally displaced people currently inside Bosnia and Herzegovina, many of whom live in extremely difficult condition;

-- More than half a million refugees from Bosnia and Herzegovina currently living in Croatia (187,000), the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (450,000), Slovenia (24,000) and The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (7,000); and

-- Some of the estimated 700,000 people from the former Yugoslavia and currently under temporary protection in other countries, primarily in Europe. The UNHCR is working with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) to get accurate details about these people and to gauge their desire to return.

The UNHCR is asking asylum countries to maintain temporary protection for people from the former Yugoslavia until three conditions are clearly met:

-- The implementation of the military provisions of the Dayton Peace Agreement;

-- The proclamation of an amnesty for crimes other than serious violations of international humanitarian law or common crimes unrelated to the conflict; and

-- The establishment and full operation of various mechanisms aimed at the protection of human rights.

In addition, the UNHCR believes that solid progress and participation in planned elections scheduled for no later than September would provide a good indication that things are going in the right direction for a return.

The UNHCR has also emphasized the need for continuing international protection for certain categories of people, including those with a well- founded fear of persecution in the sense of the 1951 Refugee Convention; people who have suffered particularly severe or traumatic persecution; and stateless people.

A detailed cost breakdown of UNHCR's 1996 regional programme, including repatriation, will be provided in a new financial appeal expected in late February. Preliminary estimates of UNHCR's budget for this year range from $300 million to $400 million for all of the former Yugoslavia. The UNHCR has received solid support for its programmes in the former Yugoslavia, and Ms. Ogata made particular mention of the contribution made by the European Commission Humanitarian Office (ECHO).

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No large, organized returns are expected until spring. Skilled people needed to help in the reconstruction -- doctors, engineers, technicians and other professionals -- are being encouraged to return as soon as possible.

The planning figures for 1996 assumed that some 870,000 people may need help in returning to or relocating within Bosnia and Herzegovina during the year. This would include 500,000 of the estimated 1 million internally displaced; 170,000 from other republics of the former Yugoslavia; and 200,000 from Europe and other countries. To help these people make an informed decision on returning, the UNHCR is establishing an information network within the region, as well as in other countries of asylum that will provide accurate details on specific conditions in their chosen destinations.

The UNHCR and IOM will work with asylum countries to make transport arrangements for returnees. The majority of those returning from outside the region are expected to travel by air. It is recommended that governments in asylum countries cover the transport costs and consider providing a cash installation grant that should be uniform for all returnees and which will be discussed in future consultations with the UNHCR. Reception/transport points will be established in the region, where returnees will be registered before onward road transportation to their final destination.

Once home, returnees will be eligible for continuing assistance from the UNHCR, and their reintegration will be closely monitored, particularly minorities. Although it will gradually be reduced, the provision of humanitarian aid -- food and non-food items -- will remain a major component of UNHCR's programme in Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1996. The planned number of beneficiaries this year is set at 2.77 million, which includes 2.4 million current beneficiaries within Bosnia itself, and 370,000 expected returnees from neighbouring republics and other asylum countries. The existing food target of 23,000 metric tons per month for Bosnia and Herzegovina will continue at least through March, and the UNHCR will continue to maintain 231 collective centres currently housing thousands of displaced people.

While awaiting the implementation of large-scale reconstruction projects by other international agencies such as the World Bank, the UNHCR will set aside up to $30 million to establish a temporary trust fund that will provide emergency shelter assistance to returnees and others. The programme will kick-start the reconstruction effort by promoting the local production of building materials such as bricks, roofing tiles and lumber, which will then be provided to returnees and others so that they can rebuild and weatherproof at least a few rooms in their homes.

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