francene--blog. Year 2013
  • Home
  • Blog

14th Sept

9/14/2013

 
Picture
Amnesty International has denounced the forcible eviction of tens of thousands of homeless people from makeshift camps in the Somali capital, Mogadishu.

The human rights group says the process has led to large-scale human rights abuses. Some 370,000 people have been living in the camps, having fled drought, famine and fighting.

Badbaado, the refugee camp located outside of Mogadishu, Somalia, formed as a result of the 2011 East Africa drought and famine, and houses roughly 30,000 refugees.

Food aid is available for refugees there, but its supply has been tenuous due to the policies of al-Shabab. The limited access to food has been a source of violence in the camp, and there has also been looting by freelance militias and government forces. Due to the unsafe conditions, some refugees have fled Badbaado to seek other camps.

Now, the makeshift camps and tent cities in Mogadishu are hampering the government's drive to relocate hundreds of thousands of displaced people to camps on the outskirts so they can rebuild the city.

The Amnesty report says the relocation plan could have been a positive development if it had respected the security, fundamental rights and basic needs of displaced people.

However, the government plan proved to be inherently flawed and seems to have resulted in large-scale human rights abuses and forced evictions.


Picture
In March, Human Right Watch said displaced women in Mogadishu were reporting being gang-raped in the camps. The groups said managers of the camps—often allied to militias—were siphoning off food and other aid.

Some residents told Amnesty bulldozers had flattened their shelters, destroying their possessions and leaving them with nowhere to go.

On 21 August, Amnesty delegates visited the area. They saw evidence of a large number of shelters having been recently destroyed.

This world is so unequal. The place where we are born decides how our life will be mapped out. Even if motivational leaders lectured these displaced refugees, the audience faces little hope of achieving greatness. I guess, they can strive for their potential—be the best they can be, love their neighbor and tread the path their birth set them on to the end. If only we who have plenty in comparison could share what we had. I can't see any way of helping these people.


Sojourner link
9/13/2013 08:25:44 pm

The world is indeed unequal. There are so many things that we take for granted in the west, by mere fact of the fortunate locations we happened to be born in.
I feel like I've heard similar stories of people living in camps that have been destroyed by the government in India and Kenya as well. It's heartbreaking.

Francene Stanley link
9/14/2013 03:10:32 am

We should be a lot more thankful for our situation than we are, given these conditions in the rest of the world.

Sophie Bowns link
9/13/2013 10:00:11 pm

In all fairness, I don't think that the world will ever be equal. There will always be poverty, because it's an ever growing problem.

Francene Stanley link
9/14/2013 03:11:26 am

In all UNfairness, you mean. ;-)

Alana link
9/14/2013 09:45:55 am

It's sad, and it's frightening, because it could happen to any of us, if the events of history are not in our favor.

Francene Stanley link
9/14/2013 07:11:17 pm

What with one thing and another, including some people's greed, none of us are really safe.


Comments are closed.

    Author

    Francene Stanley, author of many published novels. If you like my writing, why not consider purchasing one of my books? You'll see them on the sidebar below.
    Born in Australia, I moved to Britain half way through my long life.

    Picture

    Archives

    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013

    RSS Feed

    Categories

    All
    Catastrophe
    Creativity
    Family
    Life Experiences
    Mother
    News
    Novel Writing
    Novel-writing
    Retirement
    World

    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
Photo used under Creative Commons from Parker Knight