Somali refugee survivors land on Malta beach, 7 reported dead
Briefing Notes, 8 May 2012
This is a summary of what was said by UNHCR spokesperson Adrian Edwards – to whom quoted text may be attributed – at the press briefing, on 8 May 2012, at the Palais des Nations in Geneva.
Exhausted survivors from a boat carrying Somali refugees that landed on one of Malta's most popular beaches this weekend have told UNHCR that five men and two women aboard perished during the week-long voyage from Libya.
The boat came ashore at Riviera Bay on Saturday carrying 90 people, and the emergency services were alerted by families spending the evening at the beach.
This is the fourth-such boat to have arrived in Malta this year, bringing a total of some 210 people. A further 45 boats have arrived in Italy, of which 26 originated from Libya and the rest from other destinations including Greece and Turkey. According to our regional office in Italy the latest deaths bring the number of reported or confirmed dead among people attempting to reach Europe from Libya to 81 this year – or two people every three days on average.
Compared to last year, which saw tens of thousands of people travelling from Tunisia and Libya, the number of arrivals in Malta and Italy from North Africa is down, with around 1400 people having arrived in 2012, most in Italy.
Last year an estimated 1500 people were reported missing or dead attempting to reach Europe.
UNHCR reiterates its call to ship masters in the Mediterranean for heightened vigilance and continued adherence to the longstanding maritime obligation of aiding those in distress.
Tens of thousands of Somalis are fleeing conflict and drought into Djibouti, Ethiopia and Kenya.
Somalia's Hawa Aden Mohamed wins Nansen Refugee Award
Hawa Aden Mohamed, a former refugee whose visionary work has transformed the lives of thousands of displaced Somali women and girls, is the winner of the 2012 Nansen Refugee Award. Widely known as "Mama" Hawa, she is the founder and director of an ambitious education programme in Galkayo, Somalia, that helps women and girls secure their rights, develop vital skills and play a more active role in society. View a slideshow of Mama Hawa's work at the Galkayo Education Centre for Peace and Development, which offers literacy courses and vocational training as well as food and other forms of humanitarian relief to internally displaced people [IDP].
Somalia's Hawa Aden Mohamed wins Nansen Refugee Award
Photo Essay: Dollo Ado, a Year After the Somalia Famine
In mid-2011, Dollo Ado was at the heart of a refugee crisis as a wave of Somalis facing violence and starvation at home trekked through the desert to seek safety in the small, remote border town in eastern Ethiopia. Many arrived exhausted, sick and emaciated, often carrying weak or dying children.
To deal with the mass influx, UNHCR and the Ethiopian government built three new refugee camps. The agency and its partners also set up critical nutrition programmes in the camps. Large-scale water, sanitation and hygiene programmes, combined with mass vaccinations and other public health measures, saved numerous lives.
One year on, the malnutrition rates among children have begun to stabilize. The number of new arrivals, although steady due to continued violence and poor rains, has dwindled and many people have moved from tents into semi-permanent housing. UNHCR's main focus is to improve lives in the camp by launching livelihood programmes and environmental projects for refugees and the host communities.
Today, the Dollo Ado area hosts five camps, with a total population of nearly 170,000 refugees. Several hundred new refugees arrive from Somalia every week. While the population of the newest camp, Buramino, is reaching 30,000, UNHCR and the government have agreed on the location for a sixth camp.
Photo Essay: Dollo Ado, a Year After the Somalia Famine
Tanzanian refugees return to Zanzibar
The UN refugee agency has successfully completed the voluntary repatriation of 38 Tanzanian refugees from Zanzibar who had been residing in the Somalia capital, Mogadishu, for more than a decade. The group, comprising 12 families, was flown on two special UNHCR-chartered flights from Mogadishu to Zanzibar on July 6, 2012. From there, seven families were accompanied back to their home villages on Pemba Island, while five families opted to remain and restart their lives on the main Zanzibar island of Unguja. The heads of households were young men when they left Zanzibar in January 2001, fleeing riots and violence following the October 2000 elections there. They were among 2,000 refugees who fled from the Tanzanian island of Pemba. The remainder of the Tanzanian refugee community in Mogadishu, about 70 people, will wait and see how the situation unfolds for those who went back before making a final decision on their return.
Tanzanian refugees return to Zanzibar
Somalia: More than a Living
Grants from UNHCR provide a lifeline to help displaced Somali families start small businesses.
Somalia: Saving Lives
Donor support for a specialized maternity-child clinic helps save the live of displaced Somali mothers.
Somalia: On the Run
Thousands of people have fled the port city of Kismayo in Somalia, and despite the departure of the militants, many are choosing not to return.
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