The Sunday Mail
Debra Matabvu
In 1994, Mary (not her real name) fled the infamous Rwandan genocide and sought refuge in Zimbabwe. More than two decades later, Mary is set to return to her native country, a journey, given a choice, she would not embark on. “The journey to Zimbabwe was not easy. I left Rwanda when I was only 19,” she said, shelling a maize cob. And I know returning and settling down in Rwanda will not be easy. It has been 22 years since I left Rwanda, where will I go? What will happen to my children? What does the future hold for me there? Zimbabwe is my home now and Tongogara is my village,” she said.
Mary is among the 240 Rwandan refugees in Zimbabwe set to return to Rwanda this year. This follows the invoking of the cessation clause by United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) which declared Rwanda a conflict-free zone, after years of inter-ethnic conflicts. The cessation targets refugees who fled the country between 1959 and 1996. Like many others in her situation, Mary has her doubts, as the wounds of the conflict are yet to heal. Fear still persists, but it is of a different kind – fear of the unknown.
“I ran away because of ethnic conflict, I feared for my life then. Today I fear the future because it is uncertain. I do not know what it holds,” she said.
“My grandfather had two wives of different tribes, my grandmother was from the Hutu tribe while the other was Tutsi.
“When my grandfather died in 1994, conflict arose over who would control his estate, this was exacerbated by the civil war that followed thereafter. My family decided to leave the area and head to Democratic Republic of Congo. However, before we got there I had separated with my parents and siblings. I do not know if they are still alive.
“When I got to Congo, I got a job as a farm labourer in a town near the border. Shortly thereafter, one of the farm superiors started raping me and he ended up taking me as one of his many wives. After giving birth to two girls. He chased me away and said I was useless. A local pastor helped me, by offering to send me to Zimbabwe.”
Although she had never heard of Zimbabwe, she took her daughters and headed to this unknown destination.
Rwanda has over the last years been declared safe and conflict-free with dozens of its citizens voluntarily going back. Since 2009, several states have been encouraging Rwandan refugees to return to their native country.
At the beginning of the year, the cessation clause came into effect, which means many Rwandan refugees would no longer have the rights, freedoms, and protections guaranteed by international protocols for refugees.
Those who remain in host countries will be treated as illegal immigrants.
Minister for Labour and Social Welfare, Hon Petronella Kagonye, recently indicated that the country was finalising the issue.
“In Zimbabwe, we are in the process of finalising the legal processes of declaring that cessation and we shall issue out a joint statement together with the UNHCR once all the processes are finalised.” Minister Kagonye said.
She said the decision to repatriate the refugees would be made on a case-by-case basis and was expected to be finalised this month. Minister Kagonye said Zimbabwe has about 11 000 refuges, straining already scarce resources.
“We have been receiving more than 30 refugees per day and that has been problematic for us because the resources we currently have do not meet the numbers at the camp. At Tongogara Refugee Camp, we have more than 11 000 refugees and we are struggling to provide social service such as the teacher-student ratios, the land they occupy and other administrative issues.”
For Mary she prays for exemption. “I have a family. I am now married to a Congolese man and we have four daughters,” she explained. “If I am repatriated I will have to leave my husband behind as he is not affected by the cessation. I will have to take the children with me since I was registered as their guardian. That is not the kind of life I want for my children.”
The UNHCR agreed to provide return incentives for the Rwandan returnees. The commission was offering cash packages to any Rwandan refugee who returned home before end of 2017. The commission gave $250 to each adult Rwandan refugee and $150 to any minor who returned home. The returnees were also offered free medical insurance for a year, a free mobile phone and free transportation to any destination within the country.
As part of the cessation process, “go-see, come-and-tell missions” have been under taken by the refugees who were assisted to travel to Rwanda.
UNHCR says the refugees that have taken the missions have been successful with positive reports on the situation being reported back. One of the refugees who took part in the mission, John (not real name), says although the situation has largely changed in Rwanda he was not willing to go back.
“I went to Rwanda in 2015 to assess the situation and the situation has changed. However, Zimbabwe is our home and we appeal to the Government of Zimbabwe to give us permanent residency and integrate us into the communities.”
Despite its haphazard settlement pattern, with mud-and-pole make-shift structures and uneven gravel roads, the Tongogara settlement is dear to its inhabitants. And the only “repatriation” they are willing to take part in is within the borders of Zimbabwe.
