US embassy cable - 05KINSHASA224

UNCLAS KINSHASA 000224 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREF, PREL, EAID, CG, UN 
SUBJECT: CONGO / TANZANIA / UNHCR AGREEMENT ON REFUGEE 
REPATRIATIONS 
 
1. SUMMARY:  The DRC, Tanzania and UNHCR signed an agreement 
January 20 on repatriation of Congolese refugees currently in 
Tanzania.  According to a UNHCR official, however, actual 
repatriation will probably not begin before 2006, due to 
inhospitable conditions in the Congo.  END SUMMARY. 
 
An Agreement... 
--------------- 
2. Representatives from the Democratic Republic of the Congo 
(DRC), Tanzania, and the U.N. High Commission for Refugees 
(UNHCR) signed a tripartite agreement in Dar es Salaam on 
January 20, providing for the repatriation of Congolese 
refugees currently in Tanzania.  Congolese Interior Minister 
Theophile Mbemba signed the agreement on behalf of the DRC. 
The deal paves the way for the repatriation of some 400,000 
Congolese refugees, 150,000 of whom live in Tanzania. 
 
...But No Action Yet 
-------------------- 
3. Although the agreement is an important legal and 
diplomatic step forward, actual repatriation will likely not 
begin before 2006.  During the week of January 17-21, the 
UNHCR and other U.N. agencies visited southeastern Congo, to 
evaluate reception conditions in areas where refugees have 
returned.  According to a Kinshasa-based UNHCR official, 
"UNHCR will use 2005 to prepare for the return of refugees 
and repatriation will commence in 2006." 
 
4. (U) Bujumbura minimize considered. 
MEECE