By Annie Slemrod
BEIRUT: The Sudanese refugees camped outside Beirut’s U.N.
refugee agency are having an unusually challenging Ramadan.
On hunger strike for 50 days, the men have also abstained from
liquids during the day since the start of the holy month. Their iftar consists
mostly of juice. “It is difficult,” Mohammad Abdul-Latif said of the overlap
between Ramadan and the hunger strike, crediting God for recent cloudy weather
that has provided some holiday respite from the sun.
The 20 or so men have been refusing food and sleeping at the
gates of UNHCR in protest of what they say is a lengthy process for determining
refugee status, slow resettlement for those who are granted this
classification, and the poor quality of assistance they receive while in
Lebanon.
Last week, they moved closer to the building’s entrance.
Previously sleeping across the street, they are now also blocking one of two
entrances to the building with cardboard, blankets, a wire bed frame, and their
bodies. Two young men were practicing their English in front of the black door
Monday.
UNHCR issued a statement about the closure last week, calling
the move an “escalation” that prohibits “staff from entering or exiting the
building as needed” and constitutes a “serious safety concern.”
UNHCR spokesperson Dana Sleiman said that the building had two
entrances, one for refugees and asylum seekers and the other for staff, media,
and other visitors. The refugees are blocking the staff entrance. She said the
agency was trying its best to “keep the channels of communication open” with
the protesters, “but this [the closure] cannot continue, it is a matter of
security and protection for the refugees who approach the office, for asylum
seekers and employees.”
The strikers said that two UNHCR staffers came to speak to them
after they blocked the entrance, asking about their demands and telling them
that the closure was unacceptable.
The protesters were insulted by the question, taking it to mean
that UNHCR had ignored their previous complaints. “We have given them thousands
of papers stipulating our demands and after 50 days they asked what our demands
are,” Abdul-Latif said. “This is clowning around.”
Another protester, Adam Adeem, said that the men were not
concerned about possible arrest, as many have spent time in jail given that
their refugee identification is not always considered acceptable to
authorities.
UNHCR said it had counseled the strikers both on an individual
and group basis, and The Daily Star has seen minutes of a meeting between the
men, an NGO that supports them, and a UNHCR representative.
But the strikers have called the meetings unsatisfactory, saying
the agency used them only to explain their general processes. Abdul-Latif,
noticeably more agitated and thinner than several weeks ago, said he no longer
even believes UNHCR has possession of his case file.
Sleiman, however, said the refugee agency had prepared letters
detailing each striker’s situation, including personal details on their
statuses.
She said the strikers refused to accept the letters.
After 50 days, the hunger strike seems to be at an impasse.
UNHCR has said it is sympathetic to the strikers’ concerns, but cannot
influence the time it takes for countries to accept refugees. After backing off
a vow to completely refuse liquids, the protesters still believe the agency
could exact more leverage on the countries where they are to eventually move.
Even with UNHCR urging the refugees to return home, the men
appeared to be in it for the long haul Monday. For the hot days, there were
children’s toys, books and playing cards scattered around their modest
encampment. There were also cans of bug spray for the humid nights.
When the strike began, many of the men – who hail from both
Sudan and the newly independent South Sudan – complained of discrimination in
Lebanon and the difficulty of finding decent work.
After weeks of unemployment and no income, the men, who are
starving by choice, said Monday that their families were now going hungry as
well.
Dawood Dafallah said he had failed in his attempts to secure
help from an NGO for his wife and 7-month-old daughter. With their daughter
Aisha on her lap, his wife Embet said she feared becoming homeless this
Ramadan.
She and the other wives work when they can, but Embet said she
doesn’t have enough money for food.
Soon, she
won’t be able to pay the rent on her apartment. Embet pointed at the sidewalk
where the protesters were sleeping. When that happens, “we’ll move here,” she
said. – With additional reporting by Wassim Mroueh
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Local-News/2012/Jul-31/182728-sudanese-surpass-50-days-of-hunger-strike-hit-impasse.ashx#axzz2259mU7Ab
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