VZCZCXRO3900
PP RUEHGI RUEHMA RUEHROV
DE RUEHKH #0801/01 1431205
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 231205Z MAY 07
FM AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 7292
INFO RUCNFUR/DARFUR COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
RUEHRN/USMISSION UN ROME

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KHARTOUM 000801 
 
SIPDIS 
 
AIDAC 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR AF/SPG, PRM, AND ALSO PASS USAID/W 
USAID FOR DCHA SUDAN TEAM, AFR/SP 
NAIROBI FOR SFO 
NSC FOR PMARCHAM, MMAGAN, AND TSHORTLEY 
ADDIS ABABA FOR USAU 
USUN FOR TMALY 
BRUSSELS FOR PLERNER 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EAID PREF PGOV PHUM SOCI SU
SUBJECT: SOUTHERN SUDAN - DISPLACED SOUTHERN SUDANESE RETURNING HOME 
ON PAR WITH 2006 LEVELS 
 
REF:  KHARTOUM 0330 
 
KHARTOUM 00000801  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
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SUMMARY 
------- 
 
(U) Thousands of Southern Sudanese displaced by conflict continue to 
return to their places of origin from neighboring countries and from 
all directions within Sudan with support from the jointly organized 
UN, Government of National Unity (GNU), and Government of Southern 
Sudan (GOSS) returns program.  UN officials report that organized 
returns in 2007 are on pace to double the number of 2006 assisted 
returns, although overall returns for 2007 are anticipated to be 
nearly the same as 2006, with approximately 500,000 people. 
Spontaneous returns far exceed organized returns by at least two to 
three fold, according to the International Organization of Migration 
(IOM), the agency tasked with providing transport for the organized 
returns.  From May 1 to 6, USAID humanitarian staff visited Lakes, 
Warab, and Western Bahr el Ghazal states.  The staff observed that 
the returns program varies in its effectiveness by state.  The team 
also concluded that USAID's community-based humanitarian strategy 
helped lay a foundation for the new returnees to successfully 
reintegrate.  End Summary. 
 
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OVERVIEW 
-------- 
 
¶1. (U) As of early May, IOM reported to the USAID team that it had 
assisted 26,000 displaced Sudanese to return home.  IOM expects to 
assist between 50,000 and 55,000 additional people to return home by 
the end of 2007, a total of less than the original goal of 83,000 
people.  The shortfall is due, in part, to an initial reluctance of 
internally displaced persons (IDPs) to participate in the program. 
Now, the number of "no shows" is declining because IDPs have gained 
confidence in the program and the school year in Khartoum has ended. 
 May rains have already made some county roads treacherous and will 
soon render many roads impassable for vehicles, limiting returns and 
humanitarian work. 
 
¶2. (U) In Southern Sudan, IOM tracks the organized returns, and 
Southern Sudan Relief and Rehabilitation Commission (SSRRC) 
officials collect information on spontaneous returns.  The 
spontaneous returns will only receive returns packages if they are 
registered with the SSRRC as returnees.  However, USAID staff note 
that in some instances returnees avoid official registration for 
fear of being "taxed."  According to USAID staff, the most accurate 
figures for spontaneous returns come from the chiefs and 
administrators at the boma and payam levels. 
 
¶3. (U) USAID has provided over USD 500 million in humanitarian 
assistance to Southern Sudan since the Comprehensive Peace Agreement 
was signed in January 2005, ending more than 20 years of civil war 
that displaced millions.  USAID, the largest donor in Southern 
Sudan, prioritized assistance in the most severely conflict-affected 
areas and where the most IDPs were expected to return.  Since 2005, 
USAID has supported more than 300 health clinics, built or 
rehabilitated approximately 1,000 water points, fed millions of 
people, and distributed seeds, tools, and relief commodities to 
thousands.  USAID assistance, delivered through more than 30 
non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and UN agencies, has also 
assisted in the sectors of local capacity building, education, 
peacebuilding, income generation, and nutrition. 
 
--------------------------------------- 
LAKES, WARAB, AND BAHR EL GHAZAL STATES 
--------------------------------------- 
 
¶4. (U) LAKES STATE:  On May 1, USAID visited a school on the 
outskirts of Rumbek that served as a transit site for three days for 
151 Dinka returnees to the area.  A SSRRC official reported that 99 
of the returnees arrived April 30 on an IOM-organized bus ride from 
Khartoum via Kadugli with a layover at a Wau way station.  In Wau, 
they joined 52 refugees from Ethiopia who had just flown from 
Gambela.  On April 30, all 151 rode from Wau to Rumbek on IOM buses 
where they received food and relief commodities before IOM 
transported them to different areas in Lakes State.  The assistance 
package included: food rations from the UN World Food Program (WFP); 
seeds and tools from the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO); 
and relief commodities from the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF). 
 
¶5. (U) WARAB STATE:  A WFP official in Gogrial East County reported 
 
KHARTOUM 00000801  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
that there were 25,000 IDPs registered to return to Warab State, 
including 15,000 IDPs in Khartoum and 10,000 in Western Bahr el 
Ghazal from Warab State.  As of early May, IOM has helped 
approximately 3,000 people return.  According to WFP, there remains 
a one-month window for IDPs to return this year before the rains 
make roads impassable.  In Gogrial East, SSRRC reported that IOM has 
completed organized returns of 719 people, including 15 from Kenya, 
316 from Khartoum, and 388 from Western Bahr el Ghazal State, while 
8,000 have returned spontaneously.  The returns represent an 
increase in the overall Gogrial East population of approximately 5 
percent during the first four months of 2007. 
 
¶6. (U) WESTERN BAHR EL GHAZAL:  According to IOM in Western Bahr el 
Ghazal, 600 IDPs have returned to the state in 2007 in the organized 
returns program and nearly 1,200 have returned spontaneously.  WFP 
provided a three-month food ration to the organized returnees upon 
their arrival in Western Bahr el Ghazal, and UNICEF provided relief 
commodities to those departing from Khartoum.  The third portion of 
the returns package, seeds and tools, has not yet been distributed 
by FAO.  IDPs returning within Southern Sudan receive food and 
relief commodities at their final destination. 
 
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PROTECTION ISSUES 
----------------- 
 
¶7. (U) An IOM protection officer told USAID staff that there are 
reports that the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) and police 
have stopped spontaneous returnees in transit and demanded money. 
If the IDPs have no money, the assailants have taken luggage, shoes, 
mattresses, and other items.  In addition, the SPLA and police 
occasionally force the IOM organized returns convoys to carry their 
friends and family, which is against IOM policy to only transport 
returnees.  Upon return, female-headed households often find that 
they have lost claim to their deceased husband's shelter and land 
because of male lineage traditions under which the husband's family 
has claim to the couple's land.  Men who married in IDP camps 
without paying a dowry because of financial constraints and the 
breakdown of traditions find that their wife's family will demand 
the dowry to be paid upon return home. 
 
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CONCLUSIONS 
----------- 
 
¶8. (U) The number of spontaneous returns far exceeds organized 
returns, and the ability of host communities and humanitarian 
agencies to receive returnees varies greatly by state.  Lakes State 
provided a returns package within 72 hours, while in Warab State it 
has taken humanitarian agencies weeks to distribute the returns 
packages.  USAID partner WFP is the strongest of the three UN 
agencies contributing to the returns package of food, relief 
commodities, and seeds and tools.  USAID should continue to provide 
targeted humanitarian assistance to the areas with the greatest 
numbers of returns and with the lowest levels of basic services, 
while working to transition to recovery and eventually 
development-oriented assistance. 
 
POWERS