VZCZCXRO9255
RR RUEHBZ RUEHDU RUEHJO RUEHMR RUEHRN
DE RUEHDR #0299/01 1280409
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 080409Z MAY 09
FM AMEMBASSY DAR ES SALAAM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 8491
INFO RUCNSAD/SOUTHERN AF DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY COLLECTIVE
RUEHJB/AMEMBASSY BUJUMBURA 2878
RUEHKM/AMEMBASSY KAMPALA 3405
RUEHLGB/AMEMBASSY KIGALI 1330
RUEHKI/AMEMBASSY KINSHASA 0316
RUEHNR/AMEMBASSY NAIROBI 1260
RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS 0369
RUEHDS/USMISSION USAU ADDIS ABABA
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 0493
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 DAR ES SALAAM 000299 
 
SIPDIS 
SENSITIVE 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR AF/E JLIDDLE, AF/C, PRM 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PINR PHUM PREF TZ
SUBJECT: TANZANIA TO NATURALIZE 170,000 BURUNDIAN REFUGEES 
 
¶1. (U) SUMMARY: The Government of Tanzania (GOT) is expected to 
grant approximately 170,000 Burundian refugees full citizenship 
status later this year, in an effort to bring to a close a refugee 
situation dating back to 1972.  High Commissioner for UNHCR Antonio 
Guterres called President Kikwete's decision to grant refugees 
citizenship en masse "unprecedented" in Africa and possibly the 
world.  The Comprehensive Solution Strategy unveiled by UNHCR in 
2008 has three phases: processing (including naturalization), 
relocation and resettlement.  So far, donor countries, including the 
U.S., have given USD 25 million for completion of the strategy's 
first phase.  New appeals and timelines for the remainder of the 
project are expected soon from UNHCR, as well as a possible 
supplemental appeal for the completion of the first phase. END 
SUMMARY 
¶2. (U) The GOT decided in 2007 to bring the 37-year history of the 
Burundi refugee settlement to an end.  Tanzania took in hundreds of 
thousands of refugees fleeing warring factions in Burundi in the 
early 1970s.  Today, many of the long-standing refugees identify 
more with Tanzania than Burundi.  An estimated 80 percent of the 
refugees were born in the refugee camps and most are fluent in 
Swahili.  The refugees have successfully established themselves as 
farmers and contributors to the local economy. 
¶3. (U) In 2008, at GOT request, UNHCR launched a global appeal to 
fund the "Comprehensive Solutions Strategy" for the 1972 refugees. 
This appeal raised USD 25 million from donor nations to assist with 
the first part of a three-phase program to resettle the refugees in 
Tanzania as citizens or return them home to Burundi.  The U.S. 
contributed nearly USD 4 million to the appeal, in addition to our 
budgeted commitment of about USD 6 million to UNHCR and another USD 
2 million to various other organizations assisting refugee 
operations, such as UNICEF, American Red Cross, International Rescue 
Committee, and the International Organization for Migration.  Other 
major donors include the United Kingdom, European Community, Japan, 
Denmark, and Norway. 
¶4. (U) In the project's first phase, UNHCR and the GOT determined 
the desires of the refugees and began repatriating those who wished 
to return.  So far, over 30,000 refugees have received assistance to 
return to Burundi and another 25,000 are expected to return later 
this year.  The remaining 170,000 refugees have submitted 
applications to naturalize and remain in Tanzania.  High 
Commissioner for UNHCR Antonio Guterres, visiting the camps in 2008, 
lauded the program and called President Kikwete's decision to grant 
refugees citizenship en masse "unprecedented" in Africa and possibly 
the world. 
¶5. (U) The next phase of the plan is to resettle the new citizens in 
new communities away from the camps.  The third and final phase of 
the plan is to ensure that the new citizens are equipped with basic 
needs, such as language skills and land, to sustain themselves into 
the future.  UNHCR plans to launch a new appeal, likely for USD 9 
million, to complete the first phase.  GOT officials want to be sure 
of the commitment of the international community and that funding is 
available before completing the naturalization process.  Tanzania 
has reduced its usual naturalization fee from USD 800 to USD 50 for 
this population, adding a financial component to its other support 
for the refugees. 
¶6. (SBU) Some European donors have expressed concerns about the plan 
to remove refugees from a place where they are prospering and living 
in peace in order to disperse them throughout the country.  The GOT 
response to this concern has two key points: under founding 
President Nyerere, Tanzanians were forced to move from their home 
regions to prevent tribalism; and leaving them in place could 
present a serious security situation.  Minister for Home Affairs 
Lawrence Masha recently expressed to Poloff concern that individuals 
associated with former rebel groups in Burundi remained in the 
camps.  He said that if the population is not scattered throughout 
Tanzania, the potential for a threats to public peace and security 
could be significant.  Masha added that many of those remaining in 
Tanzania have relatives elsewhere in the country, have indicated 
their preferred resettlement location, and are ready to move.  The 
GOT plans to make the vacated land available for large-scale 
agricultural investment. 
¶7. (U) CDA visited the camps in late April with Ministry of Home 
Affairs and UNHCR representatives and spoke with local officials, 
refugees, and members of the NGO community.  Relations between UNHCR 
and local government officials, once strained and even acrimonious, 
have improved markedly, in part because of progress made towards 
resolving the situation of the 1972 refugees.  This improved 
relationship has been beneficial for dealings over camps housing 
other, more recent refugee populations. 
 
DAR ES SAL 00000299  002 OF 002 
 
 
ANDRE