Ethiopia: Information on the Harshin and Hartisheik refugee camps in early June 1988; on the authorities in charge; on the number of refugees living there; on the security at the camps and on a description of the facilities
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 1 March 1996 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | ETH23516.E |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Ethiopia: Information on the Harshin and Hartisheik refugee camps in early June 1988; on the authorities in charge; on the number of refugees living there; on the security at the camps and on a description of the facilities, 1 March 1996, ETH23516.E, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6ace11f.html [accessed 2 June 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
The Harshin and Hartisheik refugee camps were run by the Ethiopian government, through the Administration for Refugee Affairs (ARA), under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) (Bureau for Refugee Programs Sept. 1989, 11). According to the September 1989 World Refugee Report report, under an agreement with the Ethiopian government, the UNHCR was allowed to provide services to refugees and to help with the administration of the camps, but had restricted access to the camps (ibid., 12; UNHCR 1989, 32).
Michael Myers, a member of the US Senate Judiciary subcommittee on immigration and refugees affairs who visited the Hartisheik camp in December 1988, said it was "the worst refugee situation [he had) seen in 12 years of visiting camps" (The Washington Post 25 Dec. 1988). Both camps were located in the Ogaden desert on the eastern Somali border of Ethiopia, some 80 miles from Jijiga -- the only reliable source of water in the region -- in an area difficult to reach and deprived of water and natural resources (UNHCR 1989, 32; Refugees Sept. 1988 16; Reuters 31 Oct. 1988; ibid. 4Oct. 1988; ibid. 26 July 1988; Réfugiés Oct. 1989,18). 1988 reports indicate that water and food shortages were serious problems (Reuters 31 Oct. 1988; ibid. 4 Oct. 1988; ibid. 28 July 1988; ibid. 26 July 1988; ibid. 6 July 1988; Refugees Sept. 1988; The New York Times 13 Aug. 1988). According to a l988 World Refugee Survey report, by the end of 1988, "malnutrition was widespread and refugees' basic needs -- food, water, shelter, sanitation, medical care -- were not being adequately met" (USCR 1988, 41; UNHCR 1989, 32; Réfugiés Oct. 1989, 19). For more information on the conditions in the camps, please consult the attached documents.
The September 1988 issue of Refugees reports that during the first week of June 1988 an average of 230 Somali refugees crossed the border into eastern Ethiopia every day (16). The report further states that they totalled 20,000 a month later, at the beginning of July, and that 80,000 were recorded in Harshin and Hartisheik camps alone by mid-July (ibid.).
For security and diplomatic reasons, journalists were not allowed in the camps (USOR Sept. 1988; Reuters 4 Oct. 1988). A 4 October Reuters report states that the Ethiopian government, which supported the Somali National Movement (SNM) before the signing of a peace treaty with its neighbour in April 1988 -- a treaty which provides for the return of Ethiopian prisoners of war held in Somalia -- was very sensitive about security in the Ogaden region (ibid.; The New York Times 13 Aug. l988) The Ethiopian government ruled out moving the camps to Jijiga fearing conflicts between the mainly Issaq refugee population and the other tribes and Somali clans living in the town (Reuters 4 Oct. 1988). A 6 October 1988 BBC report quotes the Somali chargé d'affaires as saying that "he held talks with people returning in the area who told him that their children were being held across the border by terrorists as hostages at Harshin Refugee camp and that they had been given a deadline to return in Harshin Refugee camp or else children [would be killed if they [failed] to do so." For further information, please consult the attached documents.
This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the DIRB within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum.
References
Bureau for Refugee Programs. September 1989. World Refugee Report. Washington, DC: United States Department of State.
KNA [Nairobi, in English]. 3 October 1988. "Somali Government Appeals for Aid for Hargeisa Refugees." (BBC Summary 6 Oct. 1988/NEXIS)
The New York Times. 13 August 1988. FiaaI Edition. Jane Perlez. "Over 300,000 Somalis, Fleeing Civil War, Cross into Ethiopia." (NEXIS)
Refugees [Geneva]. September 1988. No. . "New Emergency in Ethiopia."
Réfugiés [Geneva]. October 1989. No. 69. "(thiopie: Perdus 'au bout du monde'."
Reuters. 31 October 1988. AM Cycle. Tsegaye Tadesse. "500 Sonali RefUgees Said Pouring into Ethiopia Daily." (NEXIS)
_____ .4 October 1988. AM Cycle. Robert Powell. "Politics Condemn Somali Refugees to Remote Water Supply." (NEXIS)
_____. 28 July 1988. AM Cycle. "Somali RefUgee Plight Could Be Catstrophic - Aid Group." (NEXIS)
_____. 26 July 1988. AM Cycle. "U.N. Says Somali Refugees in Ethiopia May Reach 200,000." (NEXIS)
_____. 6 July 198$. AM Cycle. Tsegaye Talesse. "2,000 Refugees Leaving Somalia Each Day, U.N. Official Says." (NEXIS)
United Nations High Commission for Refugees(UNHCR). 1989. Activités du HCR financées par les fonds constitués au moyen de contributions volontaires: Rapport pour 1988-89 et projet de budgets-programmes pour 1990. Geneva: United Nations.
US Committee for 11 (USCR). 1988. World Refugee Survey -1988 In Review, Washington, DC: USCR.
The Washington Post. 25 December 1988. David B. Ottaway. "Food Aid Being Used as Weapon in Sudanese War." (NEXIS)
Attachments
Bureau for Refugee Programs. September 1989. World Refugee Report. Washington, DC: United States Department of State, pp. 11-12.
KNA [Nairobi, in English]. 3 October 1988. "Somali Government Appeals for Aid for Hargeisa Refugees." (BBC Summary 6 Oct. 1988/ NEXIS)
The New York Times. 13 August 1988. Final Edition. Jane Perlez. "Over 300,000 Somalis, Fleeing Civil War, Cross into Ethiopia." (NEXIS)
Refugees [Geneva]. September 1988. "New Emergency in Ethiopia," pp. 16-17.
Réfugiés [Geneva]. October 1989. No. 69. "(thiopie: Perdus 'au bout du monde'," pp. 17-19.
Reuters. 31 October 1988. AM Cycle. Tsegaye Tadesse. "500 Somali Refugees Said Pouring into Ethiopia Daily." (NEXIS)
_____. 4 October 1988. AM Cycle. Robert Powell. "Politics Condemn Somali Refugees to Remote Water Supply." (NEXIS)
_____. 28 July 1988. AM Cycle. "Somali Refugees Plight Could Be Catastrophic - Aid Group." (NEXIS)
_____. 26 July 1988. AM Cycle. "U.N. Says Somali Refugees in Ethiopia May Reach 200,000." (NEXIS)
_____.6 July 1988. AM Cycle. Tsegaye Tadesse. "2,000 Refugees Leaving Somalia Each Day, U.N. Official Says." (NEXIS)
United Nations High Commission for Refugees(UNHCR). 1989. Activités du HCR financées par les fonds constitués au moyen de contributions volontaires: Rapport pour 1988-89 et projet de budgets-programmes pour 1990. Geneva: United Nations, pp. 31-35.
US Committee for Refugees(USCR). 1988. World Refugees Survey 1988 In Review. Washington, DC: USCR, pp. 40-41.
The Washington Post. 25 December 1988. David B. Ottaway. "Food Aid Being Used as Weapon in Sudanese War." (NEXIS)
