Reuters AlertNet Full site
Homepage | Newsdesk | NGO Latest | Crisis briefings | Country profiles | MediaWatch | Jobs | Alerting | Login

NEWSDESK

EGYPT: Dabbas Haile, "When life is hard, you have to be tough"
03 Nov 2009 13:40:50 GMT
Source: IRIN
CAIRO, 3 November 2009 (IRIN) - Officially, there were 1,638 Eritrean refugees registered with the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) in Cairo in September, the fourth largest group after the Sudanese, [http://www.irinnews.org/HOVReport.aspx?ReportId=86639] Iraqis, [http://www.irinnews.org/HOVReport.aspx?ReportId=86670] and Somalis. [http://www.irinnews.org/HOVReport.aspx?ReportId=86734]

UNHCR said Eritreans arriving in Egypt must undergo comprehensive refugee status determination interviews to assess whether they can be registered or not.

IRIN spoke to Dabbas Haile (not his real name), 35, about why he left Eritrea, and the prospects he has in this host country.

"I come from the Gash Barka region of Eritrea, near the Sudanese border. I escaped from prison and left my country on 1 January 2004 to come to Sudan and then Egypt, where I was jailed again.

"I used to work for the Ministry of Defence in Eritrea, although I hate politics. Because my mother is Ethiopian, I had fewer rights than other full Eritreans. My father was Eritrean but died long ago.

"When the war was going on between Ethiopia and Eritrea [1998-2000], the authorities kicked my mother out of the country and sent her to Sudan. Later on I went to visit her there but didn't get the required permit to leave the country. On my return they put me in jail in Omhajer, near the Ethiopia-Sudan border.

"I managed to escape from jail with an Ethiopian friend and cross the border illegally into Sudan. I stayed there one year and two months. It was a very difficult time because there were bad relations between Ethiopians, Eritreans and Sudanese.

"I decided to go to Egypt and crossed the border alone on foot, illegally. The Egyptian police caught me in Aswan and jailed me for being illegal in the country. I spent 14 months in prisons in Aswan and Cairo. It was pretty rough, but when life is hard, you have to be tough. The good thing was that I learned to speak Arabic fluently.

"While I was in jail, I did a UNHCR application and interview for refugee status, because I was being persecuted in my own country. I was successful and so released. I get assistance from UNHCR and CARITAS [a Catholic NGO and UNHCR implementing partner in Egypt], who I do some work for as an interpreter because I know Arabic.

"I live in the Mohandiseen area of the capital with a few other Eritreans. There is no organized community here for us so we organize ourselves and help each other out. No one depends on the embassy to help them. Most Eritreans and Ethiopians don't speak Arabic, so it's very difficult for us to integrate or get work in Cairo. Many do not even speak English. Some of us have relatives in other countries who send us money. But for the rest, we just pray to God for better times.

"Some don't have money for food or a house and must borrow from those who do. And they would never sleep in the street as it's considered shameful. For those who are not registered refugees or had their applications turned down, there is always the risk of being arrested and thrown in jail.

"I can't go back to Eritrea until the government changes. Who knows when that will be? And resettlement to third countries is just for families or single mothers or health cases. So for single guys like me, it looks like I'll be in Cairo for a while."

ed/cb

© IRIN. All rights reserved. More humanitarian news and analysis: http://www.IRINnews.org


AlertNet news is provided by

Email this article       Send comments

Topics

•  Refugees & displacement

MORE >>

Emergencies

•  Iraq in turmoil

•  Somalia troubles

•  Sudan conflicts

MORE >>

NGO latest

•  Mirinae Hits Typhoon-Battered Philippines
Save the Children - International Alliance

•  Pakistan: Mass displacement in Waziristan causing humanitarian crisis
Merlin - UK

•  International Medical Corps Aids Wounded in Deadliest Iraq Bombings Since 2007
IMC - USA

•  International Medical Corps Aids Wounded in Deadliest Iraq Bombings Since 2007
IMC - USA

•  Child Friendly Spaces provide safe haven & hot meal with help of Georgian food company
World Vision Middle East/Eastern Europe/ Central Asia

MORE >>

Latest news

•  EGYPT: Dabbas Haile, "When life is hard, you have to be tough"

•  BP, CNPC sign Iraq's 1st big post-invasion oil deal

•  FACTBOX: Political deadlock threatens Sudan's 2010 elections

•  Upgrading Ozone Layer Treaty to Assist in Combating Climate Change Key Issue at International Meeting in Egypt

•  Clinton offers U.S. aid to help boost Muslim ties

MORE >>
IRIN news

Del.icio.us Del.icio.us  |   Digg Digg  |   NewsVine NewsVine  |   Reddit Reddit   
Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2009-11-03T092901Z_01_ISL01_RTRIDSP_2_PAKISTAN-VIOLENCE-WAZIRISTAN_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/ISL01.htm
Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2009-11-02T103200Z_01_ISL08_RTRIDSP_2_PAKISTAN-VIOLENCE-WAZIRISTAN_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/ISL08.htm
Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2009-11-02T103036Z_01_ISL07_RTRIDSP_2_PAKISTAN-VIOLENCE-WAZIRISTAN_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/ISL07.htm
Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2009-11-02T102627Z_01_ISL09_RTRIDSP_2_PAKISTAN-VIOLENCE-WAZIRISTAN_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/ISL09.htm
Thumb for /thefacts/imagerepository/RTRPICT/2009-11-02T102156Z_01_ISL06_RTRIDSP_2_PAKISTAN-VIOLENCE-WAZIRISTAN_mainimage.jpg|/thenews/pictures/ISL06.htm

A policeman sits on a chair while men, fleeing a military offensive in South Waziristan, sit on the ground as they wait for their turn at a distribution point for internally ...



Disclaimers |  Copyright |  Privacy |  Contact Us |  Feedback |  About Us |  RSS XML

Last updated:Tue Nov 3 13:41:05 2009