Nearly 50,000 Sudanese have fled the war in Ethiopia. Half are housed in camps in the Amhara region. They found themselves in the middle of another conflict: the war that has pitted local militia against federal forces for over a year now. A thousand refugees decided to leave the Awulala camp, located on the border with Sudan, to protest against the growing insecurity.
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With our correspondent in Addis Ababa, Clothilde Hazard
Mohamed Hamed stayed four months in the Awulala camp. He describes deplorable living conditions on unsanitary agricultural land, due to the lack of medical care, but above all the increasingly frequent armed attacks.
“ We had our phones stolen and threatened with weaponssays Mohamed Hamed. There are people who enter the camp with their weapons at night. Several refugees have been kidnapped, they come to look for people even in their tents. Here, the inhabitants are already in civil war among themselves, so they are all armed. »
“ We prefer to die in the light in front of the whole world »
At the end of April, a refugee was shot and injured by a thief in a market. Still in critical condition, he is hospitalized in Gondar. After this incident, the refugees decided to leave their camp in protest before being blocked by federal forces. For several days, they have been sleeping on the side of a road without food or water, a few kilometers from the land where they refuse to return.
“ Instead of dying in the darkness of our tents, killed by thieves, insects, snakes and scorpions, we prefer to die in the light in front of the whole world so that they can see how much we suffer. », declares the Sudanese refugee.
The United Nations Refugee Agency says it is concerned about the security situation… And is working with the Ethiopian government to resolve the problem. More frequent police patrols must take place to protect these refugees who have already been badly affected by the conflict in Sudan.
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