Tanzanians demand “rescue” of relatives in Cabo Delgado

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Tanzanians demand “rescue” of relatives in Cabo Delgado

9:20 CAT | 08 Apr 2021

Map: DW

After the South African government sent aircraft to evacuate its citizens from Cabo Delgado, a border town in Tanzania is demanding that its government do the same.

Residents of Mtwara, a Tanzanian town 85 kilometres from Palma, are demanding that the Government of Tanzania organize the safe return of family members living in Cabo Delgado, in northern Mozambique.

Following the terrorist attack on Palma about two weeks ago, several Mtwara families are distressed at still having no news of relatives living in northern Cabo Delgado. One of them, Rukia Ngomeke, told DW Africa that she has had no contact with her family since the day of the attack. She has tried to obtain information via the Tanzanian police, but it has not been easy.

“When we go to enquire at the police station, we are told to wait until the national security officers are convinced that everything is fine. Then they send their names to migration for further investigation, to find out if they went to Mozambique legally or if they were hiding there,” she explains.

Humanitarian reinforcement

Mustafa Kuyumba, a civil society activist in Mtwara, asks that aid organizations increase their activities along the Rovuma River, while appealing to the Tanzanian government to monitor the situation of Tanzanians in Mozambique.

“We are asking the government to come up with a strategy and prepare a process to ensure that our brothers and sisters return from Mozambique safely. We also ask that they ensure that other stakeholders are given an opportunity to help strengthen border security,” Kyumba explains.

“It’s not looking good”

The consultancy IHS Markit on Monday (06-03) released a report in which it considers the possibility of an attack against Mtwara’s public spaces “such as the market, to inflict mass casualties, or against government assets and staff”.

The consultancy however finds it unlikely that terrorists will capture the city because Tanzanian security forces “have experience in fighting Islamic State-linked insurgents”.

Resident Athman Nandule asks the government to increase surveillance and reinforce security “so that we are not attacked. We are saddened by what we hear and see on social media”.

Another resident, Issa Salum, also wants the police and the army to reinforce security “to control the situation, because it is no longer looking good”.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) estimates that more than 1,000 Mozambicans who fled to Tanzania after the attack on Palma were returned to Mozambique by the country’s authorities last week.

In an interview with DW Africa, Margarida Loureiro, head of the UNHCR office in Cabo Delgado calls on neighbouring countries to grant asylum to displaced persons.

“All of these states have an international duty to respect the fundamental principles of these conventions, including access to asylum. In other words, no one should be sent back to a place where they believe there is a well-founded fear of persecution against their lives,” Loureiro recalls.

Source: Deutsche Welle