“Last week I didn’t take a bath for three days, because we had no water. I am waiting for UNHCR to relocate us.' After protests and a pandemic, the UNHCR managed to reintegrate about 800 refugees, but about 500 still remain:
After protracted protests, relocation to various camps, and the Covid pandemic, the UNHCR managed to reintegrate about 800 refugees back into communities and helped 70 with voluntary repatriation.
They have resorted to makeshift bathrooms – wooden pallets placed on the ground and screened off with blankets. The men use a sandpit.Refugee leader Hafiz Mohammed said the last toilets were removed on 1 November. There were initially 20 toilets and they were regularly serviced. These were reduced to ten and not serviced. He said people now relieve themselves in plastic bags and dispose of them in bins.
Laura Padoan, spokesperson for the UNHCR, said the agency is no longer directly engaged on-site, but refugees continue to access legal partners for advice on issues such as documentation. “UNHCR is not in a position to arrange transfers of people to other countries in the region; this would require refugees obtaining visas on an individual basis from the country they wish to travel to.
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