South Sudan has obligations not to deport Eritrean, Ethiopian asylum seekers — Yakani

JUBA — South Sudan’s prominent activist and Executive Director of Community Empowerment for Progress Organization (CEPO) Edmund Yakani has appealed to the President Salva Kiir to intervene in order for Eritrean and Ethiopian asylum seekers to be spared from possible deportation.

Yesterday, the Director-General of Nationality, Passports and Immigration General Marol Biar said the police authorities are holding at least 13 Ethiopian and Eritrean nationals who crossed to the world’s youngest country from Sudan without proper documentations.

The senior police officer said the government was preparing for their deportation to their home countries despite the foreign nationals telling the government that they may face prosecution in their home countries.

Speaking to Sudans Post this afternoon, Yakani said CEPO is disturbed by the reports of deportation for the asylum seekers and called on President Kiir, the parliament, the human rights commission as well as the ministry of interior to intervene to reconsider the deportation of the Eritrean and Ethiopian nationals.

“CEPO is disturbing with the public information that South Sudan is deporting 13 Ethiopia and Eritreans nationals despite informing the authorities that they maybe subjected to prosecution by their countries governments once they arrived,” Yakani said.

“I would like to call upon the leadership of our country in their various capacities that remember in 1983 and in 2013, South Sudanese ran to neighboring countries to seek refuge and we were protected and we were not deported back to South Sudan just because we didn’t have legal documents,”he added.

Yakani reminded the South Sudanese leaders of when citizens fled during the wars in the country to seek refugee in neighboring countries including Eritrea and Ethiopia and said the government have international and local obligations to protect refugees.

“The situation was very clear that South Sudanese took refuge in those countries because of armed conflict and political violence which is equal to the situation in Eritrean and Ethiopia,” Yakani said.

“I am therefore appealing to the leadership of our country and on the top of them the president to ensure that these 13 Ethiopian and Eritrean nationals are not deported, but let them have the right to seek refuge in South Sudan even if they don’t have legal documents,” he added.

“We have to make sure that they are protected and undergone the necessary requirements for them to be protected under the laws of South Sudan.

“It is our obligation and global obligations under UN charter that people who took refuge for safety shouldn’t be subjected to be dealt with or for them to be deported back to their countries where they may face prosecution.”