Kenyan is “deliberately coercing” thousands of Somali refugees to return to their war-ravaged home, Amnesty International said in a new report released on Tuesday.

The London-based rights group said government officials have been threatening refugees to return to Somalia by the November 30 deadline.

“The refugees are caught between a rock and a hard place. Kenyan government officials are telling them they must leave by the end of the month or they will be forced to leave without any assistance,” said Michelle Kagari.

Kagari is Amnesty International’s deputy director for East Africa, the Horn and the Great Lakes.

But Interior ministry spokesman Mwenda Njoka said on Monday that Kenya will not meet the deadline because Somalia could not yet guarantee basic social services for returning refugees.

This was the country’s first public acknowledgement that the deadline would be missed.

Amnesty said most of the refugees who have been interviewed said they were only considering leaving the camps due to threats from Kenyan government officials.

“These actions contravene the Kenyan government’s assurances to the international community that it would ensure all refugee repatriations are voluntary and carried out in safety and dignity,” said Kagari.

Amnesty International researchers said they visited Dadaab in August and interviewed 56 refugees individually, and held focus group discussions with 35 others.

But the rights group acknowledged that the international community has not kept its promises to Kenya regarding the repatriation.

“Kenya’s increased restrictions on Somali refugees comes at a time of shocking failures by rich countries to accept their fair share of responsibility,” noted Kagari.

“Rather than focusing on returning refugees to Somalia, where they are at risk of further human rights abuses, the international community should be working with Kenya to ensure long-term sustainable solutions.”

She added that the number of resettlement places for the most vulnerable refugees should be increased and that Kenya must guarantee the refugees that their rights will be respected.

The AI deputy director also said ways to integrate the refugees into host communities must be found, with the full support of the international community.

A report by the Oslo-based Norwegian Refugee Council said refugees feel trapped following the Kenyan government’s decision to close the camps by the end of November.

The October report said the exercise was no longer voluntary, dignified and safe, and had failed to meet international standards

Read more: Somali refugees return from Dadaab is forceful, unsafe – NGO report

Also read: Closing Daadab and Kakuma refugee camps big risk – Amnesty International

The government affirmed its decision to close the camp in May, citing security, economic and environmental concerns, in addition to lack of support by the international community.

As of October 31, UNHCR’s $272 million funding appeal for Kenya was 38 per cent funded, Amnesty said.

Dadaab had 326,000 refugees at the end of May, already 100,000 fewer than five years earlier, many of whom were believed to have returned to Somalia.

According to UNHCR data, only 34,900 refugees had returned home by last week while 276,269 were still in the camp.

Since the start of the repatriation, 99 convoys and 160 flights have left for Somalia, 66,650 refugees have approached the return home help desks, while 66,252 have indicated their desire to go back, the UN agency said in an update.

In 2015, a total of 5,001 individuals were resettled from Kenya, with more than 3,500 of those going to the USA. Only 671 vulnerable refugees were resettled in EU countries.

In 2016 so far, there have been 1,648 departures to the USA and 118 departures to European Union nations.

SOURCE: Star Kenya