The Oromo Support Group [2] reports that authorities in the de facto state of Somaliland [3] are forcibly repatriating asylum-seekers from oppressed ethnic groups to Ethiopia [4], where they face persecution. Last week, Somaliland deported more than 20 Ethiopian nationals, handing them over to Ethiopian forces at the border town of Wachale—in violation of the international principle of "non-refoulement [5]." Many more have been "refouled" in recent weeks—principally members of the Oromo [6] and Ogadeni [4] peoples. While political asylum applies only to those who can prove a well-grounded fear of persecution, non-refoulement is a generic ban on repatriation of refugees into war zones or disaster areas. (Press Enza [7], Dec. 29)
See our last post on the Horn of Africa [8].
