Three Parliamentary Committees supports Govt’s move on enforcing relocation of refugees to Dzaleka camp

Three parliamentary committees have endorsed government’s action on enforcing the law on refugees.

The endorsement has come after the ministry of Homeland and Security started enforcing the relocation exercise of refugees residing in the country’s localities having noted the behavior of some refugees whose conduct in living and doing business outside designated refugee camps without any permit contradicted the law that regulates refugees and asylum seekers in the country.

The three committees namely: Defense and Security, Trade and Industry and International Relations in a statement endorsed by Joyce Chitsulo Chairperson of the Committee of Chairpersons says “as a member of the United Nations which has domesticated some UN Conventions on refugees, the Malawi government is acting within the law governing refugees in the country”.

The statement says “what some of the refugees were doing by freely wondering around and in certain cases operating business without permits, was recipe for chaos and rendered our laws on refugees almost useless”.

The Parliamentary committees have therefore reiterated that they would not want to see lawlessness prevail in the manner in which refugees behave in this country.

The committees have therefore strongly encouraged the minister of homeland and security to ensure that the exercise continues within the law and observance of human rights by the law enforcers.