VZCZCXYZ0009
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHEG #0986/01 1511243
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
P 311243Z MAY 09
FM AMEMBASSY CAIRO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 2763
INFO RUCNRCC/REFUGEE COORDINATOR COLLECTIVE

C O N F I D E N T I A L CAIRO 000986 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR NEA/ELA, PRM/AFR, PRM/ANE 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/31/2019 
TAGS: PREF PREL KWBG KPAL SU ER EG
SUBJECT: CAIRO REFUGEE UPDATE: QUESTIONS OF PROTECTION 
 
Classified By: Minister Counselor for Economic and Political Affairs William R. Stewart for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).
1.(C) Key Points: -- UNHCR's Regional Representative is concerned about the shrinking "protection space" in Egypt. The UNHCR's Assistant High Commissioner for Protection will come to Cairo in late June to discuss the matter with the Government of Egypt (GOE). -- The GOE will not allow Palestinians living in Egypt to have refugee status, and UNHCR is not allowed to engage with them. UNHCR is concerned that all Palestinians in Egypt are unprotected, including those displaced by recent conflicts in Gaza and Iraq. -- UNHCR is worried that the situation in sub-Saharan Africa and the economic crisis in the Gulf state will lead to an increase in the number of refugees coming to Cairo. This would put additional strain on UNHCR Cairo's already limited resources. -- Representatives of "stateless" refugees living in Cairo told us that they often do not qualify for protection by the local refugee apparatus. Nearly all stateless persons lack refugee and citizenship status. They receive no monetary assistance, lack the ability to work, and are isolated from other members of the refugee communities.

2.(C) Comment: This is the second meeting that UNHCR Regional Representative Al Attar mentioned the issue of the Palestinians living in Egypt. In January, the GOE denied UNHCR the opportunity to resettle an Iraqi Palestinian family because it insisted that UNHCR had no mandate to do so. The resettlement was carried out by the International Organization for Migration (IOM). This incident led UNHCR to re-evaluate its ability to serve the Palestinian community and it assesses that it unable to do anything with Palestinians. Al Attar's concern of a growth in African refugees and economic migrants from the Gulf are well founded. From May 15-25, at least 21 African migrants were arrested trying to cross from Egypt into Israel. Another two were shot, one was hospitalized and one was killed. This is a noticeable increase after a four-month lull. We raised the recent border issues during our initial meeting with the Egyptian MFA's new Refugee office director, Dr. Youssef El Sharkawy on May 21. Stateless refugees are of mixed Eritrean-Ethiopian parentage and are denied citizenship by both countries. They are the most vulnerable refugee population in Cairo. The stateless refugees are ostracized by the Eritrean and Ethiopian communities because their loyalties cannot be determined by their citizenship. During our conversations with them, we were struck by their complete lack of planning for the future. We assume this is because, unlike other refugees, they see no future for themselves. End comment.

3.(C) UNHCR Regional Representative Saad al-Attar told us on May 16 that the chief concern for UNHCR's Cairo offices was a "reduction in the protection space for refugees." He said that UNHCR Assistant High Commissioner for Protection, Erika Feller will come to Cairo in late June to discuss this issue with the GOE. Al Attar is especially concerned about the status of the 20,000-70,000 Palestinians living in Egypt that "cannot have refugee status." He stated that the Government of Egypt insists that the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) bears the responsibility for the Palestinians and not UNHCR. However, he told us that legally UNRWA only has the mandate for Palestinians displaced in 1948 and 1956, but has no mandate to confer legal refugee status. Additionally, Al Attar said that the UNRWA office in Cairo is staffed by one administrator. He told us that UNHCR plays a role in providing legal assistance to Palestinians, living in Jordan, Syria, Lebanon and the Gulf, but is denied that role in Egypt. Consequently, Al Attar believes that the all Palestinians living in Egypt are "totally unprotected," including those who might have escaped recent conflicts in Gaza or Iraq because the GOE denies the UNHCR office any role in providing refugee status or protection to Palestinians.

4.(C) Al Attar is concerned about the Sub-Saharan African refugee problem. He said that the situation in South Sudan is deteriorating and he fears that "the future situation will be worse than the present." Al Attar opined that the flow of Eritrean refugees will pick up because of the "worsening human rights situation in Eritrea." He stated that tighter controls on the Egypt-Israel border could lead to an increase in forced deportations and would "bottle up" other Eritrean refugees in Cairo putting more pressure on the local refugee network to provide for them. Al Attar also stated that UNHCR Cairo is expecting an influx of "refugees" as a result of the economic crisis in the Gulf States. He opined that Sudanese, Somali, Eritrean, and Palestinians that cannot return to their home countries because of a credible fear of persecution will come to Cairo after the school year ends in the Gulf in June. He feared that this would also increase pressure on UNHCR and partner organizations to provide protection services for them.

5.(C) We met with representatives of "stateless" persons residing in Cairo on May 12. There are approximately 50 stateless refugees, who come from mixed Eritrean-Ethiopian parentage that are denied citizenship by both countries. One of the representatives, XXXXXXXXXXXX(protect), told us that stateless individuals often do not qualify for UNHCR protection because almost all lack refugee and citizenship status. As a result, they receive no monetary assistance, lack the ability to work, and cannot participate in refugee society because they are not trusted by the local Eritrean and Ethiopian communities. A woman representative, XXXXXXXXXXXX(protect), told us that stateless women can sometimes gain informal work as domestic servants, and this income helps to support small groups of stateless persons. However, these women are extremely vulnerable to economic and sexual exploitation. Another representative, XXXXXXXXXXXX(protect), said that the stateless live under the fear that if they are caught, they have no protection against deportation and if deported could end up caught between Eritrea and Ethiopia. SCOBEY