It’s safe to return home, Somalia assures refugees

By Abigael Sum

Nairobi, Kenya: The Somalia Government has assured Somali refugees in Kenya that it is safe to return home.

Somalia Ambassador to Kenya Mohamed Ali Nur said the Somalia Government will continue creating conducive conditions for the safe return of refugees to enable them quickly settle and rebuild their lives.

“There are places that are already safe and ultimately we will secure the whole country. We will never put the Somali people in harm’s way by sending them to places where it is not safe,” he said during a media briefing in Nairobi.

He added: “We are grateful to the Kenyan Government and its people for temporarily hosting us for more than two decades. We will help the refugees settle in the country they once called home and give them incentives to help them in rebuilding their lives and provide for their families.”

Nur reiterated that no one will be forced to go back as there is a legal framework they have to abide by.

However, some refugees are reluctant to go back to Somalia over fears of insecurity.

Zulekha Salat fled Somalia with her parents in the late 80s, a time when Somalia was torn apart by civil war.  She is now married with children.