Dispute Pushes Thousands of Ghanaians Into Togo

(HN, May 31, 2010) A violent dispute between two villages in northeastern Ghana had forced some 3,500 Ghanaians to flee their homes and cross into neighbouring Togo since April.

Ghanaian refugees, presently sheltering in four Togolese villages, have told United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) that their houses have been pillaged and destroyed, their belongings torched.

Fortunately, Togolese authorities are providing Ghanaian refugees with immediate emergency assistance and food. The refugees are in need of water, food, shelter and medicines, said Andrej Mahecic of the UNHCR. Most belong to vulnerable groups – including many children, some of them suffering from diarrhea and malaria. 

The refugees - who represent six communities with a total of 375 households - presently outnumbered the local population and share their quickly diminishing resources, said Mr. Mahecic. Water is of particular concern and UNHCR has offered to rehabilitate several wells in the area.

A first UNHCR emergency aid convoy left from Accra last week, loaded with humanitarian assistance, and another convoy will leave in the next few days with additional aid items - including some 700 tents and other shelter materials.

UNHCR has identified a new site in Togo, further away from the border, where it plans to transfer the refugees. This move would help to improve security and alleviate the pressure on the scarce resources of the host communities and free the public buildings presently used as shelter by refugees.

Since the Ghanaian refugees come from opposing villages involved in the violent dispute, UNHCR is working with the local authorities in Togo to identify a second site that will allow the separation of the two opposing groups, which would also prevent the perpetuation of the conflict while in displacement.

This is not the first time the Ghanaian villagers crossed into neighbouring Togo seeking safety and shelter. In early March some 300 Ghanaians fled to Togo due to the same land dispute, but had returned home within a few weeks, said Mr. Mahecic. This time however, refugees claim they have lost everything and are reluctant to return home.

Late last week, senior delegations from both affected countries met to try to find an amicable solution to the refugee problem. Togo, for its part, said it would not force its displaced guests to go back home.

--Reporting by Michael Bociurkiw and staff