A Western NGO has accused Kenya of violating international law by forcing Somali refugees to return to their impoverished and conflict-ridden country.
The Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) said on Monday that a “voluntary” process that sees Somali refugees at a huge camp inside Kenya returned to their country is no more voluntary.
“The voluntary returns process does not meet international standards,” the NRC said.
Kenya said in May it sought to shut down the Dadaab refugee camp, the world’s largest refugee site, which hosts more than 300,000 Somalis, by yearend.
Nairobi claimed that some of the asylum seekers in Dadaab, which is near the Kenya-Somalia border, were being used by Somalia-based al-Shabab militants to launch terrorist attacks inside Kenya.
Kenya has also insisted that the evacuation of Dadaab is being conducted in accordance with international law.