Joint Programme on Voluntary Repatriation of Afghan Refugees Free of Charge June 2011 Information Bulletin Issue: 97 RETURN Information Update Mass Information Committee Contents of the Current Issue Manije Rostami / 5 th Grade / Tehran 1. UNHCR Self-Organized Transportation Scheme for Voluntary Repatriation from Iran (P. 2) 2. Shelter for Refugee Returnees and IDPs (P. 4) 3. Land Allocation Scheme (P. 6)
UNHCR Self-Organized Transportation Scheme for Voluntary Repatriation from Iran For Registered Afghan Refugees and Displaced Persons If you are an Amayesh VI card holder and wish to arrange your own transportation to the border please read the following points carefully: All returnees must undertake serious investigation about security situation and several factors related to the basic means of livelihood, in their intended destination. UNHCR will, as far as possible, help in sharing available information with intending returnees. Repatriation procedure: Once you have made the decision to return, you will need to deregister with BAFIA in the province of registration and obtain a Laissez-Passer (LP) to Dogharoun Border Crossing Station (BCS) from BAFIA. You should then approach a UNHCR Voluntary Return Center (VRC) (see below for details and contact information) to receive and fill your Voluntary Repatriation Forms (VRFs) which you will sign. You may approach the VRC for counselling before making the decision to return. For those of you who are residing in areas near Dogharoun, you will have your counselling and filling of VRFs done at the Dogharoun BCS. It is important that you provide accurate and correct information to UNHCR for filling in the VRF as this form will not be re-issued in Afghanistan or elsewhere in Iran. In Afghanistan, the VRF will be used as your identity document to prove that you were a refugee in Iran, and will also be used as the basis to provide you assistance for your reintegration. You will be given 4 copies of the duly filled VRFs at the VRC. Please make sure to keep the VRF copies in a safe place during your journey to and in Afghanistan. You will be asked for them during the trip, at the border and Afghanistan. UNHCR will pay you a transport grant at the VRC to facilitate your movement from the location to Dogharoun BCS. The transport grant is standardized, covers transportation for you and your effects and is based on zonal tariffs (Please refer to page 3 for details). You should make your own transportation arrangement up to Dogharoun BCS. You are advised to travel light and not take large quantities of luggage so that you do not pay large sums of money for transportation, are able to travel more easily and pass through the customs more quickly. Milak BCS is not operational Please ensure that you reach the border before the duration of your LP expires and between Sunday to Wednesday, at 07:00 to 12:00, when both UNHCR and the border authorities are working. When you arrive in Dogharoun BCS, you should go to BAFIA office for verification of your LP. You will then be referred to UNHCR staff in Dogharoun BCS, who will advice you on the next course of action. UNHCR will pay you repatriation cash assistance (Please refer to page 3 for details). You should keep your valuable items (including the cash assistance) in a safe place. 2
If necessary, you can be referred to the Medical Team in the BCS to make sure that you and your family are physically fit for the onward journey into Afghanistan. If you and/or your children have vaccination and health records, please keep them with you for medical purposes in clinics on the journey to, and in Afghanistan. Children under 5 years of age will be vaccinated in Afghanistan. Once you have crossed the border and arrived in Islam Qala, UNHCR and MoRR staff will inform you about further procedures in Afghanistan. Cash Grant: UNHCR s cash grant comprises US$150 to each member of a returning family at VRC or Dogharoun BCS, with a ceiling of US$750 for families with five members or more. Zonal Tariffs: As mentioned above, in self-organized repatriation, you will be responsible for arranging your own transportation (as well as transportation of your belongings). UNHCR will pay a travel grant for your transportation in Iran based on zonal tariffs as follows: Zone From the below provinces to Dogharoun BCS Tariff Per person / Rials 1 Khorasan, Golestan, Mazandaran & Semnan 110,000 2 Tehran, Qom, Markazi, Yazd, Esfahan, Gilan, Sistan & 230,000 Balouchestan, Hamedan, Chaharmaha & Bakhtiari, Kerman, Qazvin & Zanjan 3 Hormozgan, Khouzestan, Fars, Boushehr, Kohkilouyeh & Bouyer Ahmad, Lorestan, East Azerbaijan & West Azerbaijan. 430,000 Important Note: UNHCR s assistance towards travel costs is based on the above tariffs and by no means implies the full reimbursement of transportation costs incurred. ********************* Important Contact Information for Returnees VOLUNTARY REPATRIATION CENTERS (VRCs): Soleimankhani (Tehran): End of Golha Blvd., Km. 8 of Old Karaj Rd., Tehran Tel: (021) 44 56 31 48 Mahshad: Sarafazan Blvd., Sarafrazan 15, BAFIA Complex Esfahan: Next to Bonyad-e Maskan Warehouse, Petrochemical Road (Bakhtiar Dasht), Industrial University Square, Km 4 of Esfahan-Tehran Road. Tel: (0311) 380 4870 Shiraz: Modarres Boulevard, Poodanak Ave., Parvin Etesami Blvd., Opposite Arghavan Park, Corner of 20-Metri Shokoofeh Tel: (0711) 720 15 25 and 723 33 55 3
Customs Allowances and Restrictions The Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran will help all returning Afghans to take out their tools and household belongings with customs exemption unless prohibited. In order to take professional equipment and tools from Iran, a special permit is required. To obtain this, please contact one of the BAFIA offices near you. The Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan will assist the sustainable reintegration of refugees and displaced persons with custom exemption on Afghans working tools in all border crossing stations. For your information, below is the list of some permitted and prohibited items. For a complete list, please refer to UNHCR, or BAFIA or MoRR. Permitted items Personal belongings back to Afghanistan (luggage limitations apply), as long as they are noncommercial. Money in Rials and Afghanis and a maximum of US$ 1,000 or its equivalent in other currencies. Prohibited items Any items in commercial quantities. Hand-woven carpets, antiques and cultural heritage items are prohibited. Subsidized items such as medicine, cooking oil, wheat, flour, stationery, etc. Fuel, kerosene, gas oil, petrol and butane gas cylinders. MOTORCYCLES (whole or in parts). Imported professional equipment, machinery and computers, unless a special permit is obtained. ********************* Shelter for Refugee Returnees and IDPs UNHCR Reintegration Program The UNHCR shelter program is a community based, self help program in support of returning refugees who meet the criteria. The community takes primary responsibility for identifying eligible beneficiaries to be assisted through shelter programme. According to UNHCR shelter guidelines, key selection criteria are; holding a Voluntary Repatriation Form (VRF), female headed families, elderly or disabled person, very large families, families with very low income and extremely vulnerable families who cannot build their houses by themselves. UNHCR shelter programe targets both returnees and IDPs without prejudice and discrimination if they meet the selection criteria. UNHCR shelter package includes materials and technical support that would be provided free of charge through its implementing partners (IPs). UNHCR provides shelter assistance only to those Afghan returnees that are vulnerable and can not build a shelter without the help of UNHCR or the community. Priority is given to vulnerable returnee families who are in possession of documents as an evidence of land ownership. Furthermore, those who had built a house and resided on the government owned land for long time may also benefit from UNHCR shelter programme, provided that the land is not disputed and the local authorities issue a letter, which as intend a No-Objection Certificate (NOC) by the government authorities 4
allowing the returnee to legally build the shelter on the government owned land. In addition, a family who meets the vulnerability criteria and has a lease or right to use the land from a landowner may also be eligible for shelter assistance. In the case of landless returnees, the Afghan government has initiated the land allocation programme, allocating plots to landless eligible returnees in their places of origin. To ensure a fair and transparent beneficiaries selection process UNHCR engages communities who in turn form Beneficiary Selection Committees (BSC) consisting of the village Shura (committee of elders, women and trustees), representatives from the local government and implementing partners. Women are involved in the selection and implementation process if cultural dimensions and security allows. Women s participation in the BSCs paves the ground for a direct dialogue with the female beneficiaries and helps considerably in identifying eligible families who may not come to the attention of the Committee. The BSCs play an important role in identifying vulnerable families. The UNHCR shelter assistance is a self-help project. UNHCR does not build the homes for returnees but supports them by providing a shelter package (tools, roofing materials, lintels for doors and windows, doors, and windows), technical assistance through UNHCR s IP as well as a cash component of USD 50-100. Instances where a beneficiary is asked to pay for the shelter package, the issue should be immediately brought to the attention of the UNHCR responsible staff. UNHCR makes sure that the beneficiary achieves a minimum standard of quality, privacy and protection from the weather through close monitoring. UNHCR shelter, in accordance with the standard sphere, provides a minimum of 32 square meter living floor area to beneficiaries. The shelter package consists of two rooms, a corridor, and an external latrine. Contacts for Information on Shelter Program in Afghanistan: 1. Balkh, Faryab, Jawzjan, Samangan and Sari Pul provinces, Sayed Asrar Akbari, Contact number: +93 (0) 700500884 2. Badakhshan, Baghlan, Kunduz and Takhar provinces, Dawood Salimi Contact number: +93 (0) 700712300 3. Hilmand, Kandahar, Uruzgan and Zabul provinces, Abdul Jalil Contact number, +93 (0) 700301373 4. Khost, Paktika and Paktya provinces, Mirwais Contact number, +93 (0) 788558381 5. Kunar, Laghman, Nangarhar and Nuristan provinces, Mohammad Ishaq Sherzai Contact number, +93 (0) 700611628 6. Badghis, Farah, Ghor, Hirat and Nimroz provinces, Abdul Karim Contact number, +93 (0) 700401120 7. Ghazni, Kabul, Kapisa, Logar, Panjshir, Parwan and Wardak provinces, Khaliqyar Contact number, +93 (0) 700781352 8. Bamyan and Daykundi provinces, Ali Mohammad Mohaqiq Contact number, +93 (0) 708197957 Also, for more information please contact Mohammad Haroon, Senior Repatriation Associate UNHCR BO Kabul, Contact number: +93 (0) 700 283 026, E-mail: haroon@unhcr.org ************************** 5
Land Allocation Scheme (LAS) Potential Assistance for Landless Refugee Returnees and IDPs The Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation (MoRR) launched the Land Allocation Scheme (LAS) in December 2005. The LAS is intended to facilitate the reintegration in Afghanistan of certain refugees and internally displaced persons, by providing land to those landless individuals who qualify and are selected under the scheme. It should be emphasized, however, that refugees and IDPs even if landless do not have an absolute right to acquire land under the LAS. Indeed, the majority of landless refugee returnees and IDPs will not receive land. Presidential Decree 104 establishes the legal framework for the distribution of certain categories of land under the LAS to eligible refugee returnees and IDPs. As a threshold matter, the decree emphasizes that only landless families may apply. MoRR, the Directorates of Refugees and Repatriation (DoRRs) at provincial level, UNHCR and the legal aid offices of the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) can provide detailed information about the requirements set forth in the Presidential Decree 104, and provide returnees and IDPs with guidance on how to apply. In line with the spirit of the LAS, the most vulnerable refugee returnees and IDPs should be given priority in the selection process. Returnee and IDP families, who are vulnerable and would like to apply for land, should submit their applications to the DoRR in their province of origin. Although an important number of Afghan returnees have benefited from the LAS, it should be noted that the scheme has faced several challenges, which continue to restrict the scope and quality of the initiative. Such challenges include, among others, an incomplete legal framework; unclear procedures; a lack of transparency during the selection process; corruption; poor site selection; inadequate infrastructure on LAS sites; and limited livelihood opportunities in areas where LAS sites have been launched. Although UNHCR is working with the Government of Afghanistan to improve the LAS, refugee returnees and IDPs who seek to access land through the scheme should have realistic expectations. It should also be stressed that, whilst land ownership may, in some cases, contribute to re-integration, the LAS is not the only way to secure land. Individuals may also choose, for example, to apply for small loans to purchase land. Many families will pursue other options, such as living with their relatives; expanding the living quarters of family compounds; or renting housing in an urban or semi-urban setting If you are interested in learning more about the LAS, please contact the DoRR, UNHCR or NRC office at the provincial level. If you are unable to obtain the information you require locally, you may contact the following actors in Kabul: Contacts for Information on Land Allocation Program in Afghanistan: Mr. Marofi Omar Kalimullah, Head of Reintegration Unit, MoRR, Kabul Contact number: 0093 (0) 0799755403 Mr. Mirwais Saqeb, Legal Counselor, Information Counseling and Legal Aid Programme, NRC, Kabul, Contact number: +93 (0) 700039066, E-mail: msaqeb@nrcafpk.org ******************* 6
A house which was built by Afghan returnee family in assistance with UNHCR For more information, please contact: BAFIA Tehran Vali-asr Ave., End of West Mirdamad St. Tel: 8879 6864 & 88 77 9206 MoRR, Afghanistan Embassy Tehran Dr. Beheshti Ave., Pakistan Street, Corner of Fourth Street Tel: 88 73 75 31, 88 50 26 66 & 88 73 87 03 UNHCR Tehran Vanak, North Shiraz Ave., East Emdad St, No. 3 Tel: (021) 88 05 72 01-11 7