As a police officer dies in an accident while transporting arrest illegal immigrants from Burao to Hargeisa for deportation
By: Yusuf M Hasan
HARGEISA (Somalilandsun) – A police officer is reported to have lost his life following a road accident along the Hargeisa Berbera road.
The death of the officer and injury to numerous others occurred as the law enforcers were conveying illegal immigrants arrested in Burao to Hargeisa for subsequent repatriation to their country of origin Ethiopia.
While security at the Hargeisa Group Hospital where the dead and injured officers were taken to is very tight with police and hospital officials refusing to divulge factual information to the media, the accident came as the government jump-started its promised crackdown on illegal immigrants in the country.
On the other hand sources within the Ethiopian General consulate in Hargeisa indicate that staffers from its welfare section are at the Hospital where one of its national named only as Osman is reported dead while others among those being transported from Burao for repatriation are also injured.
Though the deadline issued by the administration to all foreigners living in the country to either register or leave voluntary before 1st February when the order becomes effective various agencies of the interior ministry among them Immigration department and police force started arresting suspected illegal’s in all major towns of the country on 19th January
In a recent strongly worded statement on new Security and Immigration guidelines issued by the administration of President Ahmed Mahmud Silanyo, the state warned that the continued and carte blanche prevalence of large numbers of foreigners living and working in Somaliland illegal shall no longer be tolerated.
The guidelines do not only target illegal’s but foreigners with valid visa who work in the country without permits thus also ordered to acquire relevant legalities before expiry of the grace period in lieu of deportation mostly Ethiopia where the large number of manual workers emanate from and Kenyans whose majority is mid level technocrats oriented especially in Education and health sectors.
While it is the imperative of every government to contain illegal migration within its borders as a prelude to enhance of security more so in the turbulent and Terrorist infested Horn Africa region, the administration in Hargeisa must tread carefully on the ongoing illegal’s clean-up as pertains to bi-lateral relations/
Mainly to deter and desist from, is the use of unruly youngsters effected during the illegal migrants search and arrest operation in Hargeisa on the 19th (Yesterday) that saw Oromo’s removed unceremoniously from their places of work.
Similarly while a large number of the arrests were oriented on Ethiopians in general the obsession with those from the Oromo tribe thence main target of forced expulsions is suspicious owing to acrimonies that ensued between them and home country authorities.
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