Hello there and welcome to Focus on Africa. I am in Kecji, Ubonna in Nairobi. Kyrgyzstanma resigns as the UK's prime minister and leader of the Labour Party. What does this mean for the estimated 3 million African migrants living in the UK? This has already started to affect lots of people coming in from Africa as health workers because of the more stringent rules including restrictions on family reunions. And 16 years away from home that's the average time refugees in eastern and south Africa spend in exile. We hear one month's journey and what life is like as a former refugee. I didn't know what mean refugees during that time and when I went to Rwanda I realized that I had to go to the interior minister for an interview so I can get the refugee status. And so for me I become a refugee in Rwanda. It's Monday June 22nd. The question my party is asking now is whether I am best placed to lead us into the next general election. I have heard the answer of my parliamentary party to that question. And I accept that answer with good grace. Every decision I've taken has been about putting the country I love first. That is why I will resign as leader of the Labour Party. That was Circusstanma announcing his resignation as the UK's prime minister and leader of the Labour Party a few hours ago. His resignation follows wicks of mountain pressure following alleged political missteps, a slowing economy and a significant loss of voter support from the ruling Labour Party to the reform party. Starma asked the Labour Party executives to set out a timetable with nominations opening for the leadership on July 9th. This will mean a new leader is in place before parliament returns in September. But until then he will remain in post as prime minister. Meanwhile in a post on his official ex-handle, a position and reform leader Nigel Farage called Starma quote the most incompetent prime minister the UK has had and is also calling for a general election at the sonnest possible dates. So what do some African migrants living in the UK think of his resignation? So as a skill worker visa holder I am really concerned whether or not the UK prime minister resignation is going to face my rights to stay at work in the UK. He's not been well like, he's not viewed as charming and I think he's been trying to do something which appeals to both the left and the right. Following his announcement there have been renewed talks about migration and what it means for the estimated 3 million African migrants living across the United Kingdom. Earlier I spoke to Abdurrahman Said, a British a retran political analyst based in the UK and started by asking him what he makes of the announcement. There has been ongoing discussions about Kirsta farmers leadership and popularity. The reform party has also been quite successful in local elections in May just last May that obviously puts a lot of pressure on the leadership so this was kind of like reflection and obviously the change was also needed I think within the party. Sometimes critics argue especially the West you know sees Africa as politically unstable, quick, successive change of government or a military coups interrupting democracy and all of that but the irony is the UK has seen four prime ministers in the last five years. Is that not a replica of political instability? It is a political inseability to an extension but it's quite incomparable with African political inseability. The reason for that is UK is a parliamentary democracy and the change of leadership does not really cause a constitutional crisis or that happiness is the majority party in parliament would just replace the leader by another leader without much even going back to election order or anything of that so it's quite smooth in terms of the transition from one premiership to another it doesn't really cause much crisis. At the same time obviously there will be some hot issues around immigration for example and here the new leaders might try to show how tough they would be on on those issues. Speaking of immigration policies there you know June 23 which is tomorrow is the anniversary of Brexit and it would mark 10 years since that decision. Now how has Britain spent that decade? As it spent the last decade debating immigration and instead of deciding what kind of migrants it actually wants. Brexit was won marginally by very small percentage so the country was actually almost divided half and half between supporters of a scene within the European Union or exiting that. In general I think people now realize the expected benefits of Brexit has not really materialized and Britain now find itself quite isolated. Still speaking on migration you know many Africans leave work and even study in the UK. Should they expect any immediate changes to the immigration policy? There will be some impact on not only African students but generally foreign students in the UK. However that has also been causing great challenges to the university because a large chunk of their income or budget comes from overseas students who come to study in the UK. So there is going to be a huge challenge from both sides. It's not just about African but generally the visas for foreign students and the university's needs for budgets that can be generated from overseas students. Mind you overseas students normally pay about three to four times more than a home student. Abdul Rahman Said, a British and region political analyst based in the UK. Now Kirstama assumed office on July 5th 2024 after a landslide general election victory. On his second African visit which took place at the annual G20 summit held in South Africa last year his government announced the major shift from traditional aid with the focus and bilateral trade mobilising private capital and economic growth. Notably was the announcement of a £400 million deal in exports and investments. The Labour-led government continues to strengthen its partnership with Africa even as it battles for influence with big contenders like Russia, China and India. And so to x-ray what does resignation could mean for UK-Africa relations? I spoke to Professor Tony Karabira, a Ugandan professor of International Law and Human Rights at the University of East London. The resignation of Sarkia's summer ultimately has got areas of thoughts that are very very critical especially looking at Africa broadly. But first of all not forgetting that the Labour Party are still in control of the government despite the rising threat of reform UK which a lot of people consider to be the more far-right party. Two things to note, basically Sarkia's summer has had a lot of challenges navigating around the foreign policy but also internal affairs of the UK. The UK at the moment hosts lots of migrants from the Commonwealth close to £3 million for Africa. But over the last year there's been an official Labour-government policy to turn around the immigration rules. And of course this has already started to affect lots of people coming in for Africa as health workers because of the more stringent rules including restrictions on family reunions, a lot of students mostly from Nigeria and other countries coming to study in the UK are increasingly finding it difficult to get visas but also to stay in the UK for work placements because of the changes in the immigration rules that the Labour Party has introduced. But like I said this is also largely because of the pressure that Kia Summer's own party has been facing in the last two years. Right. Prof, talking about relations with Africa in terms of trade and security and investment. Last year, November to be precise, Sarkia's summer was in Johannesburg for the G20 summit and he announced a new partnership with Africa and I think he announced a £2.5 billion investment of what of trade deals on the continent. Do you see his resignation inter-rupting or interfering with that agreement going forward? Not at all. The deal would ultimately go on and unfortunately like I said, you can find this stuff at the global level polarised environment.
where this China is seeking to dominate and the USA, so clear summer has tried, especially South Africa being the largest economy in Africa, has tried to get South Africa closer. Brought in my opinion, this is not enough. The biggest engagement should have been and should be under the commonwealth, where Britain should seek to have more impact, especially in relation to the issue of reparations for slavery. And this is something unfortunately that Kiersterma downplayed. There has been calls, especially by leaders from Africa and the Caribbean for reparative justice. And I'm proud just before I let you go, and for someone listening to you from Banjul or all Jerez or Maputo, why should this moment matter to them? This moment should matter to them because the internal British politics has an bearing on the foreign policy, in that the prime minister that has resigned over the past couple of months has led towards more restriction of immigration. And so it will be interesting to see the trajectory that the labor party will take. Many thanks to Professor Tony Karabira from East London. This is Focus on Africa from the BBC World Service. (upbeat music) When you hear the word refugee, what comes to mind? A statistic, a displacement camp, or someone fleeing a conflict? This past weekend, as the world marked world refugee day, new UN figures revealed that refugees in eastern and southern Africa spent nearly 16 years in exile on average, while almost 118 million people globally have been forcibly displaced. But behind those numbers are deeply personal stories. We hear from Jean-Doc Cacous-Soucambel, a former refugee from the DRC, and once a nationally known footballer. He fled persecution on the Demoboute regime, survived the Rwandan genocide, and spent years in refugee camps. He is now helping transform lives through education in the US and eastern DRC. I was involved in a very famous organization. Many people from Bukavu during that time, they know the organization. It's funny because it used to call BBC Karabur. And the name BBC because it was just a place where young people come, and we started having conversation about what is going on in the country. And so that movement became almost like a youth civil society movement, to become very popular. And this BBC was it an acronym for something? Of course, it came from that idea of a BBC news. A place where people are receiving news. And of course, they will collect all the news around the world, will share it with people because we didn't have any way for many young people to get information. And then we'll use it also as a political channel to be able to pass our message against the government. So talk me through how from being an activist and being active in politics, you're transceded into becoming a refugee. So I think from there I was arrested. And after I was arrested, I was lucky enough because I was well known. And the DRC helped me, the Red Cross helped me. But they told me I have to leave. I have to leave, I have to go to Rwanda. So I left from Bukavu to Rwanda because again, Rwanda is just border to Bukavu. And so when I went to Kigali, the idea of all to find peace, I didn't know what to mean refugees during that time. And when I went to Rwanda, I realized that I had to go to the Interior Minister for an interview so I can get the refugees to us. For me, that is the first time I understood that they are refugees. And so for me, I become a refugee in Rwanda for the first time. So I understood that now you are depending on an international organization and on a piece of paper that they call protection later. It was the first time for me. When you realized that you had become a refugee in Rwanda, what did that do to you? It's changed you. You know, people tell you about your limits, what you can do and what you can do. So I had to face that reality and limitation that comes with a prejudice and this idea that you are not like anybody else. How long did you stay in Rwanda before moving on? So I stayed in Rwanda for one and a half, when I came in 1993 and again, I started playing soccer because it was only way. I didn't have anything to do. I came to work. I came to go to school. And so I would stay home and then receive some support from a UNSR and then evening time I would go to play soccer. And when the genocide happened, by the way, that people are getting killed. And so I had to find a way to survive because people were running. But I can't go to Congo. So I found a way to go to Red Cross. And when I went to Red Cross, I found that people are also panicking there. But they told me that I have to find a way to go to Hotel Milcolyne. And that's a hotel Rwanda. Hotel Rwanda, yes. People didn't know if that war is going to last. So the idea is to seek protection for short period of time. But to move from Dicondo where I was living to Hotel Milcolyne, it was just horrible. I saw so many things. I got stopped so many times. There is a place they stopped me and they asked me to dance a Congolese music. This was a form of verification. Yes, verification that I'm really Congolese. And that was several times. And I've seen people who have been killed because they accuse them for being something. So I found myself at Hotel Milcolyne. But after a second day, that day, the people told her that a situation is becoming worse. There is no food in Hotel. And the manager told her that if you know somebody in Europe, in any country, you can send the facts. You know, you can ask for help, but the situation is just becoming bad. And then we are afraid that the militia can attack the hotel. Our group is a group that left the hotel. We found ourselves at the airport. And then at the airport, they told her that the militia may attack the airport. So a Belgium general told her that again, there is an airplane. And they are going to take people. We didn't know where. And we found ourselves in Nairobi. So our group is a group that stay at the airport, I think, for a month. People have passport. I have a refugee status. A letter. And that is my first lesson to learn that I'm stateless. Because there is no state that can claim me. And then from that time, I will receive food from International Comments of the Red Cross. And the Red Crescent. And I think some Lebanese used to bring us foods there. And finally, I found myself in Kaku. So refugee camp. And again, for me, faced time to know refugee camp. So I found myself in a almost a desert in Kaku. My refugee camp, both to Sudan and Kenya. And what was the experience like in that refugee camp? It was tough first because of the experience that I had in Kigali. But tough again, because I found myself like in prison. Really? How so? Because there is no movement. They give you a piece of paper. They give you material to build your own home. And then make shifts. Make shifts here. And then you find people there who say I've been here for 20 years. People were in that camp for 20 years. For 20 years, yeah. 20, 15 years. And then you realize that, okay, this is my life. I'm going to live here in 20 or 15 years. And then all this dream as a young person that you had just disappear in your mind. Well, Jean, when you hear the word refugee today, what do you want people to understand that is often missed or even misunderstood? I think I want people to know that just human being is the story that people sometimes have no choice. It can happen to anybody. That was my lesson. It's a human story, who people who are forced sometimes to live their comfort zone and in such for just peace. Jean d'Aqqa Kusukambel there. So what would it take to find lasting solutions? I put it to UNHCR High Commissioner, Dr. Barham said. That is one of the unfortunate reality about displacement today. According to our data, nearly 70% of the world's refugee population are stuck in a state of limbo five years and on in camps as refugees dependent on humanitarian assistance in many, many cases than sisters. We really need to address that issue head on. That is why I have actually a High Commissioner for Refugees identified this via priority. We need to reduce the number of these people staying in these long term displacement by half within the next 10 years. This is the ambition that we have set ourselves for. And by the way, I want to remind myself to the audience all of us, being a refugee is meant to be a temporary situation. It's not meant to be a permanent fate. It is not meant to be a way of life. You speak about people on asylum not meant to exceed about five years or six years in exile. But what does that say to long-term solutions that are available to these kinds of people? There is a fundamental problem with the situation that we have. Having people dependent on humanitarian assistance endlessly is not the way to deal with us. It creates a dependency and I believe it's also a violation of basic human right to dignity. What we need to do is to work with governments and host nations to really find path
for economic inclusion and self-reliance. We are working actively with the international financial institutions, development actors, the World Bank, the IMF and other regional development banks. The private sector also to really bring in development assistance for these communities with the idea of creating jobs, including people into the national economies. This is the way forward. So, bar I'm just before I let you go. Host countries like Uganda, Ethiopia and Kenya have carried a disproportionate share of responsibility for refugees fleeing crisis, most of which are in Sudan, South Sudan and Somalia. Now, one more can be done to support these front line states. I want to commend these societies, these countries for really amazing hospitality and accommodation that they have shown to these refugees. We simply cannot take that or rant it. We need to be there, both as UNSY are as a global community to really help share responsibility, shoulder responsibility with them and trying pathways for inclusion and self-reliance that can help the host communities as well as the refugees that have been forced to flee into these situations. But, Dr. Berham, beyond displacement comes. What other support must be provided for these states who are providing safe haven for those who are fleeing conflict? First and foremost, I think we should lose sight of the imperative of peace. This conflict tends to then need to be perturbed and there needs to be peace because, along as there is the stare of war, people are leaving. So, we should keep an eye on that. But, while that is being solved on format, there are other conflict situations that we have in the continent that are pushing people out. We need to bring in development assistance to these communities with the idea of creating jobs via bold economic projects that can really help revitalize the economic situations of these host communities. That's why you can have refugees included and instead of people being stuck in camps and dependent on humanitarian assistance. Dr. Berham Sali, UNHCR's High Commissioner there. And that's it on focus in Africa today. Should you want to speak with us, please send a WhatsApp message on +254-791-269-243 or drop us an email on
[email protected]. You can also leave us a message on our social media at BBC Africa if there are any stories you think are underreported in your community or country. Do get in touch and we might cover them. Today's episode was produced by Victor Chege and Priya Cipi in Nairobi while blessing at Derogba was in Lagos. Ki Gansei Shumba was the senior journalist in charge while her boat Masua is the technical producer. Our editors are Charles Gitonga and Mariam Adella and K.C. Ubonna and I'll speak to you again soon.
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