Regional: Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) from Kosovo

Source: UNHCR Geneva.

Albania

• UNHCR headquarters estimates that there are 439,500 refugees in Albania. Approximately 1,500 refugees entered Albania at the Morini border crossing on May 24.
• The Government of Albania (GOA) Emergency Management Group (EMG) reports that 1,980 refugees were transferred out of Kukes to southern and central Albania on May 24. The EMG estimates that there are 35,820 refugees in tent camps, and 2,474 in collective centers in Kukes Prefecture.
• The EMG estimates that there are 71,454 refugees in tent camps, 95,288 in collective centers, and 294,246 living with host families and in other accommodations nationwide.
• The USAID Disaster Assistance Response Team (DART) in Albania reports that the registration of refugees into Camp Hope has resumed today.
• The DART and the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) report that the planned capacity of 20,000 for Camp Eagle has been downsized to between 8,000 and 14,000 due to space constraints and flood potential at the site.
• The DART Food for Peace (FFP) Officer reports that WFP and Mercy Corps International (MCI) have reached an agreement that will enable MCI to distribute bread to well over 20,000 refugees living in host families in Shkoder.
• The International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) reported that it has the capacity to distribute food to 300,000 refugees and 50,000 host families. The IFRC estimates that it will meet their distribution capacity by the first week of June, provided that there are no large influxes of refugees into the country in the meantime.

Refugee Camp and Collective Center Information
Date: May 17, 1999

Source: Government of Albania, Emergency Management Group. Current camps = existing. Planned = under construction, soon to be constructed, or in the conceptual stage. Current Population represents combined population of all camps or centers in a given location. Total Estimated Capacity represents combined estimated capacity of camps and centers, planned and current, in a given location.

Macedonia

• UNHCR headquarters estimates that there are currently 246,700 refugees in Macedonia, 8,500 of whom arrived in the last 24 hours. On May 24, 1,142 refugees were transferred by air to third countries. UNHCR reports that 96,300 refugees are living in camps and transit centers and 120,432 refugees are registered by the Macedonian Red Cross as living with host families. UNHCR reports government estimates 30,000 refugees are living elsewhere in Macedonia.
• On May 24, the DART in Macedonia reported a backup of some 6,000 refugees trying at the reception center at the Kosovo-Macedonia border, with another 6,000 on the way. The DART reported another train with some 5,000 refugees on board awaiting clearance from Macedonian authorities to unload its passengers. The Macedonian Minister of the Interior arrived at the center to assure that the processing was done. The DART reported that the situation was under control.
• On May 25, MCI reported 3,000 - 10,000 refugees in "no-man's land" between Kosovo and Montenegro during the night of May 24. On a visit to the border area during the night of May 24, the DART observed large numbers of people being taken away by bus from the border to camps. According to the DART, about half of the refugees are being taken by bus to the reception center at Blace, while the other half are being taken directly to the camps. Some 7,400 people arrived overnight at the Blace Reception Center.
• UNHCR reported that Macedonian police beat some refugees when they tried to move forward towards the border processing booth too quickly.
• More than 31 buses arrived at the border on May 24 to transport refugees to Stankovac I and II. Buses took 21 loads of refugees to Stankovac I and 10 to Stankovac II on May 24. Later, 30 buses took 3,000 refugees to Cegrane. By midnight on May 24, Macedonian authorities had processed some 5,000 refugees across the border.
• The Cegrane camp is currently full with 40,000 refugees. The camp was expanded from its previous capacity of 37,000 to make room for the estimated 3,000 new arrivals. Further expansion is planned which would bring the capacity up to 50,000 by early June, according to the camp management.
• The 3,000 people who arrived at Cegrane on 30 buses on the night of May 24 were received by CARE, which gave each refugee two blankets, water, and a Humanitarian Daily Ration (HDR) as he or she arrived.
• At least 5,200 people arrived by bus at Stankovac I on May 24, bringing the total population up to 16,000-17,000 people.
• Sanitation remains the primary problem in Cegrane. OXFAM is developing a permanent sewage treatment system, which is expected to be ready by the end of June, according to camp management. Other water/sanitation areas slated for development are expansion of latrines, placement of hand washing stations outside of latrines, and development of bathing/showering facilities.
• The camp management at Cegrane also plans to develop cooking facilities and a market area, and will be opening a school during the week of May 30. Expansion of community services is also planned.
• According to UNHCR, camps in Macedonia will have an unused capacity of 24,500 spaces if all planned construction is completed.
• According to the DART, Radusa camp has the highest water consumption rate of any camp in Macedonia, and the town of Radusa is facing a water shortage due to the drain on its resources by the camp. The town has a reservoir, which could store water at night and eliminate shortage problems, but the pump is not functioning due to electricity supply problems. The Government of Macedonia (GOM) has promised to fix the problem but has not yet acted.
• The GOM has identified two contingency sites that could house up to 16,000 refugees. A site inspection team, which included U.S. Government (USG) and UNHCR representatives, reportedly examined the sites yesterday.
• Catholic Relief Service (CRS) reports that distributions to 1,600 host families and 10,000 refugees in host families in Kumanovo and Tetovo started May 24. Distributions to host families and refugees in Skopje this week will complete May distributions to registered refugees and their host families.
• According to State, UNHCR reported that a flight transporting refugees from Macedonia to Romania was cancelled due to lack of interest among refugees. Most refugees are opting for spaces in the U.S. or Western Europe.
• DOD reported on May 25 that 4,183 refugees had arrived in the U.S. The Fort Dix refugee population is currently 3,460, with a capacity for 4,200. Thirty-one refugees departed Fort Dix for host families on May 24.

Refugee Camp and Collective Center Information: Macedonia
Date: May 25, 1999 (see note)

Source: UNHCR Skopje and DART Macedonia. NOTE: Figures from UNHCR have not been updated since May 24 and have been augmented with rough figures provided by the DART on May 25 for Stankovac I, Cegrane, and Blace to reflect the new influxes at these places. Estimated capacity is calculated with figures provided by UNHCR as of May 24 for estimated remaining free space, added to May 24 UNHCR camp population figures.  

** Some refugees were moved to third countries by the GOM w/o UNHCR/IOM involvement: 10,000 to Albania, 5,500 to Greece, 1,980 to Turkey, and 88 to Croatia. (Source: UNHCR/Geneva)

Montenegro

• UNHCR headquarters estimates that there are 64,200 refugees in Montenegro. Approximately 220 refugees entered Montenegro between May 21 and 23.

Region

• ICRC reports that eight of its delegates arrived in Pristina on Monday to re-establish ICRC operations in Kosovo. An ICRC convoy of food and medical supplies is due to arrive in Pristina today.

Commodities

• No new information.

Financial Support

• To date the USG has provided over $200 million in response to the Kosovo crisis since March 1998. On May 18 President Clinton announced an additional $15 million toward the crisis under the Emergency Migration and Refugee Assistance fund (ERMA). These funds have yet to be spent and therefore are not included in the totals below.

USAID/BHR	$92,964,601
State/PRM	$69,779,500
DOD	$45,281,000
TOTAL	$208,025,101

Background:

• In late February 1998, following an unprecedented series of clashes in Kosovo between Serbian police forces and members of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), Serbian police raided villages in Kosovo's Drenica region, a KLA stronghold. The police reportedly burned homes and killed dozens of ethnic Albanians in these raids. Thousands of ethnic Albanians in Pristina protested Serb police actions, and were subsequently attacked by the police with tear gas, water cannons, and clubs.
• As a result of the fighting, thousands of Kosovar Albanians were displaced from their homes, many taking refuge with host families, while a smaller proportion (several thousand) took to the hills and forests.

Public Donation Information:

• In the interest of effective coordination of such public response, we encourage concerned citizens to provide monetary donations to appropriate organizations. USAID encourages the public to contact directly those private voluntary organizations (PVOs) currently working in the region to provide monetary donations. A list of those PVOs may be obtained from the USAID website at www.info.usaid.gov. The list is composed of PVOs that are registered with USAID and/or listed by InterAction, a coalition of voluntary humanitarian and development organizations that work overseas; InterAction can be contacted at 1-818-502-4288, or via the Internet at www.interaction.org. Those interested in providing specific technical relief services or commodities should contact Volunteers in Technical Assistance's (VITA) Disaster Information Center for information and guidelines (703) 276-1914.
• For more information, please contact the public donations hotline at 1-800-USAID-RELIEF, which is staffed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), is operational 24 hours a day, seven days a week. On May 24, 100 calls were made to the public donation hotline. Since April 6, a total of 48,844 calls have been received by the hotline.
• Past USAID/OFDA Factsheets can be obtained from the USAID web site at the following URL: http://www.info.usaid.gov/ofda/situation.html.