SOMALIA / DISPLACED

A devastating drought has forced more than 135,000 Somalis to flee so far this year. UNHCR estimates that a quarter of Somalia's 7.5 million population are now either internally displaced or living outside the country as refugees. UNHCR

• Categories: News & Features / News Stories / Unifeed
• Video Length: 00:02:26
• Production Date: 13 July 2011
• Asset Language: Original
• Corporate Name: UNITED NATIONS HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR REFUGEES - UNHCR
• Subject Topical: REFUGEES; DISPLACED PERSONS
• Geographic Subject: SOMALIA
• MAMS Id: U110713d

Description

STORY: SOMALIA / DISPLACED
TRT: 2.26
SOURCE: UNHCR
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: SOMALI / NATS

DATELINE: 29, 30 JUNE 2011, MOGADISHU, SOMALIA

Shotlist

1. Med shot, baby crying of hunger
2. Wide shot, crowd
3. Close up, baby sleeping
4. Wide shots, group of people waiting
5. Wide shots, camp
6. Med shot, group of people entering the camp
7. SOUNDBITE (Somali) Fadumo Isaq, displaced Somali:
“For three days we were on our way. We were hungry. We could not stay home without food, we and the children have nothing.”
8. Wide shots, street of Mogadishu
9. Wide shots, people
10. Med shot, refugee tent
11. Wide shots, woman feeding her new born baby
12. Close up, baby
13. SOUNDBITE (Somali) Batulo Madey, displaced Somali:
“We have suffered from drought, hunger, thirst. Our livestock have perished. Our farms dried. We have suffered. We left our homes because of the situation. We need food. We need help.”
14. Wide shots, reception center
15. Various shots, faces at reception centre
16. SOUNDBITE (Somali) Ka’nana Haqtabe, displaced Somali:
"There is hunger every where. We had to flee to save our lives. Even if we had to die along the way. We had to flee from hunger.”
17. Various shots, food distribution

Storyline

New arrivals to south Mogadishu, victims of a new crisis in Somalia, a devastating drought that has forced more than 135,000 Somalis to flee so far this year.

The drought killed livestock, destroyed crops say these displaced cutting off their livelihood's, so they walked for weeks to get some help.

SOUNDBITE (Somali) Fadumo Isaq, displaced Somali:
“For three days we were on our way. We were hungry. We could not stay home without food; we and the children do not have anything.”
UNHCR estimates that a quarter of Somalia's 7.5 million population is now either internally displaced or living outside the country as refugees.
Batulo Madey is one of the displaced. She gave birth, alone, on the way to the Somali capital.
SOUNDBITE (Somali) Batulo Madey, displaced Somali:
“We have suffered from drought, hunger, thirst. Our livestock have perished. Our farms dried. We have suffered. We left our homes because of the situation. We need food. We need help.”

Children are particularly affected over half of them are suffering from malnutrition in some cases their vulnerability leaving them with little strength to live.At this feeding centre run by a local NGO, the numbers of people in need is almost overwhelming. They wait patiently under the sun here at least, they will get some food.

SOUNDBITE (Somali) Ka’nana Haqtabe, displaced Somali:
"There is hunger every where. We had to flee to save our lives. Even if we had to die along the way. We had to flee from hunger.”

In Somalia, fleeing hunger is made worse by the insecurity.

Access for aid agencies is not easy. Many Somalis cannot even reach centres like these the routes are just too dangerous.

Instead they travel for a month or more, through desert, to neighbouring Kenya and Ethiopia.

In June alone, 54,000 Somalis fled to those two countries, three times the number of people who fled in May. All these are factors that could make this a humanitarian crisis of unimaginable proportions.