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Dwindling
land access in Ethiopia is a critical issue for 80 percent of the population
who make a living as small farmers. Credit: Isaiah Esipisu/IPS
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ADDIS
ABABA, Dec 21 2013 (IPS) - The return of 120,000 young undocumented migrant
workers from Saudi Arabia to Ethiopia has sparked fears that the influx will
worsen the country’s high youth unemployment and put pressure on access to
increasingly scarce land.
As a
result, a growing number of young Ethiopians are choosing to migrate to Sudan
to circumvent an indefinite travel ban slapped by the Ethiopian government last
month on Ethiopian workers traveling to Middle Eastern countries.
[...]
Saudi
Arabia’s crackdown on undocumented foreign workers began after a seven-month
amnesty period expired on Nov. 3. Since then, 120,000 Ethiopian migrants have
been repatriated to Ethiopia after being corralled in a deportation camp for
two months, where conditions are reportedly abject.
Many
Ethiopians have reported human rights violations at the hands of their
employers as well as while under the control of security forces inside the
camps.
