Humanitarian Crisis in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
24 July- 19 May 2009: More than 35,000 civilians have been forced to flee after an outbreak of fighting in the eastern Congolese province of South Kivu, reports
UNHCR in a press release dated 24 July. These people reportedly fled after the government launched a fresh military campaign on July 12 in the Uvira area of South Kivu. The campaign is aimed at the disarmament of the so-called Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) and their local militia allies
Humanitarian actors in the Democratic Republic of Congo appealed on 17 June for US $38 million in life-saving assistance for nearly one million civilians whose already poor situation has grown worse following armed attacks and military operations in the eastern part of the country. The new funds would be used for civilians living mainly in the provinces of North Kivu and South Kivu where 800,000 people have internally displaced since the beginning of the year. (see press release [pdf])
IRIN is reporting a marked increase in the number of rape cases in the eastern province of South Kivu. According to a public information officer with the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), Nestor Yombo, at least 463 cases of rape have been recorded in the past three months - more than half the number reported in the whole of 2008.
The Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) has allocated on 2 June over
$12 million for humanitarian assistance in Haut and Bas Uélé districts in DRC that have borne the brunt of a renewed wave of violence since Congolese, Sudanese and Ugandan armed forces began a joint military operation against the Lord Resistance Army (LRA).
Since March, the civilian population of South Kivu has become increasingly victim of looting, extortion, killing and rape, according to
OCHA first situation report dated 19 May covering the South Kivu province Following the announcement of impending military operations in the province by the Forces Armées Congolaises (FARDC) against the Forces Démocratiques pour la Libération du Rwanda (FDLR), the protection of civilians has become a major concern, adds the report.
At least twelve large-scale FDLR attacks were registered since March involving killings, rapes, burning of houses, extortions and pillaging. The most deadly attack occurred in Busurungi, on the night of 10 to 11 May. Approximately 77 persons were killed with machetes, axes and knives or burned alive, and more than 700 houses were burnt. FARDC has also been responsible for pillaging, confiscations of harvests and food rations, destruction of houses and extortions and has perpetrated numerous rapes.
.
A surge in sexual violence has been recorded in South Kivu since the beginning of this year while an estimated 120,000 people have been displaced in South Kivu due to FDLR reprisals or FARDC-FDLR confrontation.
On a mission to Africa, members of the Security Council arrived early on 18 May in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in order to assess the latest efforts by the Government of the DRC and the United Nations to consolidate peace and security in North Kivu. The Council members will also examine the promotion of economic recovery and development in the DRC.
The members visited the Kiwanja camp for Internally Displaced Persons, near Goma, in North Kivu province, where they met with representatives of some thirteen thousand internally displaced persons (IDPs).
The delegation was also briefed by the military leadership of the UN Mission in the DRC (MONUC) about the current UN-backed operations that are being conducted by the Congolese army to address the problems of foreign and local illegal armed groups. The delegation also heard a briefing on the intra-Congolese dialogue by former Nigerian president Olusegun Obasanjo in his capacity as the Secretary-General’s special envoy for the Great Lakes region.
On 19 May, the delegation met in Kinshasa with senior-level meetings with government officials, including President Joseph Kabila.