[Peace-discuss] ongoing disaster in Congo-Kinshasa

Thu Sep 7 13:33:51 CDT 2006

Following up on recent discussions on the humanitarian
catastrophe in the Democratic Republic of Congo, I
wanted to note that yesterday the UN mission there
said: "as many as 1,200 Congolese were dying on a
daily basis, mainly as a result of the continuing
conflict in the east".

A couple of recent articles follow.

But please note that the "estimated 150,000 IDPs
[internally displaced persons] in Katanga" mentioned
are only a fraction of the millions displaced by the
last ten years of war, where more people have died
than in any other confict since WWII (but the West has
barely noticed). 

But the problem is more than refugees.  There is still
fighting in some parts of the country, violence may
well break out again before rn-off elections scheduled
for Oct. 29, and, for example: 

"A group of policemen may have raped 60 women,
including two minors, and systematically tortured and
plundered civilians who were forced to seek refuge in
a nearby forest."

Add this new revelation to an earlier case in the same
region:

"In April, a military court in the provincial capital
Mbandaka sentenced seven soldiers to life in prison
for crimes against humanity committed in Equateur,
including the mass rape of at least 119 women [some of
them younger than 18]. It was the first time military
personnel in the country had been found guilty of
crimes against humanity. However, the military
garrison court in Songo Mboyo, 600 km northeast of
Mbandaka, acquitted five other soldiers of similar
charges."

Meanwhile, the US continues to ignore the situation
(no oil or "terrorists" as we define them) and some
European countries may be looking into recolonizing
the area (according to Der Spiegel Online).

Ugh!

Ricky

-------------
UN Humanitarian Chief Tours Displaced Camp And Meets
With Disarmed Rebels

UN News Service (New York)
NEWS
September 6, 2006
Posted to the web September 7, 2006

The United Nations Emergency Relief Coordinator spent
the second day of his visit to the Democratic Republic
of the Congo (DRC) at a camp for internally displaced
persons (IDPs) and a demobilization site in the
southern province of Katanga.

Jan Egeland, who is also the Under-Secretary-General
for Humanitarian Affairs, met with a group of recently
disarmed former members of the Mayi-Mayi militia, as
well as non-governmental organizations (NGOs) working
in the region.

According to the Office for Coordination of
Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), there are an estimated
150,000 IDPs in Katanga, most of whom fled their homes
due to fighting between Government forces and the
Mayi-Mayi.

In recent weeks, the UN Mission in the DRC, known by
its French acronym MONUC, has helped broker progress
on the disarmament front, which has allowed for some
initial returns of displaced persons.

Mr. Egeland is expected to head tomorrow to Bukavu in
South Kivu province to visit a clinic that specializes
in treating victims of sexual violence.

He is also expected to make a stop in Bunia province
before continuing on to Uganda and Juba, Sudan, as
part of his eight-day trip to three central African
nations.

Meanwhile, MONUC today expressed concern with the
country's "precarious" humanitarian situation. At a
press briefing in Kinshasa, it noted that as many as
1,200 Congolese were dying on a daily basis, mainly as
a result of the continuing conflict in the east.

But MONUC did express satisfaction with plans for the
upcoming run-off presidential election, scheduled for
29 October.

The mission said negotiations were progressing well
between President Joseph Kabila and Vice-President
Jean-Pierre Bemba, the two remaining candidates,
following clashes between their supporters after
first-round results were released last month.

MONUC noted that the printing of ballot papers for the
run-off election was well under way in South Africa,
as was the distribution of election kits throughout
the DRC.

------------------------------
New Cases of Rape And Abuse By Police in Equateur

UN Integrated Regional Information Networks
NEWS
September 7, 2006
Posted to the web September 7, 2006
Lubumbashi

The human-rights division of the United Nations
Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has
reported new cases of mass rape and abuse of civilians
in Equateur Province.

"A group of policemen may have raped 60 women,
including two minors, and systematically tortured and
plundered civilians who were forced to seek refuge in
a nearby forest," Jean-Tobbie Okala, the spokesman for
the UN Mission in the DRC, known as MONUC, said on
Wednesday in Kinshasa, the nation's capital.

In the latest case, Okala said, nine of the suspected
policemen had been arrested and two of the victims had
already presented testimony to the military in
Equateur's Bolongo district, where the alleged crimes
took place.

In April, a military court in the provincial capital
Mbandaka sentenced seven soldiers to life in prison
for crimes against humanity committed in Equateur,
including the mass rape of at least 119 women. It was
the first time military personnel in the country had
been found guilty of crimes against humanity. However,
the military garrison court in Songo Mboyo, 600 km
northeast of Mbandaka, acquitted five other soldiers
of similar charges.

The convicted soldiers committed the crimes in
December 2003 at Songo Mboyo. The soldiers initially
served in the former rebel movement known as Mouvement
pour la liberation du Congo (MLC), which is now a
political party. Among the charges the soldiers faced
were mass rape, crimes against humanity, robbery,
distribution of weapons and ammunitions and
insubordination. The court heard that some of the
women raped were younger than 18.

According to MONUC, a group of inspectors from its
human-rights division went to Equateur Province in
April 2004 to conduct investigations against the
alleged rape on a massive scale. The team established
that on the night of 21 December 2003, the Congolese
army battalion based in Songo Mboyo, which were
actually MLC troops, had raped 119 women and girls.
The battalion rebelled against its commanders, whom
they had accused of keeping part of their salaries.
The soldiers then robbed almost all the homes in the
villages of Songo-Mboyo and Bongandanga.

[ This report does not necessarily reflect the views
of the United Nations ] 

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