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DRC: Concern grows for civilians in Kibati

Briefing Notes, 21 November 2008

This is a summary of what was said by UNHCR spokesperson William Spindler – to whom quoted text may be attributed – at the press briefing, on 21 November 2008, at the Palais des Nations in Geneva.

We are increasingly concerned about the safety of tens of thousands of displaced Congolese civilians in the Kibati camps in the outskirts of Goma, the capital of the troubled province of North Kivu in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. In an alarming incident in the early hours of this morning (Friday), a 20-year old woman was shot and killed at the Kibati camp and a number of families were forced to leave their huts, which were then looted by armed men. Our team in Kibati is assessing the situation and the needs of the victims.

Over the past weeks we have repeatedly expressed our concern for the safety of some 67,000 internally displaced Congolese civilians sheltered in the Kibati camps. We fear that the civilian population, already in a dramatic and desperate humanitarian situation, could be caught in the crossfire, should fighting resume in the area.

The latest incident adds to the pressure on UNHCR and the provincial authorities to move almost half of the 67,000 internally displaced people (IDPs) currently staying in two camps in Kibati to the new Mugunga III camp, located to the west of Goma.

We, together with our partners, have been taking advantage of relative calm in North Kivu this week to step up work on a new camp for up to 30,000 displaced people.

This lull has enabled UNHCR and partners to mark out the 65-hectare Mugunga III site, clear the ground and start building accommodation blocks and most urgent infrastructure, including reception and shelter facilities, access roads and latrines. A water distribution system is being built, with six standpipes now in operation to supply up to 10,000 people.

The work conditions are extremely difficult at the planned site as it lies on a hardened lava rock field and digging of sanitation pits and levelling of access roads is taking time.

We plan to start the relocation of internally displaced people from Kibati to Mugunga III as soon as the basic conditions are in place. UNHCR will help the provincial authorities move people on a voluntary basis from the two Kibati camps to Mugunga III. Most people will make the 15-kilometre journey by foot, but young children, the elderly and the infirm will be transported by truck. For those who will make the journey on foot, we are also working on the construction of several way stations between the two sites where people will be able to rest and refresh before moving on again towards Mugunga III.

Meanwhile, we are bringing in additional aid to North Kivu. Six UNHCR trucks with trailers – loaded with humanitarian assistance – arrived on Wednesday from UNHCR's regional emergency stockpile in Ngara, Tanzania. The convoy brought in 2,425 pieces of plastic sheeting, 1,204 kitchen sets, 18,444 high thermal blankets, 13,750 sleeping mats, 4, 200 collapsible 10 litre water jerry cans and 15,000 mosquito nets. The next shipment of humanitarian assistance will also include more than 13,000 blankets and over 600 rolls of plastic sheeting needed for shelter construction

Fighting in North Kivu intensified at the end of 2006. By January 2008, it had brought the total number of IDPs in the region to more than 800,000. Since the fighting resumed in August, some 250,000 civilians have fled, many of them already displaced. In addition, an estimated 12,000 Congolese refugees have crossed the border into Uganda.

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The crisis in North Kivu continues

Insecurity in Democratic Republic of the Congo's North Kivu province continues, with more than 500,000 people internally displaced, many for the second or third time. Armed combat, persecution of civilians, killings, abductions, sexual abuse and forced recruitment of children still lead to displacement. Reports of rapes and murders number in the thousands. Some 176,000 of the displaced live in Masisi District, including 49,000 hosted in 19 camps. Conditions are harsh, with entire families living in one-room ramshackle huts with no water or services. UNHCR is very concerned about the security situation, living conditions and the future of the displaced. Even though some 36,000 people living in camps in North Kivu managed to return home in 2010, approximately 72,000 remain.

UNHCR is coordinating 31 camps for internally displaced people (IDP) in the whole of North Kivu, providing emergency assistance. UNHCR is facing enormous challenges in terms of access to the areas where the IDPs are hosted and continues to plead for humanitarian access to assist the people in need.

The crisis in North Kivu continues

Congo's river refugees

More than 100,000 Congolese refugees have crossed the Oubangui River in search of safety in neighbouring Republic of the Congo since inter-ethnic violence erupted in their home areas late last year. They fled from Equateur province in the north-west of Democratic Republic of the Congo after Enyele militiamen launched deadly assaults in October on ethnic Munzayas over fishing and farming rights in the Dongo area. The tensions have spread to other parts of the province.

The majority of the displaced are camping in public buildings and some 100 sites along a 600-kilometre stretch of the Oubangui River, including with host communities. The massive influx is stretching the meagre resources of the impoverished and remote region. Help is urgently needed for both the refugees and the host communities.

The relief operation is logistically complex and expensive because the region can only be reached by plane or boat. However, few boats are available and most are in need of repair. Fuel is expensive and difficult to procure.

Congo's river refugees

Displaced in North Kivu: A Life on the Run

Fighting rages on in various parts of the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), with seemingly no end in sight for hundreds of thousands of Congolese forced to flee violence and instability over the past two years. The ebb and flow of conflict has left many people constantly on the move, while many families have been separated. At least 1 million people are displaced in North Kivu, the hardest hit province. After years of conflict, more than 1,000 people still die every day - mostly of hunger and treatable diseases. In some areas, two out of three women have been raped. Abductions persist and children are forcefully recruited to fight. Outbreaks of cholera and other diseases have increased as the situation deteriorates and humanitarian agencies struggle to respond to the needs of the displaced.

When the displacement crisis worsened in North Kivu in 2007, the UN refugee agency sent emergency teams to the area and set up operations in several camps for internally displaced people (IDPs). Assistance efforts have also included registering displaced people and distributing non-food aid. UNHCR carries out protection monitoring to identify human rights abuses and other problems faced by IDPs in North and South Kivu.

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