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Congo-Kinshasa: UN Voices Concern At Attacks Against Humanitarian Organizations
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UN News Service (New York)
19 December 2007
Posted to the web 20 December 2007
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) today voiced serious concern over attacks by armed groups involving humanitarian vehicles and staff in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), where fighting and spiralling lawlessness have displaced hundreds of thousands of people over the past year.
"We are requesting the Government and all armed groups present in this zone to take all necessary measures urgently to improve security and facilitate access for humanitarian organizations on the ground," OCHA said in a statement.
It cited more than 10 incidents in 2007 involving vehicles and humanitarian staff in the Goma and Rutshuru areas, where fighting has flared recently between Government troops and rebels allied to dissident army general Laurent Nkunda.
Just last Sunday, a vehicle of an international non-governmental organization (NGO) was attacked in the town of Nyongera in the middle of the day while the population watched helplessly.
Despite such systematic violations of humanitarian principles, aid organizations have maintained their field operations to help hundreds of thousands of displaced and vulnerable people. For the last two weeks, these organizations have been helping local health authorities fight a cholera outbreak in Rutshuru.
Three international organizations have already announced that they will suspend their operations from tomorrow for 48 hours "to re-evaluate the security situation and to make the parties to the conflict realize the risks related to a withdrawal of humanitarian presence in the event of a more serious incident," OCHA said.
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Although the DRC held its first democratic elections in over four decades last year, solidifying its transition from a six-year civil war that cost 4 million lives in fighting and attendant hunger and disease - widely considered the most lethal conflict in the world since World War II - fighting has continued in the volatile east of the vast country.
It is a sacrilege per excellence for Africa Union (AU) to just ignor the suffering of the people of Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) for decades as if the DRC does not mean anything to the AU and so can be dispensed with or destroyed. The AU has a lot of rethinking to do on the situation in the DRC and the part that should be played. The perpetrators of the destructive situation in the DRC are responsible for the situation in the Sudan and the situatrion in the Niger Delta in Nigeria. The situation could be... [Read Full Text]
When we read about the world history exactly those developed world, we find that there were many conflicts in county itself or with other nation, I think what Kongo is going through now is going to be a great history and our children will learn them at that time. Nobody in this world cares about the other then he to be cared about himself, I mean that Congolese (Congo) must take care not AU or usa neither eu, Congo is the one who knows is problem must try to solve it by himself, all these other nations coming to congo... [Read Full Text]
As it was reported in the media, congolese armed force attacked aid worker, for my opinion as we can see those aid worker or world good people who created the war in congo and come to help, it is so wonder, in real if we want to understand congo doesn't need these guys, people should depend on themself then the country can go head. Since you are getting weapons and food from relief then everybody becomes lazy no struggle even in making peace, we pray and beg our family in congo to refuse these food b'se they are killler food,... [Read Full Text]
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