...far too long, I know! I’m pretty sure I even forgot that I have a blog for a few months back there. Things got really busy at the office since I was running the Programs department for awhile while my supervisor was out of town. A lot has happened in the last half a year though (has it already been that long!?).
Insecurity in our project sites has been increasing as the Congolese army (FARDC) has been working with MONUC (the UN mission to Congo) to root out the FDLR (Rwandan Hutu rebels who have been hiding in Congo’s forests since 1995 when they were chased out of Rwanda). You may have already heard a bit of the story, but international news doesn’t often report on details of the conflicts in Congo. Kimya II Operations (Kimya ironically means peace in Lingala) have finally begun, if not officially.
Every week we hear stories of FDLR kidnapping villagers, sometimes torturing them, sometimes holding them hostage for a reward. The Hutu extremists have been living next to or among Congolese villages since they arrived 15 years ago, so forcing them to leave is quite a challenge. The problem, though, with deploying FARDC troops into the province to “protect” the civilians, is that they too tend to live off the backs of the population. Soldiers are rarely, if ever, paid on time, and their meager salaries do not promote an easy life for their dependants. The 14th Brigade is well known for raiding villages for useful items and their wives can be found selling the stolen goods closer to town.
In short, the whole thing is really complicated, and I really don’t know if the military will ever succeed in chasing the Interhamwe out of the country. In North Kivu when FARDC and Rwandese troops arrived, the rebels fled the villages where they were living, but not across the border. After the troops left the now “liberated” villages, the FDLR came back and punished the villagers for being complicit in the Congolese government’s desire to wipe them out.
We humanitarians are waiting for conflict to die down a bit so we can go in and pick up the pieces. There are already tens of thousands of displaced people in all three of the main territories of S Kivu: Mwenga, Shabunda and Kalehe. Now even Fizi is starting to see movement of populations as Kimia operations begin in the south. FH is planning to respond to the needs of some of the displaced (differentiated from refugees who seek haven outside their own country) in the food security sector. We’re working on proposals and budgets this week.
More coming soon, don’t worry!
Insecurity in our project sites has been increasing as the Congolese army (FARDC) has been working with MONUC (the UN mission to Congo) to root out the FDLR (Rwandan Hutu rebels who have been hiding in Congo’s forests since 1995 when they were chased out of Rwanda). You may have already heard a bit of the story, but international news doesn’t often report on details of the conflicts in Congo. Kimya II Operations (Kimya ironically means peace in Lingala) have finally begun, if not officially.
Every week we hear stories of FDLR kidnapping villagers, sometimes torturing them, sometimes holding them hostage for a reward. The Hutu extremists have been living next to or among Congolese villages since they arrived 15 years ago, so forcing them to leave is quite a challenge. The problem, though, with deploying FARDC troops into the province to “protect” the civilians, is that they too tend to live off the backs of the population. Soldiers are rarely, if ever, paid on time, and their meager salaries do not promote an easy life for their dependants. The 14th Brigade is well known for raiding villages for useful items and their wives can be found selling the stolen goods closer to town.
In short, the whole thing is really complicated, and I really don’t know if the military will ever succeed in chasing the Interhamwe out of the country. In North Kivu when FARDC and Rwandese troops arrived, the rebels fled the villages where they were living, but not across the border. After the troops left the now “liberated” villages, the FDLR came back and punished the villagers for being complicit in the Congolese government’s desire to wipe them out.
We humanitarians are waiting for conflict to die down a bit so we can go in and pick up the pieces. There are already tens of thousands of displaced people in all three of the main territories of S Kivu: Mwenga, Shabunda and Kalehe. Now even Fizi is starting to see movement of populations as Kimia operations begin in the south. FH is planning to respond to the needs of some of the displaced (differentiated from refugees who seek haven outside their own country) in the food security sector. We’re working on proposals and budgets this week.
More coming soon, don’t worry!
