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People in northern Katanga, DRC, face persistent insecurity
Thousands of women, men and children are living in fear, fleeing their villages and sometimes hiding in the forest in order to escape the fighting and the violence. This is what the populations of Mitwaba and its surroundings, in northern Katanga, are undergoing - a situation witnessed by the MSF emergency teams who have helped the displaced in the area for more than six months. The context that prevails in this remote area of more than 80,000 inhabitants is one of severe and persistent insecurity due to continuing violence between members of the Congolese army and the Maï-Maï (local militia groups). "Both sides are involved in trade deals of palm oil, meat and even sometimes the trade of arms against food commodities in order to survive, predominantly because soldiers in this area have been present for a very, long time, and they are not receiving their salary," explains Alain Decoux, MSF Head of Mission in DRC. "Both sides do not hesitate to rape and ransom villagers accused of collaboration with the enemy - especially when their trade deals fail - and then they loot and burn the villages." Warned about the precarious situation faced by the displaced in the region, the MSF emergency pool or PUC (the "Pool d'Urgence Congo", aimed at responding to emergencies in this vast central African country) initiated activities in the health zone of Mitwaba in October 2004. Normally set up to respond to short-term missions that last up to a few weeks, the intervention of the PUC lasted six months, given the acute needs encountered on the ground. "In the first stages of intervention, many of the 9,000 displaced persons who had hidden in the forest came to seek help as they were returning home," says Ibrahim Barrie, medical coordinator of the intervention who just returned from DRC. "But we also saw an influx of local inhabitants who have been deprived of health care for years and whose condition was also precarious. "Half of the 21,000 consultations we have provided were patients living in and around Mitwaba. As an elder villager who was waiting for consultation in front of an MSF health centre said, the only medicines he had seen in four years were the ones MSF has brought!" The nearest hospital is 120 kilometres away.
The rich farmlands of Mitwaba used to be the region's food basket. Nowadays, populations face grave problems of malnutrition, due to systematic looting of food crops by the belligerents, and to the displacement of villagers unable to attend to their fields. As malnutrition was worsening, MSF also launched a nutrition program early January of this year. Ibrahim Barrie explains: "We gave nutritional support through an ambulatory treatment program in two zones, Mitwaba and Kasungeshi, in addition to the medical assistance we were providing in four health centres. More than 66% of the malnourished patients were adults, which shows the severe condition of these displaced persons." The teams in the field constantly adapted their medical strategies to the movements of the populations, which gradually returned home as security was improving. Unfortunately, the lull did not last long. Mid-March, renewed fighting in Nkonga, North of Mitwaba, forced around 5,300 persons from the surrounding areas to flee again and find refuge in and around the former hospital of Mitwaba (the so-called "Kananda" camp) and in the village of Mozambwe, ten kilometres away from Mitwaba. "Most of these people had just returned home when they had to flee again and settle in those two camps," says Philippe Havet, the PUC logistics coordinator. "In order to avoid epidemics, we have rehabilitated water sources, built latrines and showers, and ensured proper sanitation and waste management." The numerous cases of rape encountered by the medical teams are also symptomatic of insecurity. "People are afraid to talk about sexual abuses. They fear retaliation and prefer to remain silent, but you can see the terror on their faces. Some of our patients in the nutritional centres have gradually felt more confident to speak about what they went through, including cases of rape," says Ibrahim Barrie. "A first wave of displacement occurred a year ago, followed by this second wave. Unless these populations receive more protection, they will continue to live this indescribable drama and suffer in silence". Earlier this month, the remaining MSF teams had to evacuate due to the worsening
security environment. Since then, assistance to the displaced has continued through
local health workers supported by MSF. It will carry on until the PUC can further
assess the area.
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