DRC citizens flee fighting
2003-05-08 22:31
Kampala - Up to 60 000 civilians have fled northeast Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) for neighbouring Uganda over the last two weeks and more are expected, the government in Kampala said on Thursday, appealing for aid from the international community.
"Following the withdrawal of Ugandan forces (from eastern DRC), inter-ethnic conflict erupted and as a result there has been an influx of DRC citizens, mainly Hema (tribespeople), seeking asylum in Uganda," Deputy Prime Minister and Disaster Preparedness Minister Lieutenant General Moses Ali told diplomats at a meeting attended by AFP.
He said two border points had each seen between 25 000 and 30 000 DRC civilians crossing since Uganda began withdrawing its military contingent from DRC's Ituri region late last month.
"It is expected that this inflow will increase," he said.
"This has resulted in a humanitarian crisis, hence the urgent need for food, water and shelter for the refugees," Ali said.
The Kampala office of the UN refugee agency (UNCHR) declined to discuss the matter on Thursday, saying it was awaiting instructions from the Ugandan government.
Earlier this month, when the inflow of refugees had already begun, UNCHR said it would only intervene if the refugees moved to facilities set up for them in nearby Kyenjojo district.
"We shall not provide them with international protection, unless they move to designated refugee areas," UNHCR spokesperson Bushila Malik told AFP in Kampala
The UNCHR generally tries to avoid providing facilities for refugees close to the borders they have crossed.
The latest violence in Ituri broke out on Wednesday in the region's main town, Ituri, a day after the last Ugandan soldiers posted there were flown home.
Relations strained
The clashes pitted fighters of the majority Lendu tribe against those of the Hema minority. Relations between the two have long been strained, partly over land issues, and the tension has been greatly exacerbated since war broke out in DRC in 1998.
No details of casualties were available immediately.
According to a UN source, Hema priest Raphael Ngona was killed in his bedroom during the fighting.
Soldiers of the UN force in DRC, Monuc, have begun beefing up their presence in Bunia and the surrounding Ituri region.
Thousands of civilians sought refuge in Monuc's compound Wednesday, according to the force's spokesperson in Kinshasa, Hamadoun Toure.
"Lendu and (allied) Ngiti fighters came into town to find members of the Union of Congolese Patriots (UPC)," a Hema-led rebel group, a humanitarian aid worker in Bunia told AFP, asking not to be named.
Ugandan soldiers had chased the UPC out of Bunia two months ago.
Bunia was reported to be relatively calm on Thursday.
"The fighters who came in yesterday are looting today (Thursday) and we can still hear sporadic gunfire," a Bunia resident told AFP. - Sapa-AFP
- SAPA