RECORD NUMBER OF FORMER HUTU REBELS LEAVES DR CONGO – UN MISSION

A record number of former Hutu rebels left the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) for their home in Rwanda this week, the United Nations peacekeeping operation in the vast African nation reported today.

The UN mission, known by its French acronym MONUC, said that 57 former Democratic Liberation Forces of Rwanda (FDLR) fighters and 26 other ex-militiamen were repatriated from war-torn north-eastern DRC under a UN-backed scheme.

MONUC also reported that more than 1,650 children had been separated from the ranks of armed groups operating in the region since the start of the year.

The FDLR and other Rwandan militias have been a key factor in the resurgence of violence in North Kivu province, where another 100,000 civilians have been uprooted by fighting in the past several months, in addition to the many hundreds of thousands previously displaced.

In related news, the blue helmets in north-eastern DRC have established an alert and surveillance system across North Kivu in a bid to support Government forces (FARDC) against militia in the area.

MONUC said its operations received a further boost this week with the opening of another joint coordination centre to help restore safety and security to the volatile region, bringing the total number to eight such centres.
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UN-MANDATED GROUP SUGGESTS SCREENING RIGHTS RECORDS OF CONGOLESE SOLDIERS

UN-MANDATED GROUP SUGGESTS SCREENING RIGHTS RECORDS OF CONGOLESE SOLDIERS
New York, May 21 2009 4:00PM
The expert panel monitoring United Nations sanctions imposed on the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has underscored the need for a vetting mechanism to screen the human rights records of officers in the national army, as part of overall efforts to reform the security sector.

In its interim report, published today, the Group of Experts on the DRC focuses on the security situation in North Kivu province, where the most serious fighting took place in late 2008, and particularly on the accelerated military integration of non-State armed groups into the national army (FARDC) in early 2009.

They state that information on the continued presence of children in the ranks of the recently integrated brigades, as well as grave human rights abuses committed by former commanders of armed groups currently integrated in the FARDC "make a compelling argument" for the establishment of a vetting mechanism.

The Group considers that such an initiative is "indispensable" for a sustainable integration process, and would strengthen the Government's capacity to effectively extend State authority in the strife-torn eastern part of the vast nation and protect its own nationals.

"In the absence of such a mechanism, command responsibility for human rights abuses of the civilian population will ultimately rest with the supreme military command of FARDC," the report adds.

The Group also highlights a number of other concerns on the issue of military integration, notably the maintenance of parallel command structures operated by former senior officers of rebel National Congress in Defence of the People (CNDP) who have been integrated into the FARDC.

Also, it notes that there are several armed groups in South Kivu which have not yet joined the integration process, including some Mai-Mai militias. The Group is also concerned about ongoing militia activities in the Ituri region, which it continues to monitor closely.

The Group is also continuing to monitor the situation in north-eastern DRC, after it received verified reports of hundreds of civilian casualties and abductions at the hands of the Ugandan rebel Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) since December 2008.
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TENS OF THOUSANDS MORE FLEE ARMED GROUPS IN EASTERN DR CONGO, UN SAYS

The United Nations refugee agency voiced serious concern today over the plight of thousands of civilians who have fled their homes to escape daily attacks by the many armed groups operating in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) said that civilians in North Kivu province continued to be terrorized by groups such as the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), which has been the target of recent joint operations conducted by Rwanda and DRC.

In the far north-east area of Haut Uélé of Orientale Province, which borders on Uganda, villagers continue to flee fresh attacks by the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), the Ugandan rebel group notorious for abducting children as soldiers and sex slaves.

The various rebel attacks in North Kivu have since last year displaced over 250,000 people, while in Orientale region, nearly 190,000 have been displaced in the last six months, and some 16,000 refugees have fled to South Sudan.

In the past several weeks, after their homes were plundered and torched by various armed groups, more than 20,000 people fled into the forest from villages in the Rutshuru district of North Kivu, UNHCR said.

This week, a joint UN assessment team, including UNHCR, has reported that heavily armed FDLR and allied PARECO militia forces seem to be surrounding the North Kivu village of Pinga, causing panic among its 8,500 population, including some 2,000 previously displaced persons.

Meanwhile, in Haut Uélé, a UNHCR convoy with 22 tonnes of much-needed assistance destined for displaced people was forced to turn back following reports of nearby LRA groups, and further LRA attacks were reported in the neighbouring district of Bas Uélé.

During a visit to North Kivu last week, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's Special Representative for the DRC, Alan Doss, pledged that the UN peacekeeping mission there – known as MONUC – will reinforce its presence in localities and continue to logistically support the Government army in its operations against the FDLR and other armed groups.
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FRESH ATTACKS BY HUTU REBELS LEAD TO MORE DISPLACEMENT IN DR CONGO – UN

FRESH ATTACKS BY HUTU REBELS LEAD TO MORE DISPLACEMENT IN DR CONGO – UN
New York, Mar 20 2009 10:00AM

The United Nations refugee agency said today that attacks by a Hutu rebel group are continuing to uproot thousands in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), reportedly displacing nearly 30,000 people just over the past two weeks.

Altogether, an estimated 1 million people are displaced in North Kivu province by a series of conflicts involving Government forces and various rebel groups, according to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

The ethnic Hutu militia known as the Democratic Liberation Forces of Rwanda (FDLR), which has been the target of a joint military operation conducted by DRC and Rwanda since January, has been retaliating against civilians and attacking villages in North Kivu.

"The FDLR fighting has left more than 160,000 civilians displaced since mid-January," UNHCR spokesperson Ron Redmond told reporters in Geneva.

Local authorities tell UNHCR that in the province's Lubero territory, fresh attacks on civilians by the FDLR have displaced nearly 30,000 people over the past two weeks. Newly displaced families in the Lubero area report that FDLR raids increased during the first half of March, along with growing human rights violations.

Also, further south in Masisi territory, local authorities said the FDLR mounted attacks that killed at least three civilians on 15 March and caused a number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) to flee. The rebel group has reportedly threatened to continue its attacks in the area.

"Most of the displaced from the continuing FDLR attacks are spending their nights in the bush for fear of attacks and harassment," said Mr. Redmond.

He added that UNHCR is reinforcing its activities in Masisi and trying to establish presence in Lubero for the swift delivery of humanitarian assistance and protection.

Meanwhile, the agency is concerned that continuing violence against aid workers will hinder assistance to the displaced. In the latest incident, armed men attacked and looted a vehicle belonging to an international non-governmental organization (NGO) in Rutshuru on 18 March. No fatalities were reported.

During a visit to North Kivu yesterday, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's Special Representative for DRC, Alan Doss, pledged that the UN peacekeeping mission there – known as MONUC – will reinforce its presence in localities and continue to logistically support the Government army in its operations against the FDLR.
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