DR Congo: Conditions for expellees stabilizing

(New York, 7 May 2004) - The humanitarian situation of tens of thousands of Congolese expelled from neighbouring Angola over these past few weeks appears to be stabilizing. The number of expellees entering into one of the main entry points has decreased from a rate of hundreds to dozens of persons crossing each day.
Since the expulsions began in March, some 67,000 Congolese have been registered by local crisis committees after entering into DRC's Bandundu and Western Kasai Provinces, which border Angola. Official estimates indicate that 80-100,000 illegal diamond migrants have been or will be evicted from Angola.

As most of the expellees have found refuge with host families or are constantly on the move throughout a vast area in Bandundu and Western Kasai Provinces, the verification and monitoring of this vulnerable population by humanitarian partners is proving difficult. In Bandundu Province, for example, the majority of expellees have dispersed throughout the southern region of the province and there are currently 8,000 blocked in Tembo town.

UN humanitarian actors and their NGO partners continue to deliver aid where feasible. The UN World Food Programme (WFP) is distributing 8-day rations to expellees who arrive in Kahemba, Bandunda Province. In other areas, WFP is evaluating the best way to provide prompt food assistance given logistical constraints. The NGO Caritas and UNICEF have started distributing supplies in Kahungula, Bandundu Province. UNICEF is currently pre-positioning stocks in Tembo and Kahungula, Bandundu Province and Tshikapa and Kananga, Western Kasai in case there should be another wave of arrivals.

INGO MSF-B continues its medical screenings in Kahungula, Bandundu. The international NGO Atlas Logistiques has agreed to start the rehabilitation of 2 bridges between Tembo and Kahungula, which are currently impeding delivery of humanitarian assistance.

OCHA remains concerned over continuing reports of sexual abuse of expellees and for the well-being of the tens of thousands of victims who may have already been affected by this mistreatment. Under the pretext of searching for hidden diamonds, Angolan military agents have reportedly been systematically sexually abusing women and girls. On the Congolese side of the border, OCHA has also started receiving reports of women and children being subjected to sexual violence at the hands of Congolese police.