The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is still contending with ongoing conflict in its troubled east. More than 1.5 million people remain internally displaced and there are more than 450,000 Congolese refugees in neighboring countries. A myriad of armed groups threaten civilians in North Kivu, South Kivu and Orientale provinces, uprooting families from their homes and taking away their livelihoods when not killing or raping them outright. While local government officials, UN agencies and international and local NGOs strive to mitigate the suffering of the displaced, the ongoing violence and insecurity in eastern DRC must be addressed in order for living conditions to improve significantly.
Current Humanitarian Situation
The Democratic Front for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) and other rebel groups in North and South Kivu continue to control swaths of countryside, especially remote areas, causing new displacement and making it impossible for those already displaced to return to their land. Armed groups, including the national army (FARDC), have repeatedly engaged in acts of sexual violence, especially against young women and girls. More efforts are necessary to better protect the displaced and the most vulnerable amongst them. Access for humanitarian organizations to assist displaced populations remains extremely challenging due to ongoing insecurity and poor roads. In certain areas people have been able to return to their land, sometimes leading to ethnic tensions and land disputes which require community-level conflict resolution initiatives. Meanwhile, for those people displaced for long periods and the host communities helping them, assistance must go beyond basic services to include a focus on livelihoods and education.
While the number of people affected is not as great as in the Kivus, parts of Orientale province are the scene of violence perpetrated by other groups, notably the Lord’s Resistance Army. Ongoing attacks cause new displacement and instability prevents people from restarting their lives. Meanwhile Equateur, in the west of the country, is preparing for the return of thousands of refugees displaced during localized fighting in 2009. A well-implemented and coordinated reintegration effort will be crucial in ensuring peace and stability in the area.
The UN peacekeeping/stabilization mission MONUSCO (reconfigured from MONUC as of July 2010) has made significant efforts to develop ways to better protect civilians, especially in North Kivu. It is, however, hampered by resource constraints and maintains an uneasy relationship with the poorly trained and ill-equipped national army. MONUSCO needs to be enabled to build on its best practices and extend them to other areas.
Action Needed
- UNHCR must reapportion its resources and attention to better assist and protect internally-displaced Congolese, given consistently high levels of displacement and fewer returning refugees.
- The UN Security Council must ensure that MONUSCO have the resources to build on its successes so that the mission can protect more civilians.
