Civilians continue to bare the brunt of the prevailing insecurity caused in northern Central African Republic. More than a million civilians are still living in fear of violence caused by the absence of state authorities and the presence of rebels and bandits, but some of those displaced have started to return to their villages. The ongoing political dialogue has given some hope to those people in the north who are aware of it.
However, the most vulnerable remain cautious. I met this blind man who lives amid a settlement of makeshift homes in the bush in north western CAR on the road between Paoua and Pougol. He said:
“I fled my village Poulao in March 2006 because the soldiers of the national army came into my village and killed people and burnt houses. They shot indiscriminately into the village.
“I took refuge here 3 km in the bush with my family. We built this house close to our field so that we could farm.
“In the meantime, other villagers have been able to move back and forth between the village and the bush settlement. More recently, the situation has improved and many people are returning to the village.
“I am blind, I cannot move back and forth between the village and my settlement. So I decided to stay here for now despite the slight improvement of the security situation. I am afraid because the village is still under the control of the rebels who are imposing their own rules and laws upon the villagers.
"Most of my 8 children moved back to the village or to other towns. Only the youngest of my children stayed here with me to assist me. My wife goes back to the village during the day to undertake her activities with other women. However, she always comes back here to spend the night with me. I owe her everything. She is the one taking care of me. She feeds me and provides me with clothes… everything.
"Sometimes during the rainy season, I may help to cultivate but she is the one who takes care of all of us. I have been blind for the past 10 years.
"I will return only under assurance that I will never have to flee again.”
Even those who have taken the risk to return to their villages have very little to return to. Rebuilding their lives remains a great challenge because they no longer have any seeds or tools.
After the December 2008 Inclusive Political Dialogue, the rebel groups and the government promised that peace was real and that the population should forgive all the injustices they went through. However, this man that I met is still waiting until he can trust the parties to the conflict and return to his village for good. As long as most parts of the north remain under the rebels’ control, many people will choose to stay in their settlements in the bush in hope of better days.
--Mpako Foaleng