Monday, March 27, 2006
Chad - Same Story?
One day we will undoubtedly find out what manipulations actually went on in this region. For now we can only read and make our own conclusions. What I find interesting is the slight differences in the first two reports. Perhaps I am being disingenious by including the final link here, you judge for yourselves.
Pisces Iscariot
This from The BBC
Thousands flee from CAR violence
Thousands of people have fled their homes to escape violence in the north of Central African Republic (CAR). Aid agencies estimate that more than 7,000 refugees have crossed the border into Chad in the past few weeks. A BBC reporter who visited the area says refugees claim government troops are systematically killing men and boys they suspect of backing rebel groups.
Central African Republic President Francois Bozize has blamed rebel groups for the unrest. The United Nations refugee agency is struggling to cope with the refugee influx into neighbouring Chad, and is warning the situation could become "catastrophic".
About 50,000 more refugees are thought to be hiding in the forest after being forced to flee their villages.
The BBC's Stephanie Hancock has been to the village of Bedakusan, in the border region of Chad, and says that for the last month the usually sleepy village has been home to more than 2,500 refugees fleeing the unrest. The refugees were exhausted, many had walked for days through the bush to reach safety, our correspondent says. They claim government troops are travelling from village to village in the north of CAR, entering villages and simply opening fire on anyone who is male.
'Children killed'
They say that age is no barrier - many refugees told our correspondent they saw boys of just two or three years old shot dead. Correspondents say international aid agencies have known for some time that a new human tragedy is unfolding in the north of the CAR. But while the agencies can just about function in regions such as Darfur and eastern Congo, the level of insecurity in the northern CAR is so bad they cannot operate there at all, correspondents say.
Mr Bozize has blamed rebels opposed to his administration and bandits for the killings, but correspondents say the refugees are adamant that the culprits are government troops, decked out in their distinctive green berets. Mr Bozize seized power three years ago, and since he stood successfully in a presidential election last year, a rebel movement has emerged in the north.
This from allAfrica.com
Chad: Mounting Unrest in East Threatens Aid Effort, WFP Says
March 24, 2006Posted to the web March 24, 2006 Dakar
Mounting violence in eastern Chad, which aid workers say has forced thousands of Chadians from their homes, "could seriously impede" humanitarian relief efforts in the region, where aid groups are assisting nearly a quarter-million refugees from Sudan's Darfur conflict, the UN food aid agency said on Friday.
The World Food Programme (WFP) said in a communique that unrest is hindering efforts to evaluate how dire the situation is for families recently displaced by violence. "We are at an extremely delicate stage in Chad - right on the edge," said Stefano Porretti, Chad country director for WFP, which is providing food for more than 207,000 men, women and children who have fled Sudan's war-ravaged Darfur region.
Violence from the Darfur conflict has repeatedly spilled over into eastern Chad, but the instability has increased in recent months with incursions by various armed groups and - just last week - fighting between Chad forces and rebels holed up in a mountainous area straddling the border. One aid worker said at least 25,000 Chadians have been displaced by the latest unrest. And the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, said late last month that some Chadians were fleeing over the border into Darfur. WFP called the fresh population movements "worrying".
While an initial WFP assessment found that Chadians in the border zone have substantial foods stocks thanks to a good harvest, "there are very real fears that people would soon require essential humanitarian assistance," WFP says, adding, "it is difficult to assess the magnitude of needs because of current insecurity".
"The longer the insecurity in the area persists, the more serious the situation will become," Porretti said in the WFP statement. "Most people affected by the recent violence have enough food for another month or two, but after that, things are far less certain." In recent months aid workers have had to temporarily evacuate certain posts serving some of the 12 refugee camps, and UNHCR is looking to move about 16,000 refugees from one camp farther into Chad because of increasing insecurity.
Conditions for refugees and the increasingly burdened local population are all the more worrying with the approach of the lean season and the rains, expected in June, which each year swallow up many of the region's roads, cutting off access to refugees. Porretti said WFP's operation for the refugees is "clinging on by its fingertips" financially, adding that new needs created by the fresh violence will require more donor support.
And finally an altogether different view
Pisces Iscariot
This from The BBC
Thousands flee from CAR violence
Thousands of people have fled their homes to escape violence in the north of Central African Republic (CAR). Aid agencies estimate that more than 7,000 refugees have crossed the border into Chad in the past few weeks. A BBC reporter who visited the area says refugees claim government troops are systematically killing men and boys they suspect of backing rebel groups.
Central African Republic President Francois Bozize has blamed rebel groups for the unrest. The United Nations refugee agency is struggling to cope with the refugee influx into neighbouring Chad, and is warning the situation could become "catastrophic".
About 50,000 more refugees are thought to be hiding in the forest after being forced to flee their villages.
The BBC's Stephanie Hancock has been to the village of Bedakusan, in the border region of Chad, and says that for the last month the usually sleepy village has been home to more than 2,500 refugees fleeing the unrest. The refugees were exhausted, many had walked for days through the bush to reach safety, our correspondent says. They claim government troops are travelling from village to village in the north of CAR, entering villages and simply opening fire on anyone who is male.'Children killed'
They say that age is no barrier - many refugees told our correspondent they saw boys of just two or three years old shot dead. Correspondents say international aid agencies have known for some time that a new human tragedy is unfolding in the north of the CAR. But while the agencies can just about function in regions such as Darfur and eastern Congo, the level of insecurity in the northern CAR is so bad they cannot operate there at all, correspondents say.
Mr Bozize has blamed rebels opposed to his administration and bandits for the killings, but correspondents say the refugees are adamant that the culprits are government troops, decked out in their distinctive green berets. Mr Bozize seized power three years ago, and since he stood successfully in a presidential election last year, a rebel movement has emerged in the north.
This from allAfrica.com
Chad: Mounting Unrest in East Threatens Aid Effort, WFP Says
March 24, 2006Posted to the web March 24, 2006 Dakar
Mounting violence in eastern Chad, which aid workers say has forced thousands of Chadians from their homes, "could seriously impede" humanitarian relief efforts in the region, where aid groups are assisting nearly a quarter-million refugees from Sudan's Darfur conflict, the UN food aid agency said on Friday.
The World Food Programme (WFP) said in a communique that unrest is hindering efforts to evaluate how dire the situation is for families recently displaced by violence. "We are at an extremely delicate stage in Chad - right on the edge," said Stefano Porretti, Chad country director for WFP, which is providing food for more than 207,000 men, women and children who have fled Sudan's war-ravaged Darfur region.
Violence from the Darfur conflict has repeatedly spilled over into eastern Chad, but the instability has increased in recent months with incursions by various armed groups and - just last week - fighting between Chad forces and rebels holed up in a mountainous area straddling the border. One aid worker said at least 25,000 Chadians have been displaced by the latest unrest. And the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, said late last month that some Chadians were fleeing over the border into Darfur. WFP called the fresh population movements "worrying".
While an initial WFP assessment found that Chadians in the border zone have substantial foods stocks thanks to a good harvest, "there are very real fears that people would soon require essential humanitarian assistance," WFP says, adding, "it is difficult to assess the magnitude of needs because of current insecurity".
"The longer the insecurity in the area persists, the more serious the situation will become," Porretti said in the WFP statement. "Most people affected by the recent violence have enough food for another month or two, but after that, things are far less certain." In recent months aid workers have had to temporarily evacuate certain posts serving some of the 12 refugee camps, and UNHCR is looking to move about 16,000 refugees from one camp farther into Chad because of increasing insecurity.
Conditions for refugees and the increasingly burdened local population are all the more worrying with the approach of the lean season and the rains, expected in June, which each year swallow up many of the region's roads, cutting off access to refugees. Porretti said WFP's operation for the refugees is "clinging on by its fingertips" financially, adding that new needs created by the fresh violence will require more donor support.
And finally an altogether different view
