Expelled illegal miners attack Angolan refugees

Congolese illegal diamond miners recently expelled from Angola have attacked Angolan refugees in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), prompting the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to express concern. UNHCR reported that an angry crowd of the migrants set fire on Tuesday to two houses belonging to two NGOs at a site hosting 1,500 Angolan refugees at Napassa, in the southwestern province of Bandundu. "It was also reported on Wednesday that two refugee shelters had been burned down by the expelled Congolese, followed by extensive looting in nearby Kahemba town, where UNHCR's office and guest house are situated," UNCHR reported on Thursday. It added that Congolese troops tried to restore order by shooting in the air and that Kahemba was calm on Thursday. The violence coincided with a visit to the Napassa refugee site on Tuesday by UNHCR Deputy High Commissioner Wendy Chamberlin. Chamberlin, who experienced the tension first hand when her vehicle was shaken and banged on her way to Napassa, reassured the Angolan refugees that the UNHCR would look after them. "We have one priority – to care for you, to care for your protection," she was quoted as telling the Angolans. Napassa lies on the main road linking the Congo and Angola's diamond mines near the border. Angolan authorities began the expulsions in December 2003, following a swoop on all foreigners mining diamonds illegally. The UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported on Wednesday that up to 67,000 of those expelled had by Tuesday been registered in the DRC provinces of Bandundu and Kasai Occidental. UNHCR reported that the returning Congolese had vented their anger at the Angolan refugees, who they saw as being privileged in receiving aid from UNHCR and its partner organisations. The agency added, "The majority of workers expelled from Angola are men aged between 18 and 30." Their presence is a concern near Napassa where the Angolan refugees, mostly the vulnerable, are sheltered. "The fact that they are targeting an Angola refugee settlement is of course a huge concern for us," David Lambo, the director of UNHCR's Africa Bureau in Geneva, said. "These refugees are already bearing the brunt of their own displacement and they should not be subjected to any further distress. UNHCR would hate to see the problem spreading to other refugee settlements." The UNHCR has appealed for urgent help for the expelled Congolese in a region where potable water, food and housing are scarce. UN agencies in the capital, Kinshasa, have launched a coordinated effort to deliver essential aid quickly to the expelled Congolese.