Humanitarian crisis on Minembwe/Itombwe Plateau

A worsening humanitarian crisis is unfolding in the south of South Kivu Province, Democratic Republic of the Congo, as fighting rages between mainly Rwandan army troops and the dissident Banyamulenge forces of Commandant Patrick Masunzu, humanitarian sources told IRIN on Tuesday.

"It is one of the hottest spots in the Congo," a humanitarian worker said.

Up to 100 villages have been deserted and some 40,000 people have been displaced on the Minembwe/Itombwe Plateau. Some have fled either into regroupment areas or into the mountain peaks and forests. "The fighting has apparently intensified over the past week with the use of aerial bombardment," the source said.

"Large numbers" of the displaced were facing the cold season on the plateau, the source added, without shelter, blankets or warm clothing. The fighting has prevented the Banyamulenge - mainly Congolese Tutsi pastoralists - from grazing their cattle over extensive areas. Food needs were becoming critical, other humanitarian sources said, because the latest harvest had been massively depleted by the food requirements of the combatants.

The Banyamulenge were also being harassed and having their movements restricted in the eastern towns of Uvira and Bukavu, one of the sources said. "This follows changes in the [rebel] RCD [Rassemblement congolais pour la democratie] administrative authorities, in which Banyamulenge have been removed from senior positions."

A humanitarian body has called on the international community to investigate these situations. "The UN and EU should negotiate arrangements for a humanitarian needs assessment on the plateau of Minembwe with the RCD and Rwandan authorities," the humanitarian source said. "There should be a human rights investigation into the reports of harassment and restriction in Uvira and Bukavu. At the same time, the Burundian government and UNHCR [United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees] should be asked to rethink the move of the Banyamulenge refugees in Burundi."

In Burundi, the government has ordered the Banyamulenge into relocation camps in the northeastern province of Muyinga. However, the refugees are resisting the move, saying they will become targets for hostile Hutu forces in the new camp, which is close to the borders of Rwanda and Tanzania. They had expressed fear of possible arrest and deportation to Rwanda, which, they said, was "at war" with them in the plateau region of South Kivu.