Over 150 repatriated from DRC

Some 156 people were on Friday repatriated from DRC to Rwanda, the head of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Kinshasa, Paul Castelle, told IRIN on Monday. “These were families where at least one head of the household is of Rwandese origin. This is the reason why they were transferred to Rwanda even though some of the children were born in DRC,” he said. Most of these people were displaced within Kinshasa and its environs, with some in hiding because they feared for their security, Castelle said. “We interviewed them and when they indicated their desire to be transferred, we did so,” after consultations with the DRC and Rwandan governments, he said. “Our first wish would have been to see them allowed to live in the DRC with an improvement in their security conditions but, in this case, they have chosen to go back home, which is good,” Castelle added.