Areas surrounding Bunia still in turmoil

Tension appears to be easing in the northeastern town of Bunia after recent ethnic clashes between the Hema and Lendu-Ngiti ethnic groups, but areas around the town are still in turmoil, the international NGO Medair reported on Friday. The agency said it had a team visit Irumu, south of Bunia, to find that several villages from different tribes had been destroyed and some 5,000 people displaced. Many of the displaced had been taken in by others, but this placed stress on food supplies, Medair stated. In general, crops were being harvested but, in some areas, the fields were neglected due to the insecurity and the crops were rotting, or eaten by livestock and wildlife. There was an increase in the number of patients at accessible health centres.

In Bunia town, the tension was diminishing as the Congolese Liberation Front (CLF) [the newly formed alliance between the Rassemblement congolais pour la democratie-Mouvement du liberation (RCD-ML) and the Mouvement de liberation du Congo (MLC)] appeared to be establishing some authority, the NGO said. Assessment of the situation of the displaced in Bunia was continuing, with the greatest concentration of displaced people still around the cathedral, according to Medair. However, the fighting was continuing north and south of Bunia, with both tribes burning villages in a series of revenge attacks. Many wounded were unable to get to a health centre or hospital for treatment due to the insecurity, it added.