Highlights

• 1,207 refugees and 2,725 displaced in the far east
• Gabonese contingent of MICOPAX in Paoua
• Precarious humanitarian situation of IDPs in the Kabo region

Background and security

1,207 refugees and 2,725 displaced in the far east
As a result of attacks of fighters of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) on the villages of Gassimbala (15 km east of Obo) and Koubou (10 km east of Obo), the majority of the villages’ inhabitants have fled to Obo town fearing the violence of the attacks.

According to a survey conducted on 17 August by members of the NGO United Youth for the Protection of the Environment and Community Development (JUPEDEC), 225 people have arrived from Gassimbala and 281 people from Koubou.

Three of the people (two men and a woman) captured by the LRA during the previous attacks on Gougbere in order to help carry their loot, were set free by their captors on 15 August at Kerre 2 as they moved north-west. Other abducted people remain in the hands of the LRA, including two girls of 13 and 14 years of age who were captured in Gougbere in an attack which cost the life of one villager.

According to JUPEDEC, there are now 1,207 refugees from DRC in CAR (849 in Mboki and 358 in Obo) fleeing LRA attacks south of the border, and a total of 2,725 IDPs from the villages of Gassimbala, Koubou, Ligoua, Gougbere, Dindiri, Kamou and Ndigba who have all fled LRA attacks.

A joint mission of UN agencies and international NGOs left Bangui on Wednesday 19 August bound for Obo.

The aim of this mission is to bring humanitarian assistance to vulnerable people and assess currently.

For more information: Alexis Mbolinani, JUPEDEC| (236) 70 40 70 42| mbolinani@yahoo.fr and Joseph Benamse, OCHA| (236) 70 98 82 34| benamse@un.org

Gabonese MICOPAX contingent in Paoua
On Monday August the new commander of the Peace-building Mission in CAR (MICOPAX), General Hector Marie Tchemo, took command in a ceremony led by President François Bozizé.

During the ceremony, the President reaffirmed the importance of MICOPAX to the current peace process.

The Gabonese contingent is starting its deployment in CAR in Paoua, in the north-west.

Current events

13 August: DDR programme officially launched
“The Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reinsertion (DDR) programme begins today”, the Central African President François Bozizé announced on 13 August in Paoua in the north-west during the celebrations for the 49th anniversary of CAR independence.

The ceremony was attended by Jean-Jacques Démafouth, first vice-president of the DDR steering committee and president of the Popular Army for the Restauration of Democracy (APRD), one of the major armed groups controlling most of Ouham-Pendé prefecture in CAR’s north-west.

According to the Minister of Communication, Cyriaque Gonda, the first phase of the programme involves an information and awareness-raising campaign and will last from 13 August to 13 September. The second phase, identification of the ex-rebel combatants, will follow thereafter.

The Minister continued by saying that the DDR process will be implemented in five prefectures, across the north, notably Ouham Pendé, Ouham, Nana-Gribizi, Haute Kotto and the Vakaga. It will involve between 6,000 and 10,000 ex-combatants, and the process is expected to last for 36 months.

Human rights training for heads of orphanages
“Closer understanding of the needs of orphans” is the central theme of a training event which started on 17 August for about 40 teachers and heads of orphanages in the city of Bangui. The training, organised by the NGO Christian Action for Compassion (ACC) in partnership with the UN Peace-building office in CAR (BONUCA) aims to reinforce the capacities of these leaders following a participatory approach.

It also aims to educate the participants on the basic principles of human rights.

The ACC president, Ms Boubandé, said, “given the current context of repeated armed conflicts in certain regions of the country, we think that it is urgent to launch a large-scale awareness-building campaign for our leaders, in order to equip them with sufficient knowledge of human rights as well as to fight against all forms of violence and violation of these rights.”
She continued by saying that the training would help to return hope to vulnerable orphans, children and women.

Humanitarian activities

Promoting respect for women’s rights
As part of a project to improve the promotion of, and respect for, women’s rights financed by the Peace-Building Fund, three months of training activities on women’s rights started in June in the town of Paoua. The training sessions are organised by the Danish Refugee Council (DRC) and delivered by the Association of Women Layers of CAR (AFJC). They are targeted at more than 2,000 members of various organisations currently supported by DRC, including organisations involved in revenue generation, agriculture and animal husbandry in the Paoua region.

«Trainers and participants during a training session»

Amongst the elements discussed during these sessions are human rights, the rights of displaced people, women’s rights and the laws which protect women against violence in CAR.

The trainings use a strongly participative approach with plenty of exercises. At their end, a legal clinic will be set up with paralegals who can give information, support and advice to the local population as part of the campaign against all forms of violence.

At the end of the training activities in September, another similar programme will be launched in the region of Ndélé, in Bamingui-Bangoran prefecture towards the north-east of the country. This will target more than 1,000 women in organisations supported by DRC in that area, and also aims to set up a legal clinic at its end.

For more information: Pascale Meric, DRC| (236) 72 71 90 06 | pascale.meric@drc.dk

Precarious humanitarian situation of IDPs in the Kabo region
A joint mission of the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) was carried out from 9 to 12 August in the Kabo region, Ouham prefecture in the north of the country. The aim of the mission was to evaluate current needs in order to plan a humanitarian response.
In the displaced communities from the village of Bokayanga (currently living in a camp 7km away from their village in the bush) and from Kengar (18km north of Kabo), as well amongst other IDP locations in the area, people confirmed an improvement in the security situation following the signature of a peace agreement between the government and the Democratic Central African People’s Front (FDPC).
From the humanitarian standpoint, access to clean water and sanitation remains severely restricted, and there are several reported cases of illnesses and deaths caused by drinking unclean water. The displaced communities expressed requirements in food security, education and health in particular.

«Children in the site for people displaced from Bokayanga»

For more information: Sylvain Yakara, OCHA | (236) 72 71 55 49 | yakara@un.org

Contact Us :
Boris NGOUAGOUNI | (236) 70 18 80 61 | ngouagouni@un.org

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