Posted in africa, APRD, bandits, BINUCA, Birao, Central African Republic, chad, child soldiers, children, disarmament, displacement, DRC, governance, government, human rights, humanitarian crisis, internal displacement, MICOPAX, ouham, rebels, refugees, Sam Ouandja, security, sexual violence, UFDR, united nations, violence, war crimes, Zaraguinas on Nov 2nd, 2011 No Comments »
Amnesty International Press Release (20 Oct 2011)
Central African Republic: Civilians bear the brunt of decades of violence and abuses
Local and foreign armed groups in the CAR are still killing, abducting, torturing and raping civilians, as well as burning houses and looting property, Amnesty International said in a report released today.
The report Central African Republic – Action needed to end decades of abuse describes how CAR’s population has been terrorized for decades by armed groups who have been able to operate with virtual impunity.
Despite peace agreements and a fledgling Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration process, armed conflict continues to ravage the country resulting in civilian deaths and mass internal displacement.
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Posted in CAP, Central African Republic, Coordinated Aid Programme, coordination, DDR, disarmament, governance, government, human rights, humanitarian crisis, IDP Campaign, info bulletin, internal displacement, rebels, refugees, UNHCR, united nations, violence, war crimes, WFP, WHO on Sep 23rd, 2011 No Comments »
Highlights
- Conflict between CPJP and UFDR rebels
- Emergency education in the Haute-Kotto prefecture
- Logistics cluster
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Posted in APRD, bandits, Central African Republic, child soldiers, children, human rights, ICC, sexual violence, UNICEF, war crimes on Jun 2nd, 2008 No Comments »
Radhika Coomaraswamy, Secretary General’s Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflicts concluded on Saturday a six-day mission to assess the conflict’s impact on children in CAR and Chad.
After a two day visit to Chad, Radhika Coomaraswamy came to CAR to meet young victims of abduction, and rebels suspected of recruiting child soldiers. She met with women communities, internally displaced people (IDPs), and victims of the conflict and of coupeurs de routes (Zaraguinas). Among the victimes, the SRSG met a young girl abducted by Coupeurs de Route two years ago in a neighbouring village. She was only liberated in March this year, when the Government forces attacked the bandits’ camp in Bilakaré, between Paoua, Bokaranga and Bozoum. By that time, her parents had fled violence, probably to Cameroun and she is now living with her displaced grandmother in Paoua.
However, despite the remaining insecurity, improvements have been achieved through the peace agreements signed between the Government and the Movement of Democratic Forces for Unity (UFDR) last year and with the Popular Army for Unity and Democracy (APRD) last month. Continue Reading »
Massive sexual crimes in Central African Republic will not go unpunished
(ICC): Jean-Pierre Bemba, charged by the ICC for crimes against humanity and war crimes committed in Central African Republic, was arrested on 24 May in the suburbs of Brussels, Belgium.
Mr. Bemba is chairman of the Mouvement de Libération du Congo (MLC), an armed group which intervened in the 2002-2003 armed conflict in Central African Republic (CAR) and pursued a plan of terrorizing and brutalizing innocent civilians, in particular during a campaign of massive rapes and looting. Mr Bemba had already used the same tactics in the past, in CAR, in the DRC, always leaving a trail of death and destruction behind him.
He is the first person arrested in the context of the ICC investigation in CAR which was opened by Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo in May 2007. Further investigation are proceeding. Continue Reading »
Often ignored, sometimes treated with discretion, sexual violence remains a sensitive issue in the Central African Republic. Although thousands of women have been victims of physical, psychological, and social trauma, their suffering remains largely silent.
Some women were raped by soldiers from neighbouring armies; others were attacked by rebels or national soldiers in conflict areas. Many are everyday victims of a society disrupted by years of conflict. Adding to their personal and physical burdens, CAR’s victims of sexual violence are often denied justice and face rejection from their community. Continue Reading »
From ReliefWeb: Today, ICC Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo announced the decision to open an investigation in the Central African Republic: “My Office has carefully reviewed information from a range of sources. We believe that grave crimes falling within the jurisdiction of the Court were committed in the Central African Republic. We will conduct our own independent investigation, gather evidence, and prosecute the individuals who are most responsible.” Continue Reading »
