RI
Releases Report on UN Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
For the first time in five years of brutal fighting,
there is a glimmer of hope for the war-torn eastern regions of the
Democratic Republic of the Congo, where new peace-keeping forces have
had an impact. An estimated 3.3 million people have been killed or
have lost their lives in the DRC since 1999 as a direct consequence
of the war and displacement. Some of the worst of this suffering has
taken place in Ituri, which has seen at least 55,000 violent deaths,
an uncounted number of deaths through disease and displacement and
half a million people displaced, out of an estimated population of
4.5 million. Refugees International was in the DRC during the transition
from the Interim Emergency Multinational Force (IEMF) to the newly
mandated MONUC force, and is releasing its report on the current situation
titled “MONUC: Mandate to Succeed.” This is RI’s
second report on MONUC. In this report, RI finds that the new MONUC
force has the mandate and the will to protect the civilian population
and help extend humanitarian space for NGOs to reach displaced populations.
Significant challenges remain in the overall quest for peace, stability
and good governance in the DRC.
