Geneva - Troops in the north-eastern section of the
Democratic Republic of Congo have been engaged in extortion, rapes
and possibly murder of the civilian population, a United Nations
humanitarian agency said Tuesday
Attacks by armed men have been on the rise since April, the Office
for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reported. It attributed
the attacks both to the military, known as FARDC, and rebel groups
such as the FDLR, which is a largely Hutu militia.
The government forces were accused of pillaging, confiscating
harvests, destroying houses, extortion and 'numerous rapes,' OCHA
stated.
Since the beginning of the year, a spokeswoman in Geneva said, the
UN agency has noted a 'surge in sexual violence' in the South Kivu
area, where troops have been accused of committed similar acts on
large scales in the past.
OCHA said the sexual violence actually worsened as more FARDC
troops were deployed into the area.
The FDLR has been accused of conducting at least 12 large scale
attacks on civilians, destroying at least 1,128 houses.
In addition to extortion and rape, the group was being accused of
using lethal force against civilians, in one instance killing 77
people in a night attack on a village. In some cases, the militia
members burned people alive or hacked them to death with machetes.
The UN also warned that humanitarian organizations were coming
under attack, forcing them to reduce activities 'during a time when
humanitarian needs have surged in South Kivu.'
Human Rights Watch recently reported that government troops have
repeatedly abused civilians. Sometimes these actions occurred even in
the presence of UN peacekeepers, who were unable to stop them.
USA
Your Talkback on this Story