AFRICA/DEMOCRATIC CONGO - Lendu and Hema clash in north eastern Ituri region of Congo: pastures and farmlands on top and gold, coltan uranium and oil underground! - Who aims for these resources?

Monday, 14 February 2005

Bunia (Fides Service)- “This is a humanitarian catastrophe, a war on civilians” said a local Church source in Bunia main town in the north western Ituri region of Democratic Congo, where at least 80,000 people have abandoned their homes as armed groups advance killing and raiding in every village.
“Civilians are the target. This is not a war between two armed groups. It is a question of armed groups attacking civilians”, the sources told Fides.
The sources say armed groups of Lendu are attacking Hema villages. For years in this region Hema herdsmen and Lendu farmers living in the same area and speaking the same language, have fought over land..
Now this tribal conflict is being manipulated by third parties interested in the natural resources underground. Ituri is in fact rich in gold, coltan (columbite-tantalum indispensable in the electronic industry, for producing mobile phones for example), uranium and oil (still to be exploited).
“The homeless are in need of everything, food and healthcare especially” the sources told Fides. “Caritas is arranging aid for refugees in camps organised by the UN peacekeeping mission in Congo MONUC. In fact the real problem in Ituri is the lack of security. There is relative security only where the UN troops are present. But large areas of Ituri escape control by the UN and the Congo authorities. We feel totally abandoned” the sources told Fides. (L.M.) (Agenzia Fides 14/2/2005 righe 26 parole 321)


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