Scrapbook of Zaire condition/01
Date: 7 Nov 96
From: hrwatchnyc@igc.org
Subject: Zaire--HRW Calls for Protection of Refugees in eastern Zaire
To: hrw-news@igc.org, hrw-news-africa@igc.org
Sender: owner-hrw-news-africa@igc.org
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(New York, 7 Nov 1996)--Human Rights Watch/Africa today called upon the
international community to guarantee protection to the refugees in eastern
Zaire. The human rights organization stated that to coerce them to return to
unsafe situations in their home countries amounts to refoulement, which is a
clear violation of international refugee law. "The international community
cannot solve the humanitarian crisis in eastern Zaire by sacrificing the basic
rights of refugees to avoid being forcibly returned to countries where they
have cause to fear persecution," according to Peter Takirambudde, Executive
Director of Human Rights Watch/Africa. "At the same time, those persons
suspected of involvement in the 1994 genocide in Rwanda as well as those now
engaged in armed attacks against Rwanda and Burundi must be excluded from the
protection afforded to legitimate refugees."
Donor governments, the UNHCR, and some aid organizations hope that the
current desperate conditions in Zaire will drive most refugees to return, thus
ending the problem of the refugee camps. The camps have been a source of
insecurity because the former Rwandan army and militia have used them as bases
from which to launch armed incursions into Rwanda. Those responsible for the
genocide continue to control the camps, spurring hopes for a return to Rwanda
by force and using terror and intimidation to discourage voluntary
repatriation. One of the strategies currently being proposed by the United
States and the UNHCR is to provide food and medical services within the
refugees' home countries so as to attract the refugees back. While
repatriation is an appropriate option for some of the refugees, it must be a
voluntary process. Although migrants can be forcibly returned to their home
countries, international law prohibits forcibly returning genuine refugees.
Many of those who fled Rwanda and Burundi have legitimate grounds to fear
persecution, given the nonfunctioning judicial systems and continuing military
attacks on civilians, as described below. Given this, and in the absence of
screening procedures to determine which of the migrants formally qualify as
refugees, the presumption must be that all are refugees -- that is, that no
forcible return is permitted.
Positive steps by Rwanda and Burundi to improve respect for human rights
and ensure that the killing of civilians stops and that those responsible for
past and present killings of civilians are investigated, tried with full
respect for due process, and punished would certainly persuade more refugees
to return voluntarily. Assurances that the international community would
provide long-term monitoring of their situations should they return would also
increase the likelihood of substantial numbers of people returning of their
own volition.
Those suspected of genocide and crimes against humanity, like those
involved in military activity against the governments of the home countries,
have no right to the status of refugee and should be excluded from such
status. Despite the difficulties in identifying the killers, mechanisms must
be put in place to screen out those suspected of genocide from genuine
refugees.
There are thousands of legitimate refugees in Zaire and many of them
fear returning to Rwanda or Burundi because of insecurity: assassinations,
disappearances, and attacks by military or militia on civilians. Those
slaughtered by the Burundian army and militia affiliated with it number in the
thousands this year, while some 600 civilians have been killed this year by
Rwandan soldiers. In general, military authorities in Rwanda and Burundi
refuse to acknowledge abuses on the part of their soldiers, often falsely
asserting that the civilians were in fact infiltrators or their accomplices or
that they were accidentally slain in an exchange of fire with infiltrators.
In a rare and welcome departure from this policy, in late October a military
officer in Burundi admitted that soldiers in the southern province of Bururi
had massacred some fifty civilians and said that soldiers responsible would be
punished.
Refugees also fear arbitrary arrest to be followed by an apparently
limitless period of detention without trial -- as is the case in Rwanda, where
83,000 languish in inhumane conditions -- or by trial under conditions that
fail to meet international standards of justice, as was recently the case in
Burundi, where eighty-nine persons were sentenced to death and thirty-nine to
life imprisonment without having had access to defense counsel. Initially
lacking both the money and the personnel needed to begin trials, the Rwandan
government is now adequately supplied with the necessary resources to start
proceedings. A law adopted on September 1 divides perpetrators of genocide
into different categories and assigns punishments for each. The government is
conducting an information campaign to inform prisoners of the details of the
law and to give them opportunities to confess, in return for which some may
receive reduced sentences. This procedure should finish by the end of the
year and the Rwandan government should be ready to begin trials by early
January at the latest. Implementing the genocide law in a manner that ensures
trials or release for all detainees within a reasonable time is essential to
avoid creating legitimate fears of arbitrary detention among refugees.
In order to guard against arbitrary detention based on false or
unsupported allegations of complicity in the genocide, the Rwandan government
should establish prompt judicial review of all detentions. In addition, to
assure that those detained face trial within the near future, the government
should announce the date when the trials of those accused of genocide will
begin, and provide concrete information about the proceedings and provisions
being made for defense counsel. To address the refugees' fears of attacks by
the Rwandan military once they return to their home communes, the government
must acknowledge and condemn killings by the military and begin investigation
and prosecution of those responsible. Since the military courts are
functioning, these trials should begin immediately.
Many Rwandan refugees also fear that they will have no home or no fields
to plant if they return; they fear that if they find their property occupied
and attempt to regain it, they may be imprisoned on false charges of genocide.
Soon after the establishment of the current government, it set up property
commissions to resolve conflicts between returned refugees and squatters who
had occupied their property, but such commissions have been unable to resolve
most such disputes. The Rwandan government should increase the resources and
authority of such commissions so that they are able to guarantee the rights of
the returned refugees.
To help assure the security of those who return, the international
community must commit itself to engage in long-term monitoring of refugees in
their home communes. The most appropriate mechanism available to conduct such
monitoring would be the United Nations Human Rights Field Operation in Rwanda,
which has a mandate "to monitor the ongoing human rights situation, and
through their presence help redress existing problems and prevent possible
human rights violations from occurring." Deploying the additional human
rights officers needed to monitor the return of the refugees will require
significant new resources, but this cost is far less than what would be needed
to provide continuing assistance for people too fearful of persecution to
return home.
Those legitimate refugees who choose to remain in Zaire, however, must
not be deprived of the essentials of life in order to force them to
repatriate; to engage in a program of selective feeding and offer them food
only if they return to Rwanda would be the equivalent of refoulement, a
practice prohibited by international refugee law. The international community
did nothing to stop Burundi from forcibly returning some 80,000 refugees to
Rwanda in July and August. Those refugees have been generally well-received
in Rwanda, but their relatively trouble-free return does not excuse the
practice or make it acceptable as a model for the current situation. Nor does
it eliminate grounds for fear among the refugees now in Zaire. In the absence
of the establishment of the rule of law through a denunciation of arbitrary
killing, the investigation and prosecution of those responsible, and the
creation of a mechanism to avoid arbitrary detention, there is nothing to
prevent the Rwandan authorities from persecuting returning refugees.
In delivering assistance to those who decide to stay in Zaire, the UNHCR
and aid organizations must exclude those suspected of genocide or crimes
against humanity and those involved in military activity against their home
governments. Despite the inherent difficulties in identifying the killers and
conducting effective screening, the international community should seize the
opportunity provided by the movement of large numbers of the refugees and the
possibility that international troops might be deployed in the region to
attempt to separate the killers from the general refugee population. Those
indicted by international or national courts, and those who held command
responsibility in either the civilian or military structures of the former
Rwandan government or in the militia should not receive aid and they must not
be able to take control again of refugee camps. At a minimum, arms should not
be permitted in any camp where humanitarian aid is going to be provided. If
new camps are established, they should be located a sufficient distance away
from the international borders to prevent them posing a threat to neighboring
countries.
The international community has thus far failed in its obligation to
bring to justice persons charged with genocide. It was slow in providing the
needed resources for the International Tribunal for Rwanda to begin its work.
It has allowed Cameroon to delay for months in delivering Col. Theonest
Bagosora, the most important leader indicted, to the custody of the Tribunal
in Arusha. It has done nothing about establishing an international tribunal
to investigate and try cases of genocide and crimes against humanity in
Burundi, although the United Nations Commission of Inquiry found that acts of
genocide had been committed there. The international community, including
neighboring states, must be reminded of the importance of cooperating with the
Tribunal.
If the UNHCR, donor governments, and aid organizations determine that an
armed force is necessary to permit delivery of humanitarian assistance, such a
force must include the protection of human rights in its mandate. At the very
least, any such force must have the authority to locate and detain persons
suspected of leading the genocide in order to deliver them to the
International Tribunal or national courts. The lesson of UNPROFOR in Bosnia
clearly demonstrates the futility of an international force with a mandate
only to feed people but not to protect them from violence. Thus, if a force
is deployed, it should be mandated and adequately equipped to protect and
promote human rights within its zone, including protecting the civilians from
attack.
The international community has not taken seriously its efforts to
control the flow of arms to this region. Although the UN established a
commission to investigate allegations that arms were being delivered to the
forces of the former Rwandan government in violation of a UN arms embargo, it
has done nothing to act on the findings of the commission. In fact, the
Security Council is currently deciding whether or not to release the
commission's report, which deals with arms transfers as well as issues
directly relating to the genocide and the current crisis.
The presence of former Rwandan soldiers and militia in eastern Zaire has
exacerbated pre-existing hostility against Zairians ethnically related to the
Tutsi of Rwanda and Burundi. Former Rwandan soldiers and militia reportedly
joined in attacks on Zairian Tutsi in North Kivu six months ago as well as in
more recent attacks on the Banyamulenge of South Kivu. The actions of the
Zairian parliament in declaring that Tutsi should be removed from government
employment, the statement of the Deputy Governor of South Kivu that all Tutsi
must leave within one week or face attack, and the participation of Zairian
military in attacks on Tutsi or their failure to stop such violence by
civilians have created fears that the government will permit or itself engage
in large-scale killings of Tutsi. Bands of civilians, sometimes with official
support, have already driven Tutsi from their homes and pillaged their
property in Kinshasa as well as in eastern Zaire. Zairian political leaders
and interest groups maintain that the people attacked are transplanted
Rwandans, although they were born in Zaire and some of them descend from
families that have lived there for centuries. The government of Zaire must
recognize the right to nationality and must cease denationalizing Banyamulenge
and other people ethnically related to Tutsi who qualify for Zairian
citizenship. The government of Zaire is responsible for the safety of all
civilians within its borders, regardless of their citizenship, and must take
measures to ensure that military and civilian authorities provide such
protection.
Recommendations:
To the Security Council, UNHCR, international donor countries and
international aid agencies:
1. Guarantee the right of legitimate refugees to protection from forcible
repatriation and ensure that humanitarian supplies are provided in Zaire for
those legitimate refugees who decide not to return to their home countries.
2. Institute screening procedures in Zaire to exclude from refugee status
those suspected of genocide or crimes against humanity and armed combatants.
At a minimum, prohibit arms from any camp where humanitarian assistance is
being provided.
3. Publish immediately the UN Commission of Inquiry's report on arms flows,
and undertake to act on its conclusions.
4. Put pressure on the governments of Rwanda and Burundi to ensure that
returning refugees are protected from killing, arbitrary arrest, and
harassment. Work with these governments to see that immediate steps are taken
to encourage voluntary repatriation.
5. Pressure the government of Rwanda to begin trials of those accused of
genocide by the first of the year.
6. Pressure the government of Burundi to institute immediate reforms of its
judicial system to comply with international standards of due process and
fairness.
7. Pressure the governments of Rwanda and Burundi to bring to trial those
soldiers responsible for serious human rights abuses.
8. Ensure that if camps are re-opened, that they be situated a reasonable
distance from the Rwandan and Burundian borders.
To the Zairian government:
1. The government of Zaire should officially restore the citizenship of the
Banyamulenge and other persons said to be "Tutsi" who qualified for
citizenship prior to the 1981 law.
2. Zairian civilian and military authorities from the highest levels down
must acknowledge and condemn all attacks against civilians. Zairian soldiers
and civilians responsible for attacks and looting throughout Zaire, as well as
all those responsible for attacks against Tutsi throughout the country, should
be investigated and brought to justice.
To the Rwandan government:
1. The government should announce the date when the trials of those accused
of genocide will begin, and provide concrete information about the proceedings
and provisions being made for defense counsel.
2. The government must acknowledge and condemn killings by the military and
immediately begin investigation and prosecution of those responsible.
3. The government should increase the resources and authority of property
commissions so that they are able to guarantee the rights of the returned
refugees.
To the Burundi government:
1. The government must acknowledge and condemn killings by the military and
immediately begin investigation and prosecution of those responsible.
2. The government should institute reforms of the judicial system to comply
with international standards of due process and fairness.
To the United Nations:
1. Publish immediately the report of the commission's reports on arms flows.
2. Provide additional human and material resources for the UN Human Rights
Field Operations in Rwanda and Burundi, so they are able to conduct long-term
monitoring of the situation of returning refugees.
3. Create an ad hoc tribunal to try genocide and crimes against humanity in
Burundi, since it is highly unlikely that domestic courts would conduct fair
trails for those individuals on both sides who have been responsible for gross
human rights abuses. Because the continuing conflict in Burundi results in
large part from mutual fear between the majority Hutu and the minority Tutsi,
prosecutions are especially important as a way to eradicate impunity and end
the cycles of violence that have plagued Burundi for so many years.
Human Rights Watch/Africa
Human Rights Watch is a nongovernmental organization established in 1978 to
monitor and promote the observance of internationally recognized human rights
in Africa, the Americas, Asia, the Middle East and among the signatories of
the Helsinki accords. It is supported by contributions from private
individuals and foundations worldwide. Kenneth Roth is the Executive
Director and Robert L. Bernstein is the Chair of the Board. Its Africa
division was established in 1988 to monitor and promote the observance of
internationally recognized human rights in sub-Saharan Africa. Peter
Takirambudde is the executive director; Janet Fleischman is the Washington
director; Suliman Ali Baldo is the senior researcher; Alex Vines is the
research associate; Bronwen Manby and Binaifer Nowrojee are counsels; Alison
DesForges is a consultant; Ariana Pearlroth is an associate. William
Carmichael is the chair of the advisory committee and Alice Brown is the vice
chair.
Website Address: http://www.hrw.org
Gopher Address: gopher://gopher.humanrights.org:5000/11/int/hrw
Listserv instructions: To subscribe to the general HRW e-mail list (to receive
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Human Rights Watch
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E-mail: hrwdc@hrw.org
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Zaire: Sources, NGO Statement
Date: Tue, 5 Nov 1996 07:15:16 -0800
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From: APIC
Subject: Zaire: Sources, NGO Statement
To: Multiple recipients of list AFRICA-L
Date Distributed (ymd): 961105
Contains (1) Suggested on-line sources for updates, (2) Nov.
1 statement by Steering Committee for Humanitarian Response.
The next posting contains the Nov. 4 statement by Oxfam
International.
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Africa Policy Information Center (APIC)
APIC will continue to redistribute occasional statements
relevant to the crisis in Eastern Zaire and the Great Lakes
Region. Given the fact that our distribution list is
restricted to two or three items total in a week, however, and
also covers other African issues, those wishing more frequent
material and up-to-date news should also consult other
sources. Among those we have found most useful:
On the Web:
1. The Africa News web site has a special section on the Great
Lakes (http://www.africanews.org/greatlakes.html), with
current news updated several times daily plus links to other
sites.
2. ReliefWeb (http://www.reliefweb.int), with a mirror site
for North American users at
http://www.info.usaid.gov/ofda/reliefweb/, has updates
throughout the day, and includes Reuters, VOA, PANA, AFP, plus
statements from United Nations agencies and other key
international groups.
By E-mail:
3. The UN DHA Integrated Regional Information Network (irin),
based in Nairobi, has two mailing lists available, a high-
volume "wire" list and a lower-volume "digest" list with key
weekly updates and at present twice-daily updates on Eastern
Zaire. For more information, contact UN DHA IRIN, Tel: +254 2
622123,Fax: +254 2 622129, e-mail: irin@dha.unon.org.
4. The Zaire-News listserv contains news in both English and
French, including the well-informed reporting from Le Soir in
Brussels (accents don't come through on French-language
material). To subscribe, send email to:
listserv@RS6000.CMP.ILSTU.EDU
Leave the Subject area blank. In the Message area put: sub
zaire-news YourFirstName LastName
Or send a request to: akapanga@rs6000.cmp.ilstu.edu. The list
owner is Dr. Andre Kapanga, Illinois State University.
5. Info-Zaire, a periodical bulletin, is available on the
africa.news conference on the Association of Progressive
Communications networks (for information send a message to
apc-info@igc.apc.org), and is also available by e-mail. For
the original French version, contact Entraide Missionnaire, 15
de Castelnau St. West, Montreal, Quebec, H2R 2W3; Tel. (514)
270-6089; Fax (514) 270-6156; E-mail: emi@web.apc.org. The
English version is translated by the United Church of Canada,
and distributed electronically by the Inter-Church Coalition
on Africa, 129 St. Clair Ave. W, Toronto, Ontario M4V 1N5
Canada, Phone: 416-927-2124, Fax: 416-927-7554, E-mail:
iccaf@web.apc.org.
Additional earlier background can be found on the Africa
Policy web site, in the archive of documents distributed in
1995 and 1996 (http://www.igc.apc.org/apic/index.shtml).
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International Humanitarian Coalition Launches Zaire Actions
Africa News Service - November 1, 1996
Geneva - Following is a statement issued by the Steering
Committee for Humanitarian Response, a coalition of seven of
the largest International Non-Governmental Organisations which
respond to humanitarian disasters.
The members include: Care International, Caritas
Internationalis, the International Federation of Red Cross and
Red Crescent Societies, the International Save the Children
Alliance, The Lutheran World Federation, Oxfam and the World
Council of Churches. All of these organizations or their
partners are providing humanitarian assistance during the
present crisis in the Great Lakes region of Africa.
BEGIN TEXT:
Once again the Great Lakes region of Africa is on the brink of
a major humanitarian disaster. The present violence and
ensuing population movements have further intensified an
already grave situation, stretching the capacity of
humanitarian organizations to meet human needs. Humanitarian
efforts are also hampered by the lack of accurate information
on refugee movements and by extremely limited access.
SCHR members are making preparations for different possible
outcomes. For example,
* Oxfam staff have contingency stocks of water equipment and
plans in place ready to respond as the situation develops. In
response to the movement of refugees in North Kivu, Oxfam
doubled its water supply capacity in Muganga to help provide
clean water and sanitation for the 200,000 refugees fleeing
from Kibumba.
* The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent
Societies supervised food distributions to these same
refugees, and other Red Cross volunteers conducted
distributions in Katale and Kahindo prior to the evacuation of
those camps. The Federation is preparing transit facilities
for Burundian returnees.
* Save the Children is preparing for the registration of
increased numbers of unaccompanied refugee children returning
to Rwanda and Burundi and will respond to the situation in
Zaire in the areas of health, family reunification and the
provision of non food items when the situation stabilises.
* Catholic Relief Services is supporting efforts of Caritas
Goma to alleviate suffering of people in Eastern Zaire through
the distribution of food and non food items.
* ACT/LWF is pre-positioning food and non food items in
Uganda, Rwanda and Tanzania, is preparing an assessment
mission to the west of Bukavu, and has a stand-by team in
Nairobi.
* CARE International has contingency stocks of food and non
food distribution equipment and contingency plans in place to
respond in North and South Kivu, Burundi and Rwanda. CARE is
providing transportation and logisitics for food distribution
in Magunga camp and CARE's Zairian and refugee staff are
providing health care and supervision of distributions in
Katale camp.
However, at the moment, much of the relief community's
essential humanitarian response is disrupted.
The current crisis is the most serious regional conflict since
the Rwanda genocide in 1994. Tensions between Zaire and Rwanda
are escalating. Zaire has accused Rwanda of supporting the
Banyamulenge with manpower and heavy weapons, while Rwanda has
accused Zaire of instigating the conflict. The crisis is a
symptom of a deeper instability in the region which must be
tackled if the people of Central Africa are to prosper and
know security again. It is possible that this crisis could
escalate into full scale war within Zaire or between Rwanda
and Zaire, leading to regional conflagration which spreads to
other countries.
To prevent the situation from deteriorating further, the
members of the Steering Committee for Humanitarian Response
urge regional factions, regional governments and the
international community to:
1. Accelerate efforts to address the underlying causes of the
conflict in the region through a regional political settlement
The current crisis in Zaire is symptomatic of a wider regional
crisis that has been simmering for years. It is part of the
failure of regional governments, various factions and the
international community to address the political, social and
economic problems that underlie the region's tensions. The
region will continue to lurch from crisis to crisis until a
coordinated negotiations process addresses the two key aspects
of the region's conflicts: the aftermath of genocide and
poverty. Tackling these issues will include reforming the
justice system, addressing citizenship and refugee return,
generating economic rehabilitation, and establishing
responsive and accountable government. The UN Security Council
with the OAU should intensify efforts towards coordinated
negotiations to reach a regional political settlement.
Humanitarian aid saves lives, but can never substitute for the
political will to reach solutions.
2. Intensify high-level diplomatic action to reduce tensions,
bring about a political settlement and guarantee humanitarian
access. The UN Security Council and other governments should
immediately agree a strategy to increase diplomatic pressure
to secure the protection of displaced peoples and refugees,
ensure the delivery of humanitarian assistance, and initiate
immediate negotiations between Zaire and Rwanda. Ambassador
Chretien should be given as much support as possible for his
work.
3. Develop adequate contingency plans for a humanitarian
response in the event of a widening war. Preparation should be
intensified by DHA and the UN agencies to agree a contingency
plan in the event of the further deterioration of the
situation. Local, regional and international non- governmental
organizations should be involved in these consultations.
Signed, CARE International, Catholic Relief Services (member
of Caritas Internationalis), Oxfam, The Lutheran World
Federation, Save the Children, World Council of Churches.
For further information contact: Karen Donovan, SCHR at 41 22
920 0971 in Geneva. Over the weekend contact: 31 20 620 4813.
[ENDS]
[Via the UN DHA Integrated Regional Information Network "Wire"
mailing list. The material contained in this communication may
not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations or its
agencies. UN DHA IRIN Tel: +254 2 622123 Fax: +254 2 622129
e-mail: irin@dha.unon.org for more information. If you
re-print, copy, archive or re-post this item, please retain
this credit and disclaimer.]
Distributed via Africa News Online (http://www.africanews.org).
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