PANAPRESS
Panafrican News Agency
NRC calls for bolstered global response to CAR crisis
Nairobi, Kenya (PANA) - Humanitarian organization, Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC) on Thursday warned that the slow international response to the violence in the Central African Republic (CAR) is a recipe for failure.
NRC Secretary General, Jan Egeland, says the humanitarian and political neglect will throw the country back into renewed cycles of violence,
Egeland, who is visiting the country, says since 2017, violence has escalated in several areas, the number of attacks against civilians and aid workers is on the rise, and one out of four Central Africans now live in displacement.
“I was heartbroken to hear the story of a 16-year old mother with her 8-month old baby living alone in the camp of Lazare.
''Her parents were killed by the armed groups and the father of her baby dumped her with nothing,” recounts Egeland after his visit to a camp for displaced persons in Kaga Bandoro..
He said there are thousands of single mothers and orphaned children with similar stories here. They are surrounded by armed men and left in hopelessness. The World cannot continue to betray them with silence and inaction.
Next week, the UN Security Council will meet to renew the mandate of the peacekeeping force, MINUSCA, which is set to expire on 15th November.
“The peacekeeping force is overstretched and under-resourced. It is unable to protect civilians from atrocities,'' he said .
The UN should not just renew the force’s mandate, but must also follow up on the commitment from last year to give it the necessary mandate and resources to prevent conflict and protect civilians from attacks.
To address the massive humanitarian needs, Egeland is also appealing for a significant increase in the humanitarian support. So far this year, humanitarian organisations have received less than half of the 500 million dollars needed for relief work.
“The situation in the Central African Republic is a grotesque example of the impossibility of building peace and stability on empty stomachs,” said Egeland.
The Central African Republic is now the world’s third worst humanitarian crisis behind Yemen and Syria, measured by the percentage of population in need of lifesaving relief.
-0- PANA DJ/VAO 8Nov2018
-0-PANA DJ8Nov2018
NRC Secretary General, Jan Egeland, says the humanitarian and political neglect will throw the country back into renewed cycles of violence,
Egeland, who is visiting the country, says since 2017, violence has escalated in several areas, the number of attacks against civilians and aid workers is on the rise, and one out of four Central Africans now live in displacement.
“I was heartbroken to hear the story of a 16-year old mother with her 8-month old baby living alone in the camp of Lazare.
''Her parents were killed by the armed groups and the father of her baby dumped her with nothing,” recounts Egeland after his visit to a camp for displaced persons in Kaga Bandoro..
He said there are thousands of single mothers and orphaned children with similar stories here. They are surrounded by armed men and left in hopelessness. The World cannot continue to betray them with silence and inaction.
Next week, the UN Security Council will meet to renew the mandate of the peacekeeping force, MINUSCA, which is set to expire on 15th November.
“The peacekeeping force is overstretched and under-resourced. It is unable to protect civilians from atrocities,'' he said .
The UN should not just renew the force’s mandate, but must also follow up on the commitment from last year to give it the necessary mandate and resources to prevent conflict and protect civilians from attacks.
To address the massive humanitarian needs, Egeland is also appealing for a significant increase in the humanitarian support. So far this year, humanitarian organisations have received less than half of the 500 million dollars needed for relief work.
“The situation in the Central African Republic is a grotesque example of the impossibility of building peace and stability on empty stomachs,” said Egeland.
The Central African Republic is now the world’s third worst humanitarian crisis behind Yemen and Syria, measured by the percentage of population in need of lifesaving relief.
-0- PANA DJ/VAO 8Nov2018
-0-PANA DJ8Nov2018
