U N I T E D N A T I O N S
Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA)
Integrated Regional Information Network (IRIN)

CONGO: Pool region still inaccessible, humanitarian situation unknown

NAIROBI, 13 May (IRIN) - Fighting between government forces - supported by
Angolan troops - and Ninja militias allied to the Rev Frederic Bitsangou
(alias Ntoumi) in the Pool region of the Republic of Congo (ROC) is now well
into its second month. The total number of persons displaced by the conflict
there remains unknown, but is "at least 22,000 and probably more", according
to humanitarian sources in the country.

The government has reported that at least 5,000 persons have found refuge in
the town of Kindamba, a small and isolated town of 5,000 inhabitants in the
Pool region, about 170 km northwest of the capital, Brazzaville, but they
have not yet received any assistance. A previous attempt by the United
Nations to conduct an evaluation mission was cancelled at the last minute
due to insecurity.

Not more than 2,000 people have managed to reach refuge outside the affected
area, in neighbouring Plateaux, Bouenza and Lekoumou regions. The
international community has been able to visit them and provide assistance,
and it is expected that a mission to Kindamba may be organised in the coming
days.

The UN and other international organisations were recently allowed to visit
Kinkala, the capital of Pool region some 79 km west of Brazzaville, the
office of the UN Humanitarian Coordinator reported on Friday. The mission,
conducted on 8 and 9 May, found that the four displacement camps that had
been set up in Kinkala since 5 April had been closed by the authorities on
14 April. The international community has been unable to reach Kinkala since
9 April, and therefore little humanitarian assistance is available.

About two-thirds of Kinkala's population has returned to their homes, with
the major problem being the absence of medical personnel to run health and
sanitary facilities. The mission provided voluntary staff with medical
equipment and other supplies. Most civil servants and teachers have not
returned to Kinkala. Numerous sources have reported that over 20 young men
were taken from the camps and have not been seen since.

The resumption of cargo train services between the coastal city of Pointe
Noire and Brazzaville has enabled economic activity in the capital to return
to "almost normal", according to the office of the UN Humanitarian
Coordinator, although passenger trains have not yet been authorised.

The route - Congo's main railway line - had been shut down by the government
for security concerns since 2 April, when at least two people were killed
and 12 wounded in an attack on a passenger train travelling from
Pointe-Noire to Brazzaville, said to have taken place in two separate
locations near Kinkembo, some 150 km west of the capital. Fuel, which had
been in particularly short supply, is now transported from the coast to the
capital in trains carrying military escorts.

From his base in Vindza, Pool region, Ntoumi has sent an audio-cassette to
President Denis Sassou-Nguesso expressing his desire for a negotiated
solution. According to Ntoumi, the crisis started when 500 additional
government troops were sent to the Vindza area. In response, he sent some of
his followers to inquire about the reasons for this military build-up. He
claims that the military then shot at his men.

It was following that incident, he said, that he concluded that the
government was seeking a military solution against him. In his statement, he
asserted that a military solution was impossible and trying to effect it
would cause unnecessary hardship for the population.

The tens of thousands who had been displaced from the southern
neighbourhoods of Brazzaville in early April have, for the most part,
returned to their homes. Thousands of displaced people from the Pool region
are still in Brazzaville, although some are returning. However, still more
keep arriving in Brazzaville from various localities in Pool, usually
claiming that they are fleeing out of fear.

A door-to-door survey is now being conducted by the UN to identify
vulnerable displaced people. Most have already received non-food items, and
the survey will determine whether food assistance is required, the office of
the UN Humanitarian Coordinator reported.

Meanwhile, the government is proceeding with preparations for legislative
elections to be held on 26 May, even if Pool has not stabilised. In such an
event, elections will be held in the region later. According to the
government, 994 candidates of 1,239 who applied from all political parties
have been authorised to compete for the 137 available seats in the National
Assembly.

Campaigning was officially launched on 10 May, with Congolese Interior
Minister Pierre Oba appealing for the sustained prevalence of the "calm and
good conduct" which characterised the presidential elections of 10 March,
when Sassou-Nguesso won a landslide victory in the ROC's first presidential
elections since 1992.

Former Prime Minister Andre Milongo, considered to be Sassou-Nguesso's main
challenger, withdrew from the race on 8 March, claiming irregularities.
Former President Pascal Lissouba, who defeated Sassou-Nguesso in 1992, and
former Prime Minister Bernard Kolelas were barred from entering the race by
the revised constitution, which requires candidates to have resided
continuously in the country for at least two years before the election.

Both are living abroad in exile, having been tried and convicted in absentia
for crimes allegedly committed during civil war that plagued the nation
throughout the 1990s.

Following the 1999 ceasefire agreements, the process of demobilising an
estimated total of 25,000 militia fighters has been under way in the ROC.
The process comprises members of the Cobras (loyal to Sassou-Nguesso), the
Cocoyes (loyal to Lissouba), and the Ninjas (loyal to Kolelas).

[ENDS]

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