U.S. Catholic Bishops' Committee on Migration and Refugee Services: Trip to Africa

Kathleen Newland introduced the speakers. Bishop Straling began with a brief description of the delegation and emphasized the importance of continuing attention to the humanitarian situation in the Great Lakes region. He stated that the U.S. Catholic Bishops' Committee decided to visit the region because they felt that the area has the greatest need yet receives the lowest proportion of resources relative to that need. Besides the Great Lakes Region, the delegation also visited Kenya, focusing on refugee processing procedures in Nairobi and the Kakuma camp for Sudanese refugees. In the Kakuma camp they focused on the severe problems of the many unaccompanied youth. The Committee on Migration and Refugee Services is working to resettle these youths in the U.S. Bishop Straling also identified three major impressions gained from the trip:

• The enormity of the problems struck the delegation, which concluded that nothing can truly improve until the fighting stops. They urge the U.S. to support the Arusha and Lusaka peace processes actively in order to end the fighting. Whether or not the fighting stops, however, there is a humanitarian crisis that must be dealt with now.
• The people they visited showed gratitude for their visit. They feel neglected. This gave the delegation a sense of duty to make the American people aware of the situation.
• They were impressed by the field workers. Catholic Relief Services was their host, but the delegation noted that many NGOs and UNHCR are working hard under difficult and sometimes dangerous circumstances. The people they spoke with expressed their appreciation for the NGOs' work.

Bishop Wenski spoke next, highlighting recommendations. He emphasized that without an end to the fighting, humanitarian efforts are often futile. Despite imperfections, the peace processes must continue; they are currently the best way to end the fighting. He noted that within the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), there is a perception that the U.S. is biased in favor of Rwanda and supports Rwanda's incursions into the DRC. This hurts the Lusaka peace process. The delegation appeals to the U.S. and neighboring African countries to support the peace processes.

Humanitarian organizations do not have access to certain populations, such as 60,000 DRC Congolese who fled to Congo-Brazzaville. DRC forces have closed the river that forms the international border, so international relief agencies cannot reach the refugees. A second recommendation was that the Congo river be opened.

Lack of funding is a major problem. Wenski said that UNHCR is "shamefully low" on funds. In the U.S., the Clinton Administration's budget request for FY 2001 for migration and refugee assistance for Africa was less than last year. Despite the reduction, the House and Senate made additional cuts. Wenski said the situation could still be rectified in conference; he recommended that the amount for migration and refugee assistance for FY 2001 be raised to $700 million. He also suggested that the Administration raise the ceiling for resettlement admissions from Africa from this year's 18,000 to 25,000.

Bishop Wenski expressed concern for unaccompanied refugee minors. Unaccompanied minors are usually not considered for resettlement in a third country, but the delegation is working to resettle them in the U.S. and suggests that the U.S. should resettle at least 700 per year.

The delegation also noted that there are more internally displaced persons than refugees in the region. In Burundi, there are 725,000 internally displaced, in addition to 400,000 Burundi refugees in Tanzania. It is unclear who is responsible for the internally displaced.

Lacy Wright spoke next, giving an overview of the countries they visited. Burundi is violent and unsettled. While the delegation was there, internally displaced civilians were killed in Bujumbura and others driven out and then killed. The army has been accused of killing civilians under the guise of pursuing rebels. The country must also deal with refugees from Tanzania who will return when the fighting stops. UNHCR has focused on making preparations for their repatriation. UNHCR mostly limits itself to Bujumbura; in the rural areas beyond that, NGOs are the only organizations operating. The regroupment camps (where the Tutsi government forced up to 800,000 Hutus to live from 1996 to 1998) are now mostly disbanded. It is difficult to convince donor countries who worry about pouring their "money down a rat hole" to send aid. Last year, relief agencies requested $83 million and received only $14 million.

Despite Rwanda's terrible 1994 massacre, it is now more stable and hopeful than the surrounding countries. The Rwandan government is working hard for reconciliation. Returnees, mainly Hutu, have repatriated easily. Catholic bishops are playing an increasing role in assisting reconciliation. There are, however, problems. One is lack of shelter; there are still about 400,000 households living without permanent shelter. There is also a serious need for psychological assistance; many Tutsi survivors are showing delayed depression. Another obstacle is prosecuting war criminals; 130,000 people are in jail for participating in the genocide. The government is considering implementing a system in which the prisoners are separated according to the severity of their crimes. Those charged with less severe crimes may be tried first and released for time served.

In the DRC (also known as Congo-Kinshasa), everything that could go wrong has gone wrong. The government is paranoid about foreigners, and donors are not being generous. Catholic charities in the country are working to help refugees and displaced people, but they face a lack of resources. The U.S. is paying more attention to the area and considering an increase in assistance. There is a desperate need to stop the fighting, but peace efforts do not look promising. The warring parties have agreed to accept peacekeepers, but the U.N. refuses to send them until the two sides show a clear sign that they agree to negotiate.

Congo-Brazzaville faces two relevant problems: the aftermath of its civil war and an influx of refugees from the DRC (in addition to previous Rwandan refugees). The country has had reasonable success dealing with the first problem and some success with the second. About half of the Rwandan refugees have been settled locally; about half have returned. The country agreed to resettle many DRC refugees, but there are still many unsettled cases.

The Kakuma camp in Kenya has shown improvement. Its population has decreased from about 85,000 to 67,000. It offers many services, but it is still a refugee camp. The delegation is working to resettle the "lost boys" - young Sudanese refugees - in the US. They hope to get all of them to the U.S. by the end of this calendar year. They hope to extend this program to other countries.

Father Perry spoke next. He listed weak government, lack of economic resources, use of ethnic identification for political purposes, the spread of crisis, and disenfranchisement as some of the major problems in central Africa. African states greatly affect each other; it is difficult for a peace process in one country to be successful if neighboring states are in turmoil. He expressed hope for the Arusha peace process but warned that it may be negatively affected if the Lusaka peace process fails.

Father Perry specified four issues that his organization and the international community must address. The first was the proliferation of arms; he noted the volume of arms and easy access to them. He called on the U.S. to stop the flow of arms to Africa. Second, he mentioned human rights abuses, especially in eastern Congo and Burundi. The countries need external help to fund investigation and trials of human rights abuses. Third, he discussed the Catholic church's role in the Rwandan genocide. The Church is respecting due process, even when it leads to convictions of members of the clergy. Government officials said their relationship with the Church is improving; they realize that individuals' actions do not necessarily represent organizations. The Church is assisting reconciliation and seeking support for trauma services. HIV/AIDS posed the fourth major problem. It affects the current conflicts and could play a role in future displacements. In one Tutsi camp of about 1,000 people, around 75% of them had tuberculosis; Perry feared that such a large number might be evidence of the existence of AIDS. Massive movements of people could spread the virus.

In discussion of the presentation, the following points were made:

• Anike Bouchet from the International Rescue Committee expressed concern that the fungibility of humanitarian aid to Rwanda allows the government to fund military activities in the DRC.
• Joel Charney from Refugees International cautioned that focusing on the big picture may obscure the immediate needs of displaced people. Refugees International believes that relief agencies need to work despite lack of a peace agreement.
• Dawn Calabia brought up the decrease in funding. Governments are reluctant to give money and often unhappy with agencies' approaches. For example, the U.S. disapproved of UNHCR's shelter program and cut off funding.
• Bishop Wenski urged that agencies preach solidarity. In the age of globalization, we must be careful not to leave people behind.