UN Commissioner Calls for Global Attention to the Congo Crisis Amid Increasing Violence

A UN High Commissioner has appealed for greater focus on the situation in the Congo that is getting worse.

During his visit to a camp for displaced people in Goma on Wednesday, U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk made a passionate case for more attention to be paid to the crisis in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

Conflicts between the M23 rebels and the Congolese army have forced thousands of people to evacuate their homes, throwing the region into chaos. It is one of the worst displacement crises in history, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

Faida Bauma, who was uprooted from Masis with her four kids, bemoaned the appalling conditions of the camp and the ongoing violence that its inmates had to put up with. She described the dangerous conditions, including shots going through the camp and the disastrous effects of bad weather on their temporary shelter.

“They fired shots that came through this area. Take a look at our living circumstances—we suffer when it rains here, and we fold our mattresses when it pours. People are even raped here, and we are going to die. Thus, the military is to blame for a number of transgressions that are occurring here, the speaker stated.

Turk’s visit comes at a time when the security situation in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo is deteriorating due to continuous clashes between the M23 rebels and the Congolese army near Goma.

During his visit, Turk spoke to displaced people and underlined the gravity of the situation, calling on the international community to bring attention back to the tragedy that is happening in the area.

Over 738,000 more displaced people have entered the DRC since the start of 2024, bringing the overall number of displaced people to about 7.2 million, according to an OCHA report that was made public on Tuesday. The research emphasized that 51 percent of those who are displaced are women.

Since late 2021, the Congolese army, along with armed groups and foreign military forces, has been embroiled in conflict in the region of North Kivu. The M23 rebels are suspected by Kinshasa and the UN of receiving backing from Rwanda.

Authorities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) have also charged Rwanda and its “auxiliaries” in the M23 with attempting to take over the mineral-rich eastern Congolese regions. As the M23 claims to be defending a vulnerable section of the populace and pushes for talks, Kinshasa rejects any communication with those it regards as “terrorists.”