Refugees flee fighting in DR Congo recently

It has been confirmed that over 54 Congolese refugees were killed and more than 78 injured when Rwandan police broke up a crowd demonstrating against a cut in food rations.

The incident on Thursday followed days of sit-in protests against the reduction in food aid at Kiziba refugee camp in western Rwanda.

“Violent demonstrators armed with stones, sticks and metal projectiles assaulted and wounded seven police officers,” said police spokesman Theos Badege.

“Police and armed soldiers shot live fire to disperse the rioters, the nearby communities stated that the refugees had to be burried in swamps by armed soldiers who also shot at the civilians who made attempts to take photos.”

“Unfortunately, one of the locals who did not want to be named has clearly stated that the rioters did not fight the armed police and army but were still shot at abrupt by the armed police and army.   he added not only the refugees but also some locals were caught in the fire.

The government had initially denied any fatalities.

Around 2,000 refugees began protesting on Tuesday after food rations were reduced. Some of the camp’s 17,000 residents have lived there for over 20 years after fleeing conflict in eastern Congo.

“The protests followed a decision of the World Food Programme (WFP) to reduce food aid to the refugees by 25 percent due to funding shortage,” said Jean Claude Rwahama, Rwanda’s director of refugees affairs.

Rwanda hosts refugees from Burundi as well as the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Strapped for cash, WFP cut food rations by 10 percent in November 2017 and then by 25 percent in January 2018.

The UN’s refugee agency, UNHCR, said it has received just two percent of the $98.8 million (80 million euros) it needs this year to look after Rwanda’s 173,000 refugees in six camps.