Organizing IDPs from Ituri DRC current living in Camps around Goma into a committee to represent them
Meeting of the Internally Displaced Persons from Ituri who are in different Camps around Goma in the Democratic Republic of Congo: Organizing IDPs in a strong leadership through elections of leaders held on Friday November 10th, 2023 at our offices.
IDPs from Ituri in their meeting at our offices recently in Goma
Background information
Over the years thousands of people left both south Kivu and North Kivu towards Ituri province. Unfortunately Ituri Province has been at war over the years among the tribes including attacks against those who came from other provinces who are considered as coming to occupy land in order to influence political change in Ituri.
Leaving Ituri to North Kivu
As war intensified in Ituri, many people are coming back to North Kivu, and are living in camps around Goma among other victims of the war in North Kivu. Despite of being part of IDPs facing the same problems, these ones from Ituri are more vulnerable because they came from far and have no social connections in North Kivu anymore, they appear more vulnerable than others and are currently exposed to many problems. Beyond that they are concerned about their identity because many are registered like from different some parts in North Kivu, and lastly they are wondering about their fate once others are told to go back to their villages, when the war ends.
People coming to our offices
The IDPs from Ituri are among others who are coming for services at the offices including Congolese from Uganda, Rwandan refugees in DRC, and other forced migrants. They come to the office every Friday for their meeting in order to know each other, share information and understand more about the situation in North Kivu and lastly to help each other in order to survive here.
They are divided into two groups, the first group is composed of people in IDPs camps and the second group is composed of those living in host communities outside camps. Those in camps do get some forms of relief aid while those in host communities do not get anything, and this has exposed to risks.
Our offices are often a center for all these IDPs and others who come to seek for assistance in terms of relief aid which we do not have in order to give, we are much conscious about this pressing need but we are not yet in position to respond to this demand.
Our Advocacy Programme
While we do not food, medicine and school fees for the children to give them, we have not abandoned them, we have put in place an advocacy programme looking at their situation. Among the things we are pushing for in our advocacy programme is to ensure that they are all registered in order to access relief aid, to follow-up different complaints, and monitor the current mismanagement and embezzling of the relief aid by humanitarian actors, but also work on various conflicts among IDPs, address issues connected to violence among other things.
In order to do our work very well and to ensure that the community plays a significant role, we held elections on IDPs from Ituri who voted for their representatives with who we shall work on different issues. During the elections which brought enthusiasm among the participants 6 persons were elected as their representatives in a highly competitive elections held at our offices.
For the first time women were also candidates at all levels and among them only one was elected as the mobilizer and the public relations.
Those elected included: The Chairperson, the vice-Chairperson, the Secretary, the Treasurer, the Advisor and the Public Relations.
The new executive committee that was elected to represent IDPs from Ituri now living around Goma
On our urgent advocacy programme is the lack of the relief to all those in host families and what is important is that we have now a team of people themselves who are concerned who will help us to push for this debate. We are aware about our financial limitation in order to adequately address these problems but we believe that we may get well-wishers to support.
Thanks
Kulihoshi Musikami Pecos
