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PRES: The UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Chad, Michele Falavigna, says humanitarian actors in Chad are facing a new situation from banditry and criminality, who do not respect any flag. Clashes between Government and opposition forces has greatly diminished and disbanded soldiers are now on the loose in Chad. Falavigna talks to UN Radio's Derrick Mbatha about the chronic insecurity in East Chad and how it is affecting the delivery of humanitarian assistance.
FALAVIGNA: Regrettably the NGOs that are without escorts because of the principal of neutrality and impartiality that [they] uphold, [they] become a very soft target for these kind of criminals.
MBATHA: Where do these bandits come from?
FALAVIGNA: Where they come from, I can't tell you but most of the cases of the carjacking, sometimes only the car is gone, sometimes the car with the passengers is gone, sometimes there are attacks inside Chad to kidnap NGO personnel, all of them are popping up in Sudan.
MBATHA: And of course this affects the situation of internally displaced people and refugees while in that part of the country.
FALAVIGNA: We have about 370,000 refugees from Sudan, and we have about 120,000 refugees from Central African Republic. A recent influx of 15,000 from Central African Republic happened last February. The conditions for their return are being built because the situation in Central African Republic is improving so we do hope by beginning 2010 at least the 15,000 can go home.
MBATHA: What about the refugees from Sudan? I understand some of them sometimes go back to their country.
FALAVIGNA: Well, for the Sudanese refugees, the situation is a little bit more complicated because relations between the two countries are not very well although they started a direct dialogue between themselves, and this is not a very encouraging sign. Secondly, because there is some attempts to put the rebellion groups or organized armed groups in each territory under control and push them far from the border. However, we are still very far from creating the security conditions in Darfur that would allow all refugees to go back. This being said individuals from the refugee camps can go back to Darfur, cultivate the lands, and do some economic activities there and then come back in the safe haven that is provided on the border with Chad.
MBATHA: There is something you said essentially warning of against a tendency of some Somalization of the situation there. Let me get your comment on that.
FALAVIGNA: Yes. When you have four incidents in just 3 months in which international humanitarian staff mostly from NGOs well respected in the world, like Doctor Without Borders, like ICRC, that are kidnapped, it gives us the idea that there might be a shift in the tactics that can be attributed to armed organized groups. I don't think there is anything political in that but I believe there is a trend toward kidnapping Europeans working for NGOs because this will give international visibility to the fact that the situation is still insecure, number one and number two, that some deal has to done if they want these people to be released. There might be a trend toward Somalization in Eastern.
PRES: Michele Falavigna speaking to UN Radio's Derrick Mbatha.
(duration: 3'36")
