from ARMANDO DOMINGOS in Maputo, Mozambique
Mozambique Bureau
MAPUTO, (CAJ News) – ABOUT 100 000 people, more than half of them children, have been displaced in one month due to an escalation of armed violence in Cabo Delgado province of Mozambique.
The new wave of displacements in the north is taking place against the backdrop of a severe cholera outbreak.
This is heightening the risk of infectious diseases for displaced families and host communities, who share crowded accommodations with poor sanitation.
“It is heartbreaking to see so many women and children traumatized and exhausted,” said Catherine Gendre, the Head of the Delegation of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Maputo.
“We call on all the armed actors to spare civilians from harm and respect their obligations under international humanitarian law,” she appealed.
Some 46 000 people fled from the Chiure district of Cabo Delgado into Nampula province in search of safety.
Many families have been separated, and unaccompanied children find themselves highly vulnerable. The ICRC works with the Mozambique Red Cross (CVM) to facilitate phone calls, reconnect families and register unaccompanied minors.
“Despite several humanitarian organizations’ efforts, there is still a desperate shortage of hygiene items, water purification products, mosquito nets, and blankets to alleviate the suffering of the displaced people,” said José Campira, CVM Nampula branch Provincial Secretary.
The ICRC is supporting CVM’s efforts to prevent the spread of cholera by promoting hygiene and distributing household essentials among displaced families.
In the past few days, 300 households in Namapa, Erati district, received hygiene kits and household items with support from the Belgian Red Cross, Swedish Red Cross, Spanish Red Cross, and the International Federation of the Red Cross.
The violence by Islamist groups in Mozambique peaked in 2017 and has left thousands dead. The local army and soldiers from neighbouring countries have not deterred the militants.
– CAJ News