Charlotte Observer story 6-20-2009: One billion people hungry

Indonesia Earthquake and Church World Service Response

Hunger News Alerts

CWS Appeal:  Democratic Republic of Congo Conflict

Escalating violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo has displaced more than 1 million people in the last two years and left 5 million dead since fighting intensified in 1998. War-related conflict and disease make it the deadliest conflict since World War II.

Warring factions have fought for control since the DRC gained independence from Belgium in 1960. Colonel Mobutu Sese Seko held power for 32 years until the rise of Laurent Kabila instigated rebellion in 1997. Fighting continued in 1998, when rebels linked to Rwanda and Uganda triggered a war involving six other nations. Dissident general Laurent Nkunda leads rebels in, the latest war for control of the resource-rich DRC.

On August 28, full-fledged fighting broke out in Masisi between government forces and Nkunda’s National Congress for the Defence of the People, and spread to the neighboring Rutshuru region. An estimated 250,000 people have been displaced since.

As fighting continues, an estimated 1,200 people die daily as a direct or indirect result of the conflict - more than half of them children.  The fluid nature of the fighting means continuous displacement for non-combatants, making it difficult for humanitarian providers to reach those in need to provide assistance. As fighting closes off internal food sources and those displaced flee to more remote areas, malnutrition is already beginning to grip many.

CWS and its partners in Africa are seeking to provide food supplements for 4,800 Congolese children; food security for 9,650 households; water, sanitation and hygiene facilities for 55,000; and other services to men, women and children who are displaced as a result of the war.

Thousands who have walked in the Carolinas will be contributing to ongoing efforts to alleviate hunger and poverty in places like the Republic of Congo and around the world.  For more information about this emergency response, visit www.churchworldservice.org