THE ATTEMPT by aid agencies to bring humanitarian aid into Eastern Zaire through Goma faces further uncertainty, after Hutu militias shelled the town yesterday.
Shells fired from their Mugunga refugee camp, 12 kms away, landed near Goma hospital yesterday afternoon. United Nations staff in the nearby stadium, which is expected to become the central depot for food and medical supplies, evacuated it for a time.
Staff from the 10 aid agencies trying to set up a relief operation were in the town yesterday. "There were two shells and some anti aircraft fire," according to Ms Rosemary Heenan, Trocaire's team leader who returned to Gisenyi, in Rwanda, last night. She said: "We feel we are not in danger and we will continue our work tomorrow."
The agencies met rebel leaders yesterday to try to negotiate conditions for the delivery of aid, and will meet them again tomorrow. These discussions began on Monday and progress is very slow.
Even when agreement is reached on the distribution of food in Goma, it is still not known when agencies can cross the frontline to begin helping 1.2 million refugees, many of whom are believed to have spent two weeks without food.
The rebels control Goma following an uprising against the Zairean Army which began over three weeks ago. The rebel controlled radio station claimed yesterday that their forces were fighting for control of the town of Sake, several kilometres west of the Mugunga camp.
Up to 400,000 Hutu refugees are believed to be in the camp which is being defended heavily by the Hutu militias. Some 1.2 million Hutus fled Rwanda into Zaire in 1994, fearing reprisals for the genocide of up to a million Tutsis and moderate Hutus in which many of them took part.
A recent uprising by Zairean ethnic Tutsis fighting against the Zairean army has caused many of the refugees to flee deeper into Zaire. Fearful of returning to Rwanda, and fearing they will be attacked if the civilian refugees leave, the Hutu militias in the Mugunga camp are reported to be forcing the starving refugees to stay with them as "human shields".
There is speculation that, should the rebels take control of Sake and effectively block off an escape route deeper into Zaire, they could then launch an attack on the camp, forcing the refugees to flood into Rwanda. The rebels and Rwandan authorities, widely believed to be supporting them, believe that once a UN force arrives in the region the opportunity to drive the refugees back into Rwanda will have been lost.
Workers from the 10 aid agencies involved in the present relief plan, including Concern, will return to Goma today to assess the needs of people there. While some of the people in Goma are short of food as a result of the recent fighting, the ultimate objective is to reach the Hutu refugees beyond the front line of the fighting.
A joint UN and Red Cross delegation failed to reach Mugunga yesterday. They will attempt today to cross the frontline to the camp to negotiate the passage of food and medical assistance.