Confused? Worried? So Is Everyone Else

An international aid worker reports on the mixed feelings at a camp for IDPs near Goma:

Today, talking to people who have been living in a displacement camp for two years after Nkunda’s rebels attacked their villages, most questioned if this week’s news really means peace for the area.

“How do I know if peace is here?” said a woman moulding clay pots in the middle of the camp. “I’m sitting here with you, how do I know? You want this stone to tell me if there is peace?

“How do you want us to believe there is peace after everything that has happened?” she asked. “We still remember everything.”

Oxfam is worried:

The impact the fighting may have on the estimated 600,000 people living in rebel-controlled areas is deeply concerning. Fighting three months ago, saw a quarter of a million people flee from their homes, and civilians killed, raped, and looted by all armed groups. This new twist in Congo’s violence has the potential to result in similar abuse and could significantly swell the one million people already displaced.

Cartoon Credit: Le Potentiel