| United Nations | A/50/654 |
General Assembly
Distr. GENERAL
19 October 1995
ORIGINAL:
ENGLISH/FRENCH/SPANISH
Fiftieth session
Agenda item 20 (b)
STRENGTHENING OF THE COORDINATION OF HUMANITARIAN AND DISASTER
RELIEF ASSISTANCE OF THE UNITED NATIONS, INCLUDING SPECIAL
ECONOMIC ASSISTANCE: SPECIAL ECONOMIC ASSISTANCE TO INDIVIDUAL
COUNTRIES OR REGIONS
Emergency international assistance for a solution to
the problem of refugees, the restoration of total
peace, reconstruction and socio-economic development
in war-stricken Rwanda
Report of the Secretary-General
CONTENTS
Paragraphs Page
I. INTRODUCTION...........................................13
II. KEY DEVELOPMENTS FROM JANUARY TO SEPTEMBER 1995........2 -
303
A. Refugees ...........................................2 -
103
B. Displaced persons..................................11 - 175
C. Justice ............................................18 -
247
D. Rehabilitation and reconstruction and socio-economic
development........................................25 - 309
III. HUMANITARIAN DEVELOPMENT RESPONSES PROVIDED BY THE
INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY................................31 -
9011
A. Assistance by Member States and other donors.......31 -
4411
95-31769 (E) 021195 151195/...
*9531769*
CONTENTS (continued)
Paragraphs Page
B. Assistance by organizations of the United Nations
system and intergovernmental organizations.........45 - 8315
C. Assistance by non-governmental organizations.......84 -
9022
IV. CONCLUDING OBSERVATIONS................................91 -
10224
Annexes
I. Rwanda financial
update...........................................28
II. Map of
Rwanda.....................................................41
/... A/50/654
English
Page
A/50/654
English
Page
I. INTRODUCTION
1. The present report is submitted pursuant to General Assembly
resolution
49/23 of 2 December 1994 on emergency international
assistance for a
solution to the problem of refugees, the restoration of
total peace,
reconstruction and socio-economic development in Rwanda.
In the
resolution, the Assembly expressed its grave concern over the
disastrous
humanitarian situation in 1994 of the Rwandan population,
including 2
million refugees and displaced persons who must be
reintegrated into
society and employment; urged all States, United Nations
organizations,
specialized agencies, other intergovernmental and
non-governmental
organizations and the international financial and development
institutions
to provide all possible financial, technical and material
assistance with a
view to facilitating the restoration of basic services,
rehabilitating the
economy and ensuring the reconstruction of the social
and economic
infrastructure of Rwanda and the return and resettlement of
refugees and
internally displaced persons in Rwanda; urged all States, in
particular the
donor countries, to contribute generously to the trust fund
established by
the Secretary-General on 14 July 1994 to finance humanitarian
relief and
rehabilitation programmes in Rwanda; and requested the
Government of Rwanda
and other partners concerned, including the States of the
subregion, to
meet without delay to consider the problems relating to Rwandan
refugees at
a subregional conference within the framework of the plan of
action adopted
under the Arusha Peace Agreements (A/48/824-S/26915, annexes).
II. KEY DEVELOPMENTS FROM JANUARY TO SEPTEMBER 1995
A. Refugees
2. The safe return of refugees is crucial to stability and
harmony in
Rwanda and the region as a whole. This concept was
accepted in the
Declaration of the Regional Summit on Rwanda held at Nairobi on
7 January
1995, in the Plan of Action of the Bujumbura Conference
organized jointly
by the Organization of African Unity (OAU) and the Office of
the United
Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) from 15 to 17
February 1995
and included in the tripartite agreements between Rwanda,
UNHCR and
neighbouring countries.
3. The OAU/UNHCR Regional Conference, which was called for in
resolution
49/23, addressed the problem of refugees, returnees and
displaced persons
in the Great Lakes region on a humanitarian and non-political
basis. It
adopted a Plan of Action with a primary focus on voluntary
repatriation
instead of care and maintenance of camps for refugees and
internally
displaced persons. Participants agreed that the camps could
not sustain
their occupants over a long period without putting them at
serious risk.
There was concern that the uncontrolled elements in the
camps could
destabilize the entire central African region. The
Conference also
recognized that the problem of refugees, returnees and
displaced persons
was a global one. It therefore emphasized the need for
equitable burden-
sharing. To that end, the Conference requested the
United Nations
Development Programme (UNDP) to convene a round-table meeting of
donors and
the countries of the region in order to coordinate actions to be
undertaken
in those areas affected by the presence of refugees.
4. UNHCR estimates that, since January 1995, some 150,000
refugees have
returned to the country. Out of that number, some 122,000
are refugees
belonging to an old case-load dating back to 1959-1960 and to
subsequent
years of conflict. About 27,000 are refugees who fled in the
1994 crisis.
Most old case-load refugees have not found permanent
settlement. A good
number of them are lodged in houses and use or work on land
belonging to
those who died or fled in 1994. Many are living with friends
and family.
A significant number of more recent refugees and formerly
displaced persons
are living in similar precarious conditions.
5. Organized repatriation of Rwandans who fled to Zaire,
the United
Republic of Tanzania and Burundi during the events of
1994 has been
difficult. This has been due mainly to the fact that
elements of the
former Government control and intimidate the population
within refugee
camps. UNHCR and the Government of Zaire signed an
agreement in late
January 1995 to place 1,500 military and police personnel
inside the
refugee camps in that country. With that deployment, security
inside the
camps has improved and intimidation of refugees has decreased.
The number
of refugees departing from the Goma camps rose from 2,000 in
January to
10,000 a month later. In March, however, partly as a result
of reports
reaching the refugees about increased arrests and detentions in
Rwanda, the
numbers of people willing to leave the camps declined
substantially.
Contributing further to the decline was the reduction of food
rations in
the camps. Although this was due to overall shortages of food
aid in the
region, it was perceived by many refugees to be a deliberate
measure to
force their repatriation.
6. On 22 May, the Joint Commission for the Repatriation
of Rwandan
Refugees was officially launched. The Commission, mentioned
in article 9
of the Arusha Protocol, is composed of five
representatives from the
Government of Rwanda, two representatives from UNHCR, one
representative of
OAU, one person representing old case-load refugees and
one person
representing new case-load refugees. Its principal
functions are to
propose repatriation plans, study ways of putting those
plans into
practice, to assist the Government in mobilizing resources and,
generally,
to facilitate cooperation among the various partners in the area.
7. There have recently been some encouraging signs to
indicate that
largescale repatriation of refugees to Rwanda may be
possible. UNHCR
reports that some 7,000 Rwandan refugees returned from
Burundi in June
either through organized programmes or spontaneously, and that
the numbers
returning in July may be much higher. July has also seen the
return of
small but steady numbers of refugees from Zaire and the United
Republic of
Tanzania. The trend of spontaneous return of large numbers
of refugees,
however, is a concern. Since they do not register with
UNHCR, the
provision of the normal repatriation package of emergency
assistance,
including food, is extremely difficult. Many of the
people who have
spontaneously returned have also not registered with the local
authorities
in Rwanda and this renders them ineligible for general food
assistance.
8. On 5 July, UNHCR resumed its voluntary repatriation
programme for
Rwandan refugee camps in Goma. A tripartite agreement has been
signed by
Rwanda, the United Republic of Tanzania and UNHCR for the
repatriation from
Tanzania. Confidence-building measures have been stepped up in
Burundi. As
part of those measures, refugees in camps in Burundi have been
assisted to
return to Rwanda to see conditions in their home communes.
There have also
been visits by senior Rwandan and Burundian government
officials to the
camps. However, as at the end of July, the camps in Zaire
still held more
than one million refugees, some 727,000 in Goma and some
further 372,000
refugees in Bukavu/Uvira. The United Republic of Tanzania
hosts another
566,000 Rwandan refugees and Burundi 180,000.
9. As at 7 July, and against needs which total $205 million,
$72 million
had been pledged towards the Government's resettlement
programme for
refugees and displaced persons. It is hoped that additional
donor funding
will be made available for the specific projects that are
now being
prepared on the basis of the general Plan of Action for
resettlement of
refugees and internally displaced persons, presented by the
Government at
the round-table mid-term review. The Plan of Action envisages a
series of
actions designed to meet the basic needs of returnees
with priority
initially given to seven sites identified by the
Government for
resettlement. Those actions include the rehabilitation
of social
infrastructure, the construction of housing, the promotion of
small-scale,
income-generating activities and the reform of existing land
ownership
legislation. Specific components of the Plan of Action will be
implemented
as donor funding becomes available. In recent months,
United Nations
agencies and non-governmental organizations have increased their
assistance
to home communes. Without adequate donor support, the Government
will lack
the means to ensure that conditions in the communes are
created to
encourage refugees to return home.
10. Equally important is action on the part of the Government
of Rwanda to
improve security in Rwanda and a firm commitment from the
international
community, as well as the Governments of the region, to
support those
efforts. Furthermore, the institution of asylum continues to
face severe
difficulties in the Great Lakes region. This is of
deep concern.
Countries hosting Rwandan and Burundian refugees have shown
increasing
signs of impatience. The United Republic of Tanzania, long
known for its
generosity to asylum-seekers, closed its borders to Burundian
and Rwandan
refugees in March. Soldiers in Burundi have regularly turned
away Rwandan
refugees despite assurances from officials in the capital,
Bujumbura, that
their frontiers are open. Zaire, while still admitting
refugees, has
threatened to keep them out and forcibly expel those
currently in the
country.
B. Displaced persons
11. For the first four months of the year, the problem of
displaced
persons living in some 20 camps, mainly in the south-west of
Rwanda, was a
major focus for the Government of Rwanda, the United Nations
Assistance
Mission for Rwanda (UNAMIR), United Nations agencies and
international and
non-governmental organizations. By the beginning of January
1995, the
camps housed approximately 300,000 people, many of whom lived
only a short
walk from their original communes, to which they were reluctant
to return
for reasons that included the loss of their homes,
insecurity in their
communes and guilt or fear of being falsely accused in
connection with the
genocide. Intimidation and harassment by members of the
former Rwandese
Armed Forces and militia within the camps contributed greatly to
the fears
and tensions.
12. The Government of Rwanda saw the camps as sanctuaries
for elements
of the former government forces and military, a source of
instability and
an obstacle to restoration of normalcy. Although there had
been attempts
by UNAMIR and UNHCR/International Organization for Migration
(IOM) in 1994
to assist people to return home voluntarily, the Government
appeared to be
frustrated with the slow pace of such efforts.
13. The threat of forced camp closures and a growing number
of violent
incidents involving the Rwandese Patriotic Army (RPA) led to
the creation
of new mechanisms for more effective coordination and an
accelerated pace
of voluntary return. In November 1994, the Integrated
Operations Centre
was established. It brought together officers of the relevant
government
ministries, UNAMIR, representatives of United Nations agencies
and non-
governmental organizations to coordinate the day-to-day
aspects of the
accelerated programme of voluntary return, code-named Operation
Retour. At
the same time, an Integrated Displaced Persons Task Force,
headed by the
Director-General of the Ministry of Rehabilitation and Social
Integration,
was established to determine policy concerning displaced
persons. The Task
Force comprised the Government of Rwanda, including
representatives of the
RPA, the Ministries of Planning and Justice, UNAMIR and senior
members of
United Nations agencies.
14. Within the first two months of Operation Retour, some
40,000 displaced
persons were transported back to their home communes and a
further 40,000
had left the camps spontaneously. However, by March 1995, the
number of
people willing to return voluntarily to their home areas
had declined.
There were also indications that people from the communes were
moving into
the camps, some for the first time. Preparations in
April for the
commemoration of the anniversary of the start of the 1994
genocide also
heightened fears of reprisal and led to increases in camp
populations. On
18 April, as negotiations were ongoing with the Government and
the United
Nations regarding the voluntary closure of the camps, the
Government of
Rwanda took action to cordon off and close the eight
remaining camps, of
which Kibeho was the largest. Seven of the camps were
closed without
serious incident. However, at Kibeho the estimated 80,000
displaced
persons in the camp spent five days herded together without
adequate space,
shelter, water or sanitation. The limited delivery of food and
water was
used as an incentive for the internally displaced persons to
leave the
camp. On 22 April, a large group of internally displaced
persons broke the
cordon that the RPA had established around the camp and tried
to escape.
RPA witnesses indicated that some internally displaced
persons carried
rifles and others were armed with traditional weapons such as
machetes and
stones. A large number of deaths occurred as a result of the
RPA firing
into crowds of people. Others were trampled to death and
crushed as the
population panicked.
15. Shortly after the events of 18 to 22 April, the Special
Envoy of the
Secretary-General, Mr. Aldo Ajello, carried a personal message
of concern
from the Secretary-General to the Government of Rwanda. In
that message,
the Government was urged to allow unhindered and safe
movement of
humanitarian convoys, as well as protection for people
leaving the camps
and in their home communes. An Independent International
Commission of
Inquiry, called for by the Government of Rwanda, was also
established to
investigate the events of 18 to 22 April, including the role
played by the
RPA. The inquiry concluded that the tragedy of Kibeho
was neither
premeditated nor an accident that could not have been prevented.
16. In the face of the humanitarian emergency triggered by
the camp
closure, humanitarian relief agencies responded in a fast and
coordinated
manner. The prompt reaction of UNAMIR forces, United Nations
agencies,
non-governmental organizations, the International Committee
of the Red
Cross (ICRC) and IOM both in Kigali and in the Butare and
Gikongoro
prefectures undoubtedly prevented further unnecessary suffering
and deaths.
During the initial phase of the emergency, the transport
assets of UNHCR,
IOM and UNAMIR, along with trucks made available by the
World Food
Programme (WFP) and non-governmental organizations, were pooled
to enable
people who had left the camps to be carried to their home
communes.
Medical organizations set up emergency facilities, mainly in
Butare, to
attend to the sick and wounded. Mobile medical teams
ensured that
assistance was also available in the way stations. At some way
stations,
food and other emergency supplies were delivered to the
former camp
populations as they made their way home.
17. The initial phase of the emergency has now passed and
many of the
former displaced persons have settled back well into their home
areas. In
some areas, however, the problems related to the closures
are far from
solved. The massive return of people, many of whom were
forced to leave
their possessions in the camps, or were robbed en route to
their communes,
has placed heavy strains on the already fragile conditions in
the communes.
Land and housing disputes have intensified and there are
continued reports
from some communes of harassment, attacks and
disappearances. Also,
because of their fear of being arrested or ill-treated, large
numbers of
people have not registered in their home communes and remain
in hiding.
United Nations and non-governmental organization efforts
to improve
conditions in communes have increased in recent months.
Those efforts
include the provision of office equipment and vehicles to
strengthen the
capacity of local administration, as well as reconstruction
of houses.
Nevertheless, further substantial amounts of assistance will be
needed in
the months ahead in terms of relief support, as well as
development
assistance.
C. Justice
18. The restoration of a functioning judicial system and
the parallel
establishment of the rule of law are prerequisites
to national
reconciliation, sustained stability and peace in Rwanda. The
Government
has stated that the punishment of those responsible for the
1994 genocide
is essential if aggrieved survivors are to be prevented from
taking the law
into their own hands. At the same time, the prevailing situation
points to
the need to break with the tradition of impunity that has
prevailed in
Rwanda over the past decades. The challenges are considerable,
given the
devastating impact of the 1994 genocide and civil war, which
together have
resulted in the near total destruction of Rwanda's
existing judicial
system. Of the 750 magistrates who were working before the
war, only 256
are still available for work. The rest have been killed or
have fled
abroad. The judicial infrastructure was either damaged,
looted or
destroyed during the war.
19. In its Programme for National Reconciliation and
Socio-Economic
Rehabilitation and Reconstruction, presented at the round
table at Geneva
in January 1995, the Government set out its objectives for
the justice
sector: the reorganization of the judicial system; the
prosecution of
suspected perpetrators of genocide; law reform; and the
overhaul of the
security system. A Plan of Action, prepared by the Ministry of
Justice in
March, set out the steps that needed to be taken in order to
reach those
objectives. As at the end of July 1995, the objectives were far
from being
attained. No trials of genocide suspects have been held; no
courts in the
country are functioning normally; and while public prosecutors
and judicial
police inspectors are involved in the preparation of cases for
trial, their
work is severely constrained by a lack of resources. By the
end of July,
some 450 gendarmes had been trained, yet were not yet deployed
in all the
prefectures. In a great many cases, arrests were being
conducted with
little regard for due process.
20. Conditions in Rwanda's prisons and other places of
detention, caused
by overcrowding, resulted in yet another humanitarian crisis.
Although a
government decision to limit arrests has reduced the
number of new
detainees to roughly 600 a week, some 50,000 detainees are being
held in 12
prisons, with an official capacity of 12,250 and 198 detention
centres. In
some places of detention, overcrowding is so bad that many
people have to
stand jammed together in unsanitary conditions day and
night. Seven
screening commissions (commissions de triage) to speed up the
release of
those for whom there is insufficient evidence of
wrongdoing began
functioning in July. As yet, the number of releases is low, with
only some
40 individuals freed during the month of July. Some of these
same people
have subsequently been rearrested.
21. The dimension of the problems in Rwanda has prompted
United Nations
agencies, UNAMIR, ICRC, and non-governmental organizations,
with the
support of donor countries, to rehabilitate and create
additional prison
capacity. A new detention centre, with a capacity of 5,000
detainees, was
constructed at Nsinda and will open in October. Also at the
end of July,
work began on the conversion of four out of seven facilities
identified by
the Government, including warehouses, bus stations and so on
that can be
converted into other temporary detention centres. Other
initiatives have
been launched by the donor community, in collaboration with the
Government,
in an effort to improve the prison situation. These
include the
establishment of detention structures for children, the
elaboration of
legal safeguards for minors, the registration of all
detainees in the
country and the provision of food, water/sanitation and medical
care to the
existing prison population. Additional efforts have been
undertaken to
release children.
22. The situation in the prisons calls for urgent and
extraordinary
actions, if the misery and suffering of detainees is to be
alleviated.
Following his visit to Rwanda in July, the Secretary-General
instructed the
Emergency Relief Coordinator to meet with the international
community to
find innovative and concerted approaches to address the
problem of
overcrowding in prisons and to speed up the processing of
detainees.
Following two meetings with United Nations agencies, donors
and non-
governmental organizations, one in New York and one in Geneva,
a detailed
plan of action is now being prepared in cooperation with the
Government of
Rwanda.
23. The restoration of the functioning of the Rwandan
judicial system,
must also be accelerated. As at the end of July, the
offices of
prosecutors, judicial police inspectors, together with court
buildings of
all levels, have been repaired and refurbished and office
equipment,
vehicles and other needed materials are being supplied to
judicial offices,
courts and the Ministry of Justice. In order to restore
staffing levels
within the system, among both professional and secretarial
ranks, the donor
community organized a series of training programmes. These
have targeted
all parts of the judicial and corrections systems and will
continue and
accelerate over the second half of the year. In order to
build needed
capacity within the systems as quickly as possible, foreign
experts with a
wide variety of backgrounds have been put at the disposal of
the Ministry
of Justice.
24. With the appointment of the Deputy Prosecutor of the
International
Tribunal for Rwanda, the process of investigating acts of
genocide and
other serious violations of international humanitarian law
committed in
Rwanda has begun. Investigations are being carried out inside
and outside
Rwanda, covering 400 identified suspects, most of whom have
sought refuge
abroad. Under article 28 of the statute of the Tribunal,
States are under
an obligation to cooperate with it and to comply with its
requests,
including the arrest or detention of persons and the surrender
or transfer
of suspects. On 20 July, the General Assembly approved $13.5
million for
the Tribunal to cover costs through 31 October 1995. In
addition, the
Trust Fund for the International Tribunal for Rwanda has
received pledges
worth $6 million.
D. Rehabilitation and reconstruction
and socio-economic development
25. At the round-table conference held at Geneva on 18 and
19 January
1995, organized by UNDP in cooperation with the Government of
Rwanda, the
Programme for National Reconciliation and Socio-Economic
Rehabilitation and
Recovery was presented to the donor community. The
round-table programme
comprises three subprogrammes: (a) financial support; (b)
reintegration of
refugees and displaced persons; and (c) rehabilitation and
development. In
response to the Government's request for $764.1 million
for the
implementation of the round-table programme, international
donors at the
conference pledged $586.8 million. All of these funds, except
for $40.8
million, fell within the scope of the programme. On 6 and 7
July 1995, the
round-table mid-term review was held at Kigali as a
follow-up. It was
noted that much progress had been made in the re-establishment
of physical
infrastructure in Rwanda and in achieving pre-crisis levels of
production.
Over and above the pledges announced at Geneva and the
additional
contributions made between January and June 1995, donors
announced they
would make available further funds totalling $128 million. It
was decided
that the next round-table conference for Rwanda would be held
at Geneva in
January 1996.
26. The Government decision not to resort to monetary creation
to finance
the budget deficit will undoubtedly benefit the economy in the
long-term,
as will its introduction of a market-determined exchange rate
system in
March 1995. The implementation of a sound macroeconomic
policy framework
is seen as a key determinant of future financial stability
and rapid
economic recovery. During the first half of 1995, the
Government has been
working closely with the World Bank, the International Monetary
Fund (IMF)
and UNDP with a view to strengthening its capacity for
macroeconomic
management.
27. In terms of humanitarian assistance, the food aid pipeline,
which was
becoming a source of concern at the beginning of the year, has
continued to
improve over the last few months. The main food aid
distributors, WFP,
ICRC and the Catholic Relief Services (CRS) report that
they have
sufficient quantities of food to cover planned distribution
programmes.
Food stocks in country are also sufficient to meet new
emergencies, should
they arise. However, in spite of the massive amounts of
emergency aid
provided in 1994 and 1995, preliminary results from a
country-wide
nutrition survey by UNICEF of children under five highlight the
effects of
conflict, mass population movements and the continued
vulnerability of the
country. From a pre-war figure of 3.8 per cent, the global
malnutrition
for children under five now stands at 9.7 per cent and the rate
of chronic
malnutrition, an indicator of socio-economic conditions, is as
high as 44
per cent.
28. The plight of Rwandan children, many of whom
continued to be
traumatized by the horrors they witnessed in 1994, continues
to remain a
concern. Nevertheless, there have been a number of significant
improvements
in their situation in the last two months. Of the 45,000
children in
Rwanda who are unaccompanied, over 28,000 are now in foster
care. As part
of its agreed policy, the Government is continuing efforts to
make similar
arrangements for some 12,000 other children who remain in
children's
centres. The transfer of 155 child prisoners aged between 7
and 14 years
from various prisons in Rwanda to a new centre especially for
children also
began in the middle of June. In addition to separating them
from adults,
the new centre is providing the children with basic
education, community
services and development of practical skills. Around 2,000
child soldiers
have also been moved to a residential compound on the outskirts
of Butare,
with the objective of gradually reintegrating them into
their former
communities.
29. The problem of mines, as people return and begin to till
their land,
has continued to be a concern. Following a bilateral agreement
between the
United States Government and the Government of Rwanda, a
national demining
programme was established in July. Under the terms of the
agreement a
national demining office will be opened and a mine database
created. The
office will also act as a focal point for a mine-awareness
programme and
demining training, beginning with an initial 80 RPA soldiers.
30. Notwithstanding the many achievements in 1995, the road to
recovery is
a long and hard one and there remain a wide range of issues for
which the
Government, with the support of the United Nations system,
non-governmental
organizations and international organizations, need to
prepare. These
include the possibilities of new emergencies resulting from
escalating
conflict in Burundi or actions that may be taken by the
former Rwandese
Government in exile. Presently a contingency planning
exercise is being
undertaken in Rwanda to review possible scenarios and to
constitute a
United Nations disaster management team. This team will work
closely with
the Government and non-governmental organization
community in the
preparation of contingency plans.
III. HUMANITARIAN DEVELOPMENT RESPONSES PROVIDED
BY THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY
A. Assistance by Member States and other donors
31. On 8 May 1995, the Secretary-General invited Member States
and other
donors to provide information on assistance extended to
Rwanda in the
framework of General Assembly resolution 49/23. Replies were
received from
the following States:
China
32. On 22 March 1995, the Government of China signed an
exchange of
letters with the Government of Rwanda by which China would
grant Rwanda a
total value of Y 5 million (US$ 601,419) of general goods to
be delivered
upon receipt of a requisition list.
Cyprus
33. Cyprus has contributed to the Rwandan crisis as follows:
(a) Pharmaceutics of LC 31,765 on 26 January 1995;
(b) Voluntary contribution of $1,000 for the United Nations
consolidated
inter-agency appeal for Rwanda.
Finland
34. Finnish contributions to Rwanda/Burundi, as at June
1995, are as
follows:
Organization
Amount
(Markkaa)
Decision
WFP
4 000 000
5 April 1994UNHCR
2 000 000
4 April 1994World Vision
210 000
4 April 1994Free Foreign Mission
215 000
29 May 1994ICRC
1 200 000
6 June 1994IFRC
1 000 000
6 June 1994UNICEF
449 742
Total
9 074 742
Germany
35. In 1994 and 1995, the amount of humanitarian assistance
provided by
the Government of Germany to Rwandan refugees and
displaced persons
totalled DM 312,797,669, DM 155,100,000 of which constitutes
Germany's
portion of the assistance rendered by the European Union
(EU). In
addition, Germany pledged another DM 150 million in April 1995
to be used
towards long-term rehabilitation programmes in Rwanda,
especially in the
following sectors: health, water and sanitation, the
judiciary system,
education, the reintegration of refugees and displaced persons,
protection
of natural resources and assistance to orphans and single women.
India
36. India provided transport equipment worth Rs 15 million,
consisting of
buses, trucks, jeeps, motorcycles and bicycles, to Rwanda as
emergency
relief supplies to facilitate refugee rehabilitation and
reconstruction
efforts.
Italy
37. In 1994, the Government of Italy allocated a total of Lit
24 billion
to emergency operations, requiring the establishment of an
Italian logistic
base in Kigali to support programmes being implemented by
Italian non-
governmental organizations in the framework of multinational
operations.
38. In 1995, further emergency programmes are planned worth
approximately
Lit 5 billion, to be allocated through multilateral
channels. These
include an Italian contribution to the United Nations
Children's Fund
(UNICEF) worth Lit 1.6 billion that will also be utilized to
expand basic
health services and improve the conditions of some primary
schools. In
addition plans are in place to implement through bilateral
channels a
project worth Lit 2 billion to fight tuberculosis and leprosy.
39. Finally, Italy has worked to implement the decision
of the EU
Development Council, adopted on 25 November 1994, for a
joint action
programme worth ECU 60 million. The programme includes the
deployment of
50 observers to monitor respect for human rights,
support to the
educational sector and rehabilitation of basic structures.
Japan
40. During fiscal year 1994 special assistance provided by the
Government
of Japan was as follows (including relief operations in Burundi):
United States dollars
Relief operation for persons affected by conflict in Rwanda
(through UNHCR)
42 750 000Transport cost of crackers (151 tons) (through
WFP)
650 000Relief operation (through WFP)
approx. 11 000 000Relief operation (through ICRC)
4 600 000Relief operation (through ICRC)
1 400 000 a/Relief operation (through UNICEF)
1 000 000Relief operation (through WHO)
950 000Relief operation (through IOM)
900 000Assistance for human rights operation (through
the Centre
for Human Rights)
500 000Relief operation (through UNHCR)
300 000Relief operation (through UNV)
200 000
a/ In Swiss francs.
Luxembourg
41. In 1994, Luxembourg provided humanitarian and emergency
assistance
totalling $851,636.
Republic of Korea
42. The Government of the Republic of Korea participated in
United Nations
assistance activities as follows:
(a) Provision of motor vehicles to UNAMIR ($671,000);
(b) Financial assistance through UNHCR to the Rwanda
Special Fund
($100,000);
(c) Provision of medicine through UNHCR ($132,000);
(d) Provision of six personnel to assist in water/sanitation
projects;
(e) Photo exhibition of refugees from Rwanda;
(f) Provision of further apparatus in 1995 ($77,000);
(g) In addition, the Korean private sector, including
national non-
governmental organizations, provided cash and relief good
contributions, in
the amount of$1.3 million. Sixty medicalvolunteers weredispatched
toRwanda.
Spain
43. In 1995, Spain funded humanitarian and emergency assistance
to Rwanda
as follows:
(a) In cooperation with UNHCR, a repatriation project
for Rwandan
refugees (Ptas 325 million);
(b) Repatriation project for children in refugee camps in
Goma, Zaire
(Ptas 5,138,000);
(c) Project funding the International Tribunal
established to
investigate crimes committed in Rwanda (Ptas 19 million);
(d) Contribution to the Trust Fund for Rwanda, to
support the
rehabilitation of the judicial system and other basic
programmes in
cooperation with UNDP (Ptas 26 million);
(e) Contribution to the programme of human rights monitors
in Rwanda
(Ptas 19.5 million).
Switzerland
44. Below is a list of contributions of Switzerland to
assist the
population in Rwanda:
1994 1995(Millions of Swiss francs)
Cooperation and development
0.51
0.74Humanitarian assistance
26.42
7.40Search for a political solution
0.50
0.10Civil society, media
0.70
0.20Restoration of the judicial system
0.01
0.20Restoration of the rule of law, promotion of human rights
and national
reconciliation subtotal
1.21
0.50 Total
28.14
8.64
/... A/50/654
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A/50/654
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B. Assistance by organizations of the United Nations
system and intergovernmental organizations
45. As the crisis began to abate in the later part of
1994, it was
recognized by the United Nations and its humanitarian partners
that, while
it was important to maintain emergency relief programmes for
those in dire
need, there was an urgent need to move beyond relief to
recovery.
Following extensive consultations with the Government,
United Nations
agencies, non-governmental organization representatives,
ICRC, IOM and
other intergovernmental organizations, the Department of
Humanitarian
Affairs of the Secretariat sent a team to Kigali in November
1994 to help
prepare a new United Nations consolidated inter-agency appeal
for Rwanda.
The appeal, which also included some non-governmental
organization
projects, requested $208 million for programmes inside Rwanda.
The appeal
was launched in January 1995, covering programmes and
activities for the
whole of 1995. So far, some $91 million has been received or
pledged. The
shortfall has led to some important programmes either not
starting or being
curtailed.
Department of Humanitarian Affairs of the Secretariat
46. The Department of Humanitarian Affairs, through its field
office, the
United Nations Rwanda Emergency Office (UNREO), has continued
to support
the United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator in order to
facilitate
effective coordination of humanitarian assistance in Rwanda.
UNREO has
provided weekly and monthly situation reports and analysis
for the
humanitarian and donor communities so as to ensure a
more effective
humanitarian response. Throughout the first half of 1995, UNREO
served as
focal point for the integrated efforts established to assist
displaced
persons return to their home communes, providing staff to the
Integrated
Operations Centre and the Integrated Displaced Persons
Task Force,
established within the Ministry of Rehabilitation and Social
Integration.
47. In December 1994, the Department also worked with the
Government,
United Nations agencies, non-governmental and
intergovernmental
organizations in the preparation of a United Nations
consolidated inter-
agency appeal. The appeal, which was launched in January 1995,
covered the
emergency and initial rehabilitation needs of the country until
the end of
December.
48. The sudden and continued expulsion of Rwandan refugees
from Zaire in
August and its impact on both Rwanda and the region continues to
require a
substantive humanitarian coordinating system on the ground.
UNREO assumes
this responsibility, while rapidly assisting to train the
Resident
Coordinator's office to assume the role at a later stage.
49. Viewing the problems in the Great Lakes region
cross-sectorally, the
Department of Humanitarian Affairs is currently establishing
a Regional
Integrated Information Unit (RIIU), in line with the
recommendations of the
Inter-Agency Standing Committee. Based in Nairobi, the Unit will
fill gaps
in the flow and analysis of information, thereby
enhancing the
international humanitarian community's capacity to develop and
implement an
integrated approach.
Department for Peace-keeping Operations of the Secretariat
50. On 29 December 1994, UNAMIR began Operation Retour, an
inter-agency
initiative aimed at facilitating the safe resettlement of
internally
displaced persons (see paras. 13 and 14 above). The
operation used the
combined assets of the United Nations system, such as
transportation, food,
security and other confidence-building incentives, including
the presence
of human rights officers, to provide assistance not only in the
camps but
at the commune level as well.
51. The mandate of UNAMIR was unanimously extended by the
Security Council
in its resolution 997 (1995) of 9 June 1995. The
Security Council
authorized a reduction of its force to 2,330 troops over three
months and
to 1,800 troops over four months. UNAMIR is now mainly
assisting the
Rwandan authorities to promote national reconciliation, the
return of
refugees and the setting up of a national police force. UNAMIR
is also in
charge of the protection of humanitarian organizations,
human rights
observers and members of the International Tribunal.
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights
52. There are presently 114 human rights field officers from 45
countries
working in 11 field offices in Rwanda. Sub-offices, which cover
a smaller
number of communes, will be part of the next phase, which has
already been
initiated in the Cyangugu and Kibungo prefectures. Throughout
1995, field
officers have continued to travel from commune to commune
meeting with
civil, judicial and military authorities and local
populations to learn
about the general conditions of each commune, including
security, access to
property, the material needs and the functioning of the
judiciary,
conditions of detention centres and alleged human rights
violations.
Allegations are investigated and solutions are sought with
local, or when
needed, national authorities.
53. During the High Commissioner's visit to Kigali from 31
March to 3
April a large collection of grass-roots information gathered
by the Human
Rights Field Operation for Rwanda Special Investigative Unit
was given to
the Deputy Prosecutor of the International Tribunal for Rwanda.
During the
same period, relations with the Government of Rwanda
improved
significantly. Recent initiatives of the Human Rights Field
Operation for
Rwanda have been supported by the Government.
54. The structure of the operation has been modified to
address the needs
in the field. It currently consists of a Field Coordination
Unit, which
manages information gathering and field support, a Technical
Cooperation
Unit supervising human rights promotion and assisting in the
establishment
of permanent structures that will safeguard human rights in
Rwanda and the
Legal Analysis and Coordination Unit, which conducts
in-depth
investigations into the genocide and present human rights
violations, and
analyses information coming from the field. The Technical
Cooperation Unit
has developed a number of projects with the Government to
address the
daunting problem of ending the cycle of impunity in a
post-genocide
society. At present the Technical Cooperation Unit in
cooperation with the
Government, is organizing a conference to promote a viable
Rwandan response
to genocide. Experts from several parts of the world are
invited to
compare methods of fostering national reconciliation after
massive human
rights violations. The Human Rights Field Operation for
Rwanda has also
been distributing equipment donated by various Governments
and non-
governmental organizations to judicial authorities around the
country.
United Nations Development Programme
55. UNDP supports the implementation of the Government's
Programme of
National Reconciliation and Socio-Economic Rehabilitation
and Recovery
(round-table programme) in three key areas: (a) state
capacity-building;
(b) support for rehabilitation of the judicial system; and (c)
support for
the resettlement and reintegration of refugees and displaced
persons. It
uses two funding mechanisms for this purpose: cost-sharing
arrangements
under which UNDP and IPF funds are combined with donor
contributions, and
the UNDP Trust Fund for Rwanda. As at 5 July, UNDP had
programmed
virtually all of the funds it had received through the Trust
Fund over the
preceding four months ($12.8 million) and had disbursed 58 per
cent of the
total.
56. In the area of state capacity-building, the most
important UNDP
project, budgeted at approximately $9.5 million, with IMF and
World Bank
participation, is designed to enhance the economic, financial
and human
resource management capacity of the Government through the
provision of
training, equipment and short-term consultancies to six key
government
ministries.
57. In the judicial sector, UNDP has drawn up a Framework
Programme for
Support to the Rehabilitation of the Rwandan Judicial System.
Phase I of
the Framework Programme seeks, in part, to relieve the
critical
overcrowding in Rwanda's prisons by rehabilitating existing
prison space
and constructing new detention centres in order to
increase overall
capacity. In order to remedy the acute shortage of judicial
personnel in
Rwanda, UNDP is implementing a programme under Phase II that
provides for
the training of Rwandan judicial and administrative
personnel and the
deployment of 50 expatriates in support roles. An additional
objective of
both Phases I and II of the Framework Programme is to
strengthen the
administrative capacity of the Rwandan judicial and
corrections systems.
To that end, vehicles and office equipment worth $378,000
are being
supplied to courts and judicial police inspectors.
58. In the area of resettlement and reintegration of
refugees and
displaced persons, UNDP has implemented a project designed
to meet the
basic needs of this group, including housing requirements, and
reinforce
local administrative capacity in target communes.
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
59. Throughout the year UNHCR has been promoting conditions
conducive to
the return of Rwandan refugees. In addition to monitoring the
conditions
of return of refugees, UNHCR has continued to provide
direct material
assistance to both organized and spontaneous returnees
to Rwanda.
Returnees, internally displaced persons and needy local
communities
continue to benefit from the UNHCR community assistance
programmes, which
cover water, health, education and institutional projects.
60. As a result of relatively more promising security
conditions in
Rwanda, organized repatriation of Rwandan refugees resumed from
Zaire after
the twomonth lull that followed the closure of Kibeho and other
camps for
internally displaced persons inside Rwanda. Repatriation of the
"new case-
load" continues to gain momentum from Burundi. Two
tripartite meetings
(Government of Rwanda, UNHCR and Government of
Burundi/Government of the
United Republic of Tanzania) were held in June and July
respectively to
find ways and means of accelerating repatriation of refugees.
61. Direct material assistance to all categories of returnees
continues to
be provided when returnees enter Rwanda and at transit centres
until they
reach their home communes. Between August 1994 and June 1995,
UNHCR, with
IOM and UNAMIR, transported 275,508 people returning from
outside the
country and 229,701 displaced persons from several camps within
Rwanda. In
addition to transportation, returnees are provided with a
one-month food
ration, essential non-food items, seeds and agricultural tools.
62. UNHCR is also rehabilitating 60 school buildings in four
prefectures
by making basic repairs, providing school equipment and
promoting non-
formal education and training programmes for women and young
girls. Ten
district hospitals and 42 health centres were also
rehabilitated and, at
most sites, equipped. Training of medical staff in
diagnostics, maternal
and paediatric care, nutrition and trauma treatment were
offered at the
hospitals and clinics where UNHCR was involved in
physical repairs.
Limited amounts of medical supplies, including drugs, were
also purchased
to support isolated centres and hospitals. Immunization and
related triage
activities were carried out at primary health care stations
at the six
official points of entry into Rwanda. UNHCR is also
implementing a
programme of shelter construction that will provide 28,500
homes for
returnees to Rwanda and will ease some of the pressure on
potential new
returnees, whose houses are frequently occupied, in their
absence, by
others. UNHCR is also involved in the repair of old water
systems and in
establishing new ones where possible. Three existing water
supply systems
have been rehabilitated; in addition, springs were captured in
many places
and water is being piped to different locations in the rural
areas.
63. Several ministries involved in the implementation of
refugee/returnee
programmes have benefited from UNHCR institutional assistance.
To date,
UNHCR has provided 47 vehicles and 34 motor-cycles to various
ministries,
with a view to building their capacity.
United Nations Children's Fund
64. As a result of the events of 1994, some 95,000 children
have been
separated from their families, over 12,000 of whom have been
sheltered in
unaccompanied children's centres. As the designated lead
agency on
unaccompanied children, UNICEF has promoted the use of the
Convention on
the Rights of the Child as an instrument for the design of
social policies
and programmes benefiting unaccompanied children. Children's
centres have
been provided with safe water, sanitation facilities, health
care services
and supplementary food. UNICEF has supported its partner
non-governmental
organizations in the registration, documentation, tracing and
reunification
of unaccompanied children. Since late February 1995, over
7,000 children
have been reunified in Rwanda. Through its trauma recovery
programme,
UNICEF has trained over 2,600 Rwandan social agents in trauma
healing, who
have been able to reach some 67,000 children. UNICEF has
also provided
technical assistance to the Government for the creation of
national policy
guidelines for psychosocial trauma interventions. A
National Trauma
Recovery Centre opened in June to serve as a focal point for
training,
research, documentation, as well as an out-patient clinic
for direct
treatment of severely traumatized children.
65. In addition to supplying water to camps for the
displaced prior to
their closure, UNICEF has continued in 1995 with the
rehabilitation of
water and sanitation facilities in both urban and rural
areas. Such
projects have benefited over 2.5 million people. Because of
the lack of
expertise and manpower at both the national and regional
levels, UNICEF
will now concentrate on training and capacity-building until
the end of
1995.
66. Over one million Rwandan children are attending school as
a result of
efforts by the Government, UNICEF and the United Nations
Educational,
Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in
re-establishing primary
education. UNICEF has introduced "Education for Peace" into
the school
system, which aims to foster capacities of mutual understanding,
tolerance
and peaceful conflict resolution. As in other sectors, UNICEF
is assisting
the Government in becoming self-reliant through provision of
technical
support, equipment and vehicles.
67. Since January 1995, UNICEF and the Ministry of Health have
completed
the repair of 21 health facilities, participated in policy
development of
major disease control programmes and continued the training
of health
personnel at national level. Health and nutrition promotion
campaigns such
as Operation Clean Hands, cholera awareness and HIV/STD
prevention have
been launched. Vaccination results for the first quarter of
1995 show that
coverage is gradually increasing to its pre-war levels.
68. UNICEF and partner non-governmental organizations have
also been
supplying and distributing key agricultural inputs.
Income-generating
projects targeted at rural women's groups have been
initiated as pilot
schemes. However, community-based groups are still embryonic
as a result
of the breakdown of social structures during the war. During
the past six
months, UNICEF has helped the Government re-launch a national
programme to
combat vitamin A, iron and iodine deficiencies. Technical
expertise was
provided in the development of a national nutrition policy,
which will be
finalized by the end of the year.
69. Some 80 per cent of 266 damaged nutritional centres
have been
rehabilitated in 1995. UNICEF has also distributed
supplementary food to
nutritional centres as well as to unaccompanied children's
centres and
vulnerable returnee families. For the rest of the year,
UNICEF will
continue with national-capacity building and will work
towards a more
community-based approach to nutritional problems.
United Nations Volunteers
70. UNV has fielded 42 human rights monitors in Rwanda and a
further 64
UNV specialists to support ongoing programmes in Rwanda and the
subregion.
UNV specialists have been attached to UNHCR, the United Nations
Office for
Project Services, FAO, UNICEF and the Department of
Humanitarian Affairs.
UNV air traffic controllers, aeronautical information service
officers and
communications officers have also assisted the International
Civil Aviation
Organization (ICAO) to ensure the functioning of Kigali airport.
World Food Programme
71. During the first half of 1995, WFP distributed 28,726
million tons of
food aid to a monthly average of 520,000 beneficiaries
throughout the 10
prefectures of Rwanda. These beneficiaries include returnees,
vulnerable
persons in home communes, hospital patients, orphans and
unaccompanied
children. All WFP projects implemented during the period
have been both
emergency assistance and to a certain extent rehabilitation.
Since January
1995, WFP has also been feeding 3,300 refugees from Burundi
and 1,700
internally displaced persons still awaiting return to and
resettlement in
their communes of origin.
72. In order to assist Rwandan farmers and their families
during planting
seasons and to stop them from resorting to eating seeds when
food shortages
arise, WFP has been implementing a seed protection programme
during the two
last planting seasons. This has benefited some 318,000
beneficiaries on
each occasion, thus supplementing distributions of seeds
and tools
undertaken by other aid agencies. Between January and March
1995, WFP
assisted 18,000 primary school teachers who were
receiving low and
irregular salaries through the foodfor-work programme. The
food ration
distributed was adequate to support 72,000 of the teachers'
family members.
The project restarted in June and is expected to continue for
two months.
During 1995, a monthly average of 62,000 civil servants and
their family
members also benefited from a similar project.
73. In order to assist the Rwandan society in
post-emergency
rehabilitation and reconstruction programmes and to create
additional jobs
for the unemployed, WFP implemented a variety of other
food-for-work
projects throughout the country. These have focused primarily on
increased
food production, including land terracing, swamp
drainage, seed
multiplication, rehabilitation of fish ponds and
income-generating
activities such as production of vegetables, poultry and
livestock. The
projects have been targeted at women's groups in particular.
Other projects
have a focus on the rehabilitation of basic
infrastructure (road
rehabilitation and construction of houses and schools).
Some 29,000
workers and their family members were assisted between
January and June
1995 on a monthly basis.
74. To streamline the overall land transportation of food
deliveries
within the subregion, WFP has created a special section within
the Rwanda
Country Office, the Transport Coordination Unit, whose
task is to
coordinate all WFP transportation assets and food deliveries
within the
subregion. The Unit has also been involved in facilitating
other overland
movements into and within Rwanda, and in transit to other
locations in the
subregion. Subsequent to the establishing of the Transport
Coordination
Unit and signing of a protocol with the Government of Rwanda,
WFP has been
able to increase the trucking capacities by 30 per cent and
to decrease
unnecessary movements of the trucks between loading points
outside Rwanda
and delivery points inside the country. In addition, the
Unit has also
been useful in coordinating with IOM and UNHCR the use of WFP
trucks for
the transportation of returnees.
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
75. With the funding support of several European donors, the
World Bank
and a large number of non-governmental organizations,
agricultural
materials in the form of seeds, tools and fertilizers were
distributed to
farm households by the Ministry of Agriculture and FAO. Timely
rains have
helped harvests to reach about 60 per cent of normal, which has
resulted in
an encouraging food and seed supply for the 1996 "A" season
commencing in
September. At the same time, seed multiplication activities
have begun,
especially for beans, sweet potatoes and cassava, with broader
programmes
planned in collaboration with international research centres.
In spite of
improvements in crop production, large areas of land lie
uncultivated by
their absent owners, who are either refugees outside Rwanda or
victims of
the genocide.
76. Action is under way by FAO to enhance disease control
and livestock
management, in particular in the Mutara region, where cattle
numbers far
exceed forage capacity and environmental sustainability.
77. The Global Information and Early Warning System
(GIEWS) of FAO
constantly monitors the crop prospects and food supply situation
in all the
countries of the world, including those affected by
conflicts. These
assessments are disseminated to the international community
through regular
reports "Foodcrops and Shortages", "Food Supply Situation
and Crop
Prospects in Sub-Saharan Africa" and "Food Outlook". GIEWS has
fielded two
joint FAO/WFP crop and food supply assessment missions to Rwanda
and issued
special reports on 21 December 1994 and 24 March 1995,
respectively.
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
78. UNESCO, especially through the Programme of Education for
Emergencies
and Reconstruction and its continuing close collaboration with
UNICEF, has
sought to assist the recovery of basic education inside
Rwanda and the
provision of emergency educational services in refugee camps.
Particular
attention has been paid to in-service teacher training by
means of the
Teacher Emergency Package, of which 8,500 copies have been
distributed. By
the end of March, 12,000 teachers had received training related
to the use
of the package.
79. In addition, UNESCO and UNICEF have sponsored a number of
workshops
and conferences, including a conference on the policy and
planning of
education in Rwanda, to stimulate policy development and the
improvement of
educational programmes. Jointly with UNICEF, technical
assistance has been
provided regarding a database management system in the Ministry
of Primary
and Secondary Education.
World Health Organization
80. WHO has continued to assist the Government to re-establish
or improve
a wide range of health programmes. This has included material,
operational
and personnel assistance for the review of pharmaceutical
policy. With the
Ministry of Health, WHO has undertaken a comprehensive
assessment of the
health system and helped develop a national health system
rehabilitation
plan.
81. Support for the rehabilitation of hospitals and
health centres,
especially Ndera Hospital, has also been extended, including
financial
support, provision of materials, technical equipment and
drugs and the
training of personnel. A computerized data-collection system
and analysis
has been established to assist the national epidemiological
surveillance
and a review of the blood transfusion programme has been
undertaken.
Particular attention has been given to improve mother and child
health at
all levels of the national health system.
World Bank
82. In late 1994, the World Bank initiated consultations
with the
Government on an emergency assistance programme to support
Rwanda's socio-
economic rehabilitation and recovery. As a result, a $50
million emergency
reconstruction credit was agreed with the Government in February
1995. The
first tranche of the credit, $18 million worth of support to the
balance of
payments, was released to the National Bank of Rwanda at the end
of July.
83. Since the formal reopening of the World Bank's Kigali
offices at the
end of January 1995, several missions have visited Rwanda with
a view to
restructuring the project portfolio in place before the 1994
crisis so as
to match current circumstances and needs better.
Following that
assessment, 11 development projects have been restarted. They
are designed
to support activity in key sectors of the national economy.
These include
education, communications, transport, energy and
agricultural services
within the private sector as well as in state companies.
Together with the
$50 million credit, the total value of the World Bank's
project portfolio
is $233 million as at 31 July 1995. The report of a World
Bank mission,
sent to Rwanda in early 1995 to study the problem of the
repatriation and
reintegration of refugees, helped the Ministry of Rehabilitation
and Social
Integration in its preparation of a plan of action for the
sector.
C. Assistance by non-governmental organizations
84. Throughout 1995, non-governmental organizations have
continued to play
a major role in the relief effort in Rwanda. A number of
United Nations
programmes have been implemented in collaboration with
international and
national non-governmental organizations to address immediate
needs, as well
as lay the groundwork for rehabilitation and recovery. There
are currently
some 110 international and around 80 national
non-governmental
organizations working in Rwanda on a wide range of
programmes, covering
food distribution, medical assistance, family tracing,
agricultural
assistance, income-generating activities and education. As has
the United
Nations system, many non-governmental organizations
have focused
increasingly on rehabilitation and development assistance.
Among the most
active were ICRC and IOM.
International Committee of the Red Cross
85. ICRC has had a permanent presence in Rwanda since 1990,
protecting and
assisting victims of the conflict and the civilian
population at risk.
During the tragic events of 1994, the ICRC established
an emergency
hospital in its delegation compound and surgical teams worked
round the
clock to save 9,000 lives. Following the events at Kibeho in
April 1995,
ICRC set up an operational surgical unit at Butare Hospital
within 48
hours.
86. ICRC provided emergency food relief to vulnerable groups,
internally
displaced people and returnees in various regions.
Distributions peaked in
November 1994 with 1.3 million beneficiaries receiving ICRC
aid. In
addition, an agricultural programme, which supports 270,000
families, has
been carried out since September 1994. ICRC water engineers
helped to
repair water treatment facilities and rural water supplies
have been
rehabilitated in three prefectures.
87. With regard to detention-related problems, ICRC has
taken the
exceptional measure of providing food, water, wood for cooking
and medical
treatment to about 39,000 detainees held in the 14 main prisons
in order to
ensure their survival. Furthermore, ICRC supplied a minimal
amount of
water and installed sanitary facilities to prevent the
outbreak of
epidemics. ICRC has also agreed to work with the authorities
and United
Nations agencies to set up a new detention site at Nsinda
designed to
accommodate 5,000 detainees.
88. As a means of restoring ties between members of families
split up by
the conflict or by detention, over one million Red Cross messages
have been
exchanged via the ICRC network since August 1994. Another
major activity
of ICRC in Rwanda is the dissemination of information on
international
humanitarian law, especially that intended for the armed
forces and
government officials.
International Organization for Migration
89. IOM has been providing assistance to displaced
persons, Rwandan
nationals and third-country nationals since 1994. Together with
UNHCR and
in close coordination with the Government of Rwanda, IOM
has provided
transport and resettlement assistance to the communities of
origin for both
displaced persons and repatriating Rwandan refugees.
90. Many Rwandan nationals have professional experience
needed by their
Government but are currently residing in other African
countries, Europe or
North America. Those who are interested in returning but are
not always in
a position to find employment in advance or to pay the costs of
travel and
re-establishment are being assisted by IOM. Based on similar
programmes
that IOM has implemented in other countries, IOM is preparing a
programme
for assistance in the return and reintegration of
qualified Rwandan
nationals who could fill vacancies in high-priority jobs in
Government as
well as parastatals and private enterprises. Together with the
Government
of Rwanda, 270 candidates will be matched with vacancies
that are
considered most important for the rehabilitation process.
IV. CONCLUDING OBSERVATIONS
91. Since the adoption of General Assembly resolution 49/23
in December
1994 significant progress has been made by the Government of
Rwanda and its
international partners to restore the country to a semblance of
normality.
Thanks to substantial amounts of emergency relief and
development
assistance in 1994 and 1995, the humanitarian crisis has been
averted and a
good start has been made on rehabilitation and reconstruction.
Electricity
and water supplies have been partially restored, schools have
reopened and
the national banking system is once more functioning. With
substantial
deliveries of donated seeds, tools and fertilizers, agricultural
production
in 1995 looks promising. Substantial pledges of bilateral and
multilateral
assistance have also been made in support of the country's
recovery and
lasting stability. Although the pace remains slower than many
would wish,
the disbursement of pledged assistance has picked up since the
early months
of 1995.
92. The situation in Rwanda nevertheless remains very
fragile, with no
significant advances in the process of national reconciliation
and some 1.8
million Rwandan refugees still to be repatriated from
neighbouring
countries. The former Government's military forces remain
present in
neighbouring countries and are reported to have been rearmed and
retrained
in preparation for an armed invasion. The forced closure by the
Government
of Rwanda in April 1995 of camps for displaced persons in
Rwanda and the
resulting tragic and heavy loss of life in Kibeho, the largest
camp, serve
to underscore the tensions and fears that remain just
underneath the
surface. The grossly overcrowded prisons, arbitrary arrests
and continued
human rights abuses also serve to highlight the frustrations
caused by
delays in bringing to justice those responsible for the 1994
genocide.
93. One year after the genocide claimed the lives of more
than half a
million Rwandans, none of the leaders of that campaign,
including members
of the former Government and armed forces, have been brought
to justice.
The International Tribunal has been established and is expected
to try its
first cases by the end of the year. The Rwandan justice
system remains
largely non-functioning and the difficulty the Government has
in providing
basic public services and the relatively slow pace
of national
reconstruction and development add to the tension. The
scarcity of human
resources also continues to limit government administrative and
management
capacity, both at the national and regional levels. As a
result of the
genocide or the flight into exile, the lack of skilled
workers affects
every sector in its ability to respond to the complex and
great needs of
populations traumatized by conflict, massacres, genocide
and massive
population movements.
94. Internal tensions within Rwanda are a source of
concern. A major
destabilizing threat comes from the rearmed former government
forces now
based largely in Zaire. These irregular forces operate
with impunity.
Increased infiltration and terrorist activities have been noted
over recent
months and banditry, allegedly by former government elements,
is a daily
occurrence.
95. Repatriation, reconciliation and reconstruction are under
way, albeit
slowly, at the grass-roots level, but sustained international
donor support
is required to accelerate the process and build needed
government capacity.
The progress made with regard to the improvement of security
in camps in
Zaire remains insufficient to ensure the voluntary repatriation
of all the
refugees. Ultimately such repatriation will depend on the
efforts of the
Government of Rwanda to promote national reconciliation and to
ensure that
people can return to their home communes without fear of
persecution or
false accusations regarding genocide. In that respect,
rebuilding the
justice system remains critical and must be hastened for the
implementation
of Security Council resolution 978 (1995) of 27 February 1995,
in which the
Council urged States to arrest and detain persons found
within their
territory and against whom there was sufficient evidence of
responsibility
for the acts within the jurisdiction of the International
Tribunal for
Rwanda. Implementation of the resolution will also enhance the
process of
national reconciliation and hence an early return of refugees.
96. The present conditions in Rwanda's prisons and detention
centres have
become a humanitarian concern. As at mid-August 1995, there
were more than
51,000 detainees in over 200 places of detention. Hundreds
of detainees
have already died as a result of overcrowding. Consultations
were held in
New York, Geneva and Kigali to develop a plan to address the
problem in a
comprehensive manner. A two-pronged strategy was agreed upon:
firstly, to
alleviate severe overcrowding and to improve detainees'
conditions and,
secondly, to accelerate restoration of the justice sector
and the due
process of law, in particular the Government's capacity
to process
detainees' files. The international community is strongly urged
to provide
adequate and immediate financial and material support to
alleviate the
situation.
97. Much progress was made during the first half of 1995
towards the
resumption of normal economic activity in Rwanda. At the same
time, many,
although not all, of the foundations for the
rehabilitation and
reconstruction of vital economic and social infrastructure have
been laid.
The commitment of the donor community to Rwanda's
sustained recovery
appears positive, as evidenced by the Geneva round-table
conference and the
Kigali round-table mid-term review. Nevertheless, pledges of
support need
to be translated quickly into tangible development assistance.
The rate of
disbursement and delivery of promised funds, though rising,
needs to be
sustained at high levels in order to ensure full
support for the
Government's efforts to achieve national reconciliation and
socio-economic
rehabilitation and recovery.
98. A recent transport capacity analysis carried out by IOM
showed an
insufficiency in the private transport sector. Although there
has been an
increase in the number of vehicles, their service focuses on
international
heavy goods transport and in-town commuting. UNHCR and IOM,
which have a
combined fleet of 130 buses and trucks, are now
assisting in the
distribution of food and non-food items to the home communes.
This is
limited in time, for the first priority will be given to the
assistance of
returning refugees. Since the lack of domestic private
transport may prove
to be a serious obstacle to both rehabilitation and development
programmes,
IOM and the Ministry of Transport are designing a transport
rehabilitation
plan for Rwanda, which needs further financial support.
99. As Rwanda slowly advances on the road to recovery, close
cooperation
and coordination between the Government and its partners remains
essential.
In that respect the widening gulf between some government
ministries and
their international partners is deeply disturbing. The
relationship with
non-governmental organizations, in particular, is now so poor
that many
international organizations are considering leaving Rwanda.
Many of the
current tensions stem from misunderstandings and, in part, also
reflect the
Government's limited knowledge of the mandates of
non-governmental
organizations. However, many of the current difficulties are
the result of
the moral dilemma that the whole of the humanitarian community
has faced in
dealing with both the victims and the perpetrators of
genocide.
Considering the important role that non-governmental
organizations can play
in the future development of Rwanda, it would be tragic if
the valuable
work that has been undertaken were to be lost. It would be
helpful to both
parties if a forum could be found to facilitate
closer working
relationships and a better understanding of mutual concerns and
problems.
100. Equally disturbing is the situation in the Great Lakes
region in
general and the possibility of further mass turmoil and
conflict. In this
respect, the Secretary-General, during his visit to the
region in July,
made it very clear that despite his own appeals for increased
international
support in terms of military assistance, the leaders of the
region must
find their own solutions to many of their grass-roots
problems. He also
stressed that the international community no longer had the
funds to deal
with the myriad problems in the region and that donor
fatigue would
continue to deepen unless the leaders of the region began to
address key
issues.
101. Subsequently the Secretary-General requested the United
Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees to visit Burundi, Rwanda, the United
Republic of
Tanzania and Zaire in order to identify solutions to the
problem of the
massive number of refugees in the region resulting from the
recent forcible
repatriation of Rwandan and Burundian refugees by the Government
of Zaire.
After having consulted with the Governments of the region,
Mrs. Ogata
emphasized that only political solutions could effectively
address the
underlying causes. Humanitarian action could only contribute to
supporting
political solutions and not replace them.
102. In that context the Secretary-General appointed a
Special Envoy to
the Great Lakes region to initiate preparations for a
conference on peace,
security and development in the region. In order to secure the
acceptance
of all the relevant countries for the idea of a Great
Lakes regional
conference, the Special Envoy is conducting intensive
consultations with
the Governments of Rwanda, Burundi, Uganda, the United
Republic of
Tanzania, Zaire and Kenya in order to ascertain their
readiness in
principle to participate actively in the conference and
to take
responsibility for its success. The role of the United
Nations and OAU
will be to coordinate the efforts of those nations and to
facilitate the
process leading to the convening of the conference, the major
objective of
which will be to achieve a regional agreement on measures
to promote
lasting security, stability and sustainable development in those
countries.
Furthermore, the conference will seek to identify and
address the
underlying causes of conflict in the region and the current
situation in
the political, humanitarian, military, economic and social
fields, as well
as developments that have led to the increase of tension among
the States
of the region.
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