In Fizi Territory, one of the more prolific armed groups is Mai Mai Yakutumba.  Fortunately, I have not had any run-ins with Mai Mai Yakutumba soldiers, but their influence throughout Fizi is highly visible.  In Baraka, the political wing of the Mai Mai has logos painted on buildings.  In fact, the restaurant that I frequent the most when I am in Baraka (“Jardin des Saveurs”) is owned by the son of the political leader of Mai Mai Yakutumba.

In the past two months, Mai Mai Yakutumba has been consolidating control over parts of Fizi Territory.  In June, the Mai Mai stopped a boat on Lake Tanganyika at Talama and demanded a toll of $15,000 from the crew and passengers.  Now, the Mai Mai Yakutumba are enforcing a $500 a boat tax on boats traveling between Uvira and Kalemie/Kazimia.  Since there are zero paved roads south of Uvira to Kalemie, boat traffic on Tanganyika remains an important lifeline to economic activity in Uvira/Fizi Territories and eastern Katanga Province.  These new extortions imposed by the Mai Mai are sure to have negative consequences on economic activity.

The Ubwari Peninsula

The Ubwari Peninsula

The effects of spreading Mai Mai Yakutumba/FNL influence are also having negative human rights effects; most of the 12 survivors of sexual violence that arrived at the SOS FED center in Kikonde in June/July reported being raped by FNL/Mai Mai Yakutumba soldiers.

In Jason Stearns’ excellent blog, Congo Siasa, guest blogger Judith Verweijen writes up a fascinating and detailed profile of Mai Mai Yakutumba.  The motivations/identities of the various armed groups in the Kivus are complicated and not easy to comprehend at first glance, and profiles like Ms. Verweijen’s go a long way in terms of understanding who is doing what and why in eastern Congo.

Last month I reported on an attack on the village of Nyakiele by soldiers loyal to the ex-PARECO deserter Col. Kifaru.  Here are more details about the incident:

The official count of women that were raped in this incident stands at 163, from the three villages of Nyakiele, Kanguli, and Abala, north of Fizi Centre.  Numerous groups, from Arche d’Alliance to CCAP to MSF, have arrived to provide assistance to survivors.  However, according to some of my sources who have made several visits to Nyakiele since the incident, the humanitarian situation in the Nyakiele-Kanguli-Abala area is generally appalling and will require a lot more than just emergency aid.

Arche d’Alliance has reported that 72 households in the tri-village area have been “broken” due to the mass rape.  That is to say, the survivor in the family has been ostracized by her husband and banned from the marriage bed and possibly the household itself.  This demonstrates the far-reaching social consequences of sexual violence in the Congo.  At the moment, a team from CCAP is present in the area working on family mediation and reconciliation.

On July 7^th, Col. Kifaru and around 200 of his troops arrived at the bracage center in Luberizi (in the Ruzizi Plain, in Uvira Territory) and have been there ever since.  They have refused to give up their arms, and so far no action has been taken against them.  According to a source very close to the investigation, the Congolese government has no interest in arresting or prosecuting Col. Kifaru, as they think it will mean an end to credibility of the bracage process and reconciliation with rebel groups.  In what is possibly part of a strategy to discredit the survivors, word is floating around the Congolese government that the mass rape incident in/around Nyakiele was either grossly exaggerated or invented entirely by aid groups and NGOs in order to get more funding.

And so, Quo Vadis, Domine?

Children in field near Mboko

Children in field near Mboko

In my previous blog entry, I reported about an ongoing situation in and around the village of Nyakiele, where defected FARDC soldiers loyal to Col. Kifaru Niragiye are terrorizing the local population, with many cases of mass rape and pillage. Col. Kifaru was a leader in the PARECO rebel movement, which recently made a deal with the Congolese government and integrated its forces into the Congolese military. Col. Kifaru and his soldiers left the braçage center in Kananda on June 9 to protest changes in the local command structure. Nyakiele is located in the Moyen Plateau of Fizi Territory, close to the territorial capital Fizi Centre.

Last night I spoke to a MONUSCO official who is directly involved in the investigation of this incident.  The MONUSCO official told me that a Joint Assessment Team was sent to Nyakiele on June 25.  This assessment team, comprised of members of MONUSCO, OCHA, UNHCR, and local NGO partners, spoke with survivors, health officials, and local authorities. According to health officials in Nyakiele, the number of women who have reported being raped by Col. Kifaru’s troops now stands at 121.

Official reports state that Col. Kifaru left the bracage center in Kananda with about 170 of his soldiers in tow. However, the population in Nyakiele is reporting that there are closer to 300 troops in the area. Whether Col. Kifaru has reunited with other ex-PARECO elements or whether he is collaborating with other elements remains to be seen.

Next steps: MONUSCO is planning on sending a Joint Protection Team to Nyakiele to protect the population from further aggression. I have not yet heard whether the Congolese military is planning any action against Col. Kifaru’s troops.

The level of brutality that this particular area of Fizi Territory is experiencing is astounding. Even more mind-boggling is how the realpolitik of Congo has allowed for such a situation: a former rebel group that terrorized the Kivus in the mid-2000s makes a deal with the Congolese government and integrates itself into the state military, as the resources (and dare I say willpower?) of the Congolese government and the African/international community were lacking to properly eradicate the threat and ensure the safety of the civilian population.

Now, the people of Fizi, particularly the women, are paying the price of this experiment gone awry. Granted, not ALL of the FARDC soldiers currently in bracage have defected and gone on a rape spree, but my hope in the entire process of integrating rebel groups is considerably diminished because of the events of late. The toll that the civilian population paid during Kimya II and Amani Leo (Congolese military operations in 2009-2010) is well-documented; as armed groups, state-sanctioned, rebels, defectors, militia, and all, continue to operate in the Kivus, the war on women’s bodies will continue.

Is there an easy answer? No. The guns are already here, and there are men who already know they can serve their own desires by oppressing the weak and vulnerable. The FDLR still has to be driven out or brought to justice somehow, and that still requires military action and possibly some change in political thinking among Congo’s neighbors. A cold and cynical analysis of the situation might conclude that these blatant and widespread human rights abuses are but “collateral damage” in bringing stability to the Congo after years of open war. However, I am still not convinced that the women of Fizi deserve to suffer in order to achieve “stability”.

More reports on security incidents occurring this month:

June 4: Monitors reported that the FDLR raped 15 women in Makungu

June 11: Former FARDC soldiers loyal to Col. Kifaru (an ex-PARECO commander) have been ravaging the area around the village of Nakiele. According to Arche, there have been 68 documented cases of rape in the area from these soldiers.

To recap what I stated in my previous blog entry, a lot of the integrated FARDC units that used to belong to rebel movements (such as PARECO) are not happy with the whole bracage/mixage process, and thus quite a few have deserted and gone back to running wild in the bush. So, bracage has not been the grand success that everyone had planned.

Due to combat between the FARDC and the FDLR/Mai Mai, there have been more refugee movements in Fizi Territory, such as from the area around Lukungu towards places like Mboko and Swima. At an OCHA meeting in Baraka on Friday, the HCR security liaison gave strict orders to all NGO workers to avoid certain areas of Fizi (particularly between Fizi Centre and Lulimba) and to observe precautions in more secure districts.

In addition, this past week soldiers from Mai Mai Yakutumba stopped a commercial boat on Lake Tanganyika near Talama and demanded $15,000 from the crew and passengers. When the boat could not cough up enough cash, the Mai Mai made the boat go ashore at Talama. There is a lot of lake traffic up and down Tanganyika, since it is a convenient way to get from places like Uvira down to Baraka, Kalemie, Kazimia, or even as far as Zambia. However, it seems that more and more the rebels and militia are figuring out how to go naval, thus further disrupting economic activity in the region.

Greetings from Kampala. I’m taking a two-week holiday in Uganda, but I’m keeping in contact with the SOS FED staff back in Uvira and I might post a few more blogs. In the meanwhile, here’s a mini-update on SOS FED activities and the security situation in Uvira/Fizi Territory:

-On May 9 & 10, SOS FED staff members participated in a very successful training conducted by Arche d’Alliance in Baraka. The training was an introduction to human rights, monitoring/reporting on violations of human rights, how the Congolese penal code addresses sexual violence, and some basics of the Congolese civil code. Our staff will be able to impart the knowledge from their training to the beneficiaries, who can return to their communities as effective human rights advocates. In addition, this training will help improve the data-collection skills of our staff and integrate them into the larger human rights monitoring network in Fizi Territory.

SOS FED staff at human rights training in Baraka.  From l-r: Bawili Ningejua, Mariamu Bashishibe, Lubunga Wilonja, Luanja Eca Ricardo, M’Munga Selemani, Sangho Laliya, Chamulungo Nabisha, and Mimmy El Vital

-Beginning in mid-May, two FARDC regiments were re-deployed in Uvira and Fizi Territory. In January/February, a lot of the Amani Leo brigade units had been called in to bases in Lubarika (Uvira) and Kananda (Fizi) for re-organization, re-equipment, and training. The goal of this massive maneuver was to improve the efficiency of the FARDC troops and give them training on respecting human rights and obeying the law. This training process (known as braçage), was performed by the Congolese government with assistance from governments in Europe and the US government. However, when the FARDC troops withdrew from their positions earlier this year, FDLR and Mai Mai elements moved in to control the areas left vacant by the FARDC. Now, the FARDC will be fighting to re-take their positions, so MONUSCO officials have warned me about a possible stark increase in violence throughout portions of Uvira and Fizi Territories. Personally, I am waiting to be convinced that the braçage was effective in improving the behavior of FARDC troops. However, one hopes the re-deployment makes a dent in the FDLR and ultimately reduces the amount of conflict in the region.

-M’Munga Selemani, the SOS FED reintegration officer who was wounded by (now confirmed) FARDC gunfire, is recovering at a hospital in Uvira. Fortunately, his wounds were not life threatening; the bullet grazed him just above his right eye. The women that Mr. Selemani was escorting to Kikonde were unharmed in the incident. Currently, we are working with Arche d’Alliance and MONUSCO Human Rights to see that justice is served.

Stay tuned for more.

The violence in Fizi Territory is starting to hit close to home. On Thursday, May 12, Mr. M’Munga Selemani, the SOS FED Kazimia-based reintegration officer, was shot. I don’t have all the details yet, but here is what I know:

Mr. Selemani was in the process of escorting a group of women from the Ubwari Penninsula to the SOS FED center in Kikonde. In Sebele, some kilometers north of Kikonde, he was shot in the face. Initial reports from the Kikonde center staff stated that FARDC soldiers were responsible, but they have yet to be confirmed. Currently, Mr. Selemani is being treated by MSF in Baraka.

I don’t know what was going on when the shooting took place, but I will be posting this information as I hear about it. Amisi is going down to Mboko and Baraka today, so he will be able to talk to Mr. Selemani and get more details.

I have already contacted OCHA to report the incident, and the local network of NGOs will be notified of the incident. If the aggressors were indeed FARDC troops, the Protection Sub-Cluster of OCHA will contact their unit commander to seek punitive action. I am also intending to inform MONUSCO about the incident. Stay tuned for more.

SOS FED reintegration officer M'Munga Selemane

SOS FED reintegration officer M'Munga Selemane

Attacks on civilians may be picking up again in this part of South Kivu. There have been 3 major events since the beginning of the month:

-On May 10, around midnight, a group of armed men attacked the village of Matale, in the Moyen Plateau of Uvira Territory. The group of armed men locked all the men into one house and all the women into another house, and then proceeded to loot the town. After looting, the armed men picked out five women and raped them. The identity of these armed men is unknown, although it is strongly suspected that they are FARDC, since there is a contingent of FARDC moving through that area of the Moyen Plateau at the moment. The next day, the female survivors of the attack made their way to the Centre de Santé (Health Center) in Ndagereka. Arche d’Alliance sent a monitor up to Matale to do a preliminary investigation, but he was held up by bandits on his way back. Fortunately, he was not hurt, but Arche is not sending anyone else to Matale until they are sure of the security situation. No word on whether MONUSCO will be opening up an investigation or not.

-On May 12, a group of 13 people leaving the market in Nemba, Fizi Territory, were ambushed by a group of 34 FDLR. The ambushed civilians were relieved of their belongings and money, and then were tortured and mutilated to various degrees. The details of the mutilations and tortures as provided by initial reports are fairly gruesome, and I won’t be reporting them here until I am more sure of the details.

-On April 30, an FDLR unit attacked the village of Kikonde (yes, where SOS FED has a center), Fizi Territory. Seven shops were robbed and one merchant was wounded by gunfire. The FDLR has a jungle base near Ngandja, and their forays into Kikonde were made easier by the fact that there is no longer a FARDC unit stationed there; the Amani Leo unit that was in Kikonde left in February for reorganization and training. Ironically, despite the fact that the Amani Leo brigades are still greatly resented by the civilian population, their presence could have prevented such an attack. The Amani Leo brigades are still in braçage closer to the bigger towns of Fizi, and rumor has it they are not too keen on heading back into the bush to fight the FDLR.

The good news is that the SOS FED center in Kikonde was not affected by the attack; the SOS FED staff and beneficiaries in Kikonde are safe and sound. However, this attack and the robbery of the Arche monitor in Matale are brutal reminders of the dangers facing the civilian population of South Kivu, and in particular the high-risk environment for defenders of human rights.

SOS FED beneficiary in a manioc field near Mboko

SOS FED beneficiary in a manioc field near Mboko

Great news:

SOS FED, The Advocacy Project, and ifa-Zivik are entering into the next phase of the 2011 project. Here are some of the aspects that we have begun working on:

-Arche d’Alliance will be providing human rights and monitoring training for our field staff. Our field staff have already lived and breathed the war of the past 17 years, but through this training they will hopefully become more effective advocates in an area that is pretty much a human rights Chernobyl. In addition, our more formally trained field staff will be able to pass on their knowledge to the beneficiaries, who in turn can be better advocates in their own communities.

-The first stage of a briquette press is underway. The briquette press is a miraculous mechanical marvel that transforms everyday garbage (banana peels, corncobs, rice husks, etc) into little trash biscuits that are used as an alternative fuel source. How can such a miraculous marvelous machine work? Well, the training video that Ned Meerdink and I made for the briquette press is still on the Advocacy Project YouTube page somewhere at http://www.youtube.com/advproject.

-Clean potable water is a constant problem in Fizi Territory, so SOS FED will be installing pumps near the two centers in Kikonde and Mboko. The issue of water is also important to the general wellbeing of women in the community, encompassing everything from health to security. The traditional division of labor in the Congo (and in most of Africa) dictates that women are responsible for collecting water for the household, and thus water scarcity issues disproportionately affect women. A woman who travels alone for 5 hours to collect a bidon of water may risk being attacked in the jungle. In addition, carrying 10 liters or more of water on one’s head for great distances can greatly impact a person’s health and longevity.

It will take time to accomplish all of these goals, but the important thing is that we are finally giving it some legs. Stay tuned for more.

Quick update on the Kikoze situation: the MONUSCO mission scheduled for last week was delayed because one of the MONUSCO Uvira staff members was killed in the terrible MONUSCO plane crash a few weeks back. Currently, they are supposed to be up in the Haut Plateau, and they plan to pay a visit to the local FARDC commander in Minembwe. For the record, the FARDC commander so far denies that his troops raped any women in/around Kikoze. However, monitors from Arche d’Alliance have made several trips up to the Kikoze area since the incident, and the villagers reported that the FARDC has been making regular forays into the communities around their base to steal goats. The incident on 3-26-11 [edited] apparently escalated into mass rape when the FARDC troops started knocking down the doors to people’s houses.

SOS FED beneficiaries at the Mboko center

SOS FED beneficiaries at the Mboko center

In my last blog entry, I wrote about a UNFPA data-mapping project that is being undertaken here in the Kivus. The goal of the data-mapping project is to provide better assistance to survivors of sexual violence; if one NGO assists a survivor, the information provided by registering her in the global database will make it easier for her to receive other forms of assistance, be they medical, psychosocial, judicial, or socioeconomic. In addition, the information gathered can clarify where attacks against women are concentrated, and are being perpetrated by whom, thus helping prevention and advocacy efforts.

How this project works: Each NGO that receives a survivor interviews her and records information on her physical, mental, and emotional state, on forms provided by UNFPA. In addition, details of the incident are recorded, including date, location, and the identity/affiliation of the perpetrator. The “first-response” NGO (the one filling out the form) records the type of assistance they gave the survivor. Some biographical information is also recorded, which can be useful in identifying the kinds of assistance a survivor may require. Each assisted survivor also receives a unique ID number that contains information on the location of the incident, as well as the first NGO to assist the survivor. All this information contributes to a global database that will give all involved a clearer picture of the crisis of rape in Eastern Congo. It should be noted that the privacy of survivors is not affected by being added to this database.

The reach of this project acknowledges that rape does more than damage the physical and mental health of a woman; there are a variety of serious effects that a survivor must endure after being violated. NGOs in South Kivu tend to be fragmented, and survivors frequently lack a complete source of assistance. In addition, MONUSCO has noted a high level of repeat reporting by local NGOs, complicating matters.

SOS FED works primarily in the domain of psychosocial assistance and socioeconomic assistance, with perhaps a heavier emphasis on the former. SOS FED shelters women, helping them regain their mental and emotional health without having to deal with judgmental communities and restrictive customs. In addition, SOS FED teaches risk-reduction techniques through group cultivation, which has the double benefit of helping women reduce their chances of being attacked and providing them with income. An NGO such as Arche d’Alliance focuses on judicial representation and the protection of human rights through building civil society. The various hospitals and clinics throughout Fizi treat women for the physical trauma of rape and its aftereffects. So, as you can see, everyone has something to do, and coordination is necessary in order to get things done.

In all, the assistance provided by SOS FED remains the most holistic, yet practical, that I have seen in South Kivu. However, there is always something missing, especially for a small, local NGO like SOS FED. SOS FED particularly lacks capacity in the areas of judicial representation and medical services.

The center staff members refer women to nearby hospitals or clinics if they require immediate attention for fistulas or infections stemming from their attack. In addition, each center has basic medical supplies for minor illnesses and injuries. However, this is not nearly enough for the kinds of physical trauma that beneficiaries may be suffering from; almost all of the women at our centers complain of continual lower abdominal pain and sometimes irregular bleeding. Nonetheless, arriving at a hospital does not always guarantee effective treatment, as the cost of good medical care can be too expensive for our beneficiaries.

Our center staff also instructs beneficiaries on their rights, but do not have the resources or training needed to represent these women in court. Granted, the Congolese judicial system has a long way to go before it can be described as effective in handing out punitive sentences to offenders. However, pressure applied to civil and military authorities can make a difference, especially if there is a well-documented, public source of information on incidents of sexual violence.

This is where the UNFPA data-mapping project becomes useful for SOS FED. Once a survivor has a dossier created by the SOS FED staff, it becomes much easier for her to receive judicial or medical support, should she require it. Being registered in the database means that a survivor can receive free medical treatment at a hospital or clinic; all SOS FED has to do is get her there. If a survivor requires extensive treatment for severe trauma, SOS FED can always coordinate with PSVS to send the survivor to Panzi Hospital in Bukavu, where (if accepted), she can receive some of the best medical care in the Kivus. Arche d’Alliance, with its large resources, institutional knowledge, and national network, can use the information provided in the database to produce human rights reports and put pressure on local officials, national authorities, and the international community to address the issue of sexual violence in the Kivus.

The local CTLVS and Arche d’Alliance remain the focal points for the UNFPA data-mapping project in Uvira and Fizi Territories. This past week, Amisi and I arranged for training for our staff on completing dossiers for each beneficiary. Arche will make sure that each center has a sufficient number of forms at its disposal, as well as visit our center frequently to pick up the dossiers. Further networking will ensure that we can increase the level of assistance for our beneficiaries through coordination with other organizations. There is a caveat: the success of the project depends on more than participation from SOS FED; many different actors, including UNFPA, have to come through if survivors of sexual violence are to see a noticeable improvement in assistance.

Overall, participation in this project should ensure a better, more complete standard of care for SOS FED beneficiaries. L’Union fait La Force.

On March 23, I attended my first CTLVS (Commission Territoriale sur la Lutte contre la Violence Sexuelle) meeting at OCHA headquarters. Up until that day, the Uvira CTLVS had 25 member organizations; however, my presence at the CTLVS meeting added SOS FED to the roster, making the final total 26.

The CTLVS is meant to be an official entity that coordinates the efforts of local NGOs working on SGBV (Sexual and Gender-based Violence) in Uvira and Fizi Territories. There are four sub-clusters under CTLVS, each headed by a member organization that specializes in that area:

-Judicial (Arche d’Alliance)

-Medical and Health (l’Hôpital d’Uvira)

-Psychosocial Assistance (PSVS)

-Socioeconomic Assistance (ASJPED)

Currently, the CTLVS is collaborating with UNFPA on a data-mapping project, trying to get a clearer picture of incidents of sexual violence in South Kivu, so better response efforts can be coordinated. One member organization, Arche d’Alliance, is charged with collecting information on incidents of sexual violence recorded by each member organization. However, it was clear at the meeting that this information was not being given to Arche, even when someone was sent around to each member organization’s office to collect it. The CTLVS director, Mme Bernadette Ntumba, expressed her frustration at the lack of cooperation. The reason given by some of those present at the meeting was “on n’a pas des moyens” (“we don’t have the means”).

Two days prior to the main CTLVS meeting, I attended a scheduled meeting for the sub-cluster concerning psychosocial assistance, at the headquarters of PSVS. I was surprised at the low attendance; besides a PSVS staff member and a secretary for another local org called AJID, I was the only other person in attendance. When I inquired why so few were attending a scheduled coordination meeting, Ms. Aimée Birindwa, the PSVS focal point, told me that it was hard to motivate member organizations to send people to meetings. Why weren’t the other local organizations motivated enough? She told me what I have heard from countless organizations: “on n’a pas des moyens” (“we don’t have the means”). The story over and over again in South Kivu is one of missing financing, not enough money to keep things running. However, there is never a shortage of NGOs that work on building peace, assisting victims of sexual violence, educating communities on SBGV, and building economic activity. Quite a few of the directors of these NGOs have bulging waistlines, travel on enormous per diems, and are building three-story houses in Uvira. Who am I to believe?

Perhaps this warrants a closer look at the economics at work in South Kivu.

Since Mobutu’s “Zairieanisation” in the 1970s, the economy of Zaire/Congo has been in a state of rapid decay. The war starting in the 1990s shattered what remained of economic activity and security in places like South Kivu. Most people in South Kivu have been poor and oppressed since colonial times, but the war and continuing insecurity means that there is little hope at the end of the tunnel. It is a little astounding to hear older people talk about how things were “better” during the Mobutu Era.

Even today, peasants flee their fields at the sound of gunfire. Internal displacement and the disruption of agricultural activity have had severe effects on public health and food security. The education system is in shambles and the roads are non-existent. Mineral extraction and smuggling has enriched the pockets of fat politicians and generals from Kinshasa to Kampala to Kigali and back, while fighting over these mineral resources continues to breed insecurity in the regon.

So, what is one source of income that continues to trickle into South Kivu? Aid money, development money, financing for humanitarian assistance. Granted, the deep humanitarian crisis in Eastern Congo merits attention, and I believe we have an obligation to help alleviate suffering and fight for social justice in one of the most troubled regions of the planet. However, it appears that money coming to South Kivu from international donors seeking to help the Congolese has created an atmosphere rife with competition, corruption, and deception. There is amazing work done by dedicated individuals in South Kivu, but there are also those who only seek to line their own pockets, whether out of desperation or greed.

Thus, you have two stories: NGOs that do little more than serve as ATMs for their corrupt directors, and NGOs that have decent projects but can’t find the financing to sustain them. There are many shades of gray between these two extremes; some organizations are very functional and do decent human rights work, but still use some of their financing and resources in ways that are improper and somewhat unethical. Some of the local NGO elite, especially up in Bukavu, are internationally recognized for their previous work and are therefore well-financed, but when the mzungus aren’t looking, they engage in some fairly dirty tactics to make sure that other local NGOs do not cut in on their action. Some organizations have good projects and some financing, but refuse to cooperate with other organizations doing similar work.

So, NGO work has become a business in South Kivu, at least for some. The sad reality is that such corruption and disregard for ethics from some NGOs are what discourage a lot of international organizations from taking a chance on good NGOs in South Kivu. Conversely, some local NGOs want the financing from abroad, but none of the required oversight that may accompany it. Since there are many local NGOs and few sources of funding, competition and jealousy overpower most efforts at cooperation. There is a corrosive mutual distrust, which ensures confusion and inefficiency. This is not a condemnation of either all Congolese NGOs or all foreign donors. The aid game is tricky, and all of us in the humanitarian assistance/international development community are still trying to figure out a better way of doing things. The history and simple economics of a place like South Kivu have created such a situation, and it is our job to be better informed and keep up the work, not to give up.

This is not new news to me; Ned Meerdink had to deal with the machinations of the bad NGOs for years, including when I was here in 2009. In Haiti, I had plenty of exposure to the corruptions of even the most well respected NGOs and religious organizations. With my background and experience, I think I can objectively state that SOS FED is not one of the “bad NGOs”. However, it is always tough to remain on the straight-and-narrow in a place where the good guys often finish last.

This is not a diatribe against anyone in particular; in this forum, at least, I will refrain from naming names. This is also not meant to be a grand commentary on the state of international development and humanitarian assistance. For that, you can go talk to high-minded economists like Bill Easterly, Jeffrey Sachs, Paul Collier, and Dambisa Moyo. In the meantime, here at SOS FED we will start faithfully submitting our monthly data to the CTLVS.

Uvira, South Kivu, DRC

Uvira, South Kivu, DRC