Mr. Chair, I welcome this opportunity to contribute to the discussion on the Central African Republic, a country of 4.6 million people, during this difficult juncture in the country's history. Let me provide some context.
The roots of the current conflict can be found in that country's troubled past, a country that has endured multiple military coups and dictatorships since it gained independence in 1960.
While its past has been troubled, previous conflicts did not have a religious component in a country where, according to the 2003 census, over 80% of the population are Christians, although many practise in their local animist beliefs, and 15% are Muslim. Historically, there have been conflicts over natural resources and land between a largely sedentary Christian population and largely nomadic Muslim population, but not over religious beliefs.
Unfortunately, the present conflict has become increasingly sectarian in nature with both communities gripped by a cycle of fear and retribution. How did it get to this point?
In March 2013, the government of François Bozizé was overthrown by a loose coalition of rebels known as Séléka, which originated in the CAR majority Muslim northeastern region. Séléka had accused President Bozizé of not abiding by peace agreements signed in 2007 and 2011. While most Séléka members were Muslim, about 10% of the members were non-Muslim.
When François Bozizé, who himself had come to power in a 2003 coup, fled the country, secular leader Michel Djotodia became interim president in March 2003 and the first Muslim to lead the CAR. However, there were already tensions within the Séléka, with some members originating from Chad and Sudan who did not speak the local dialect and who appeared to have used their position for self-enrichment at the expense of the communities they came to control.
Furthermore, Séléka actively recruited children. Members of this group were responsible for atrocities against villagers during the lead-up to the overthrow of François Bozizé which created tension within many communities in the CAR.
Meanwhile, Séléka fighters, sometimes in co-operation with nomadic pastoralists, attacked, pillaged and intentionally destroyed villages, many of whose populations were mainly Christian.
In August 2013, as the violence spread and refugees came across the CAR into neighbouring countries, the UN Security Council warned the Central African Republic posed a serious threat to regional stability.
Michel Djotodia, unable to control the various factions of Séléka, dissolved the group in September 2013. This was not the end of the troubles and matters quickly took a turn for the worse.
Most of the former members of Séléka refused to disarm and became increasingly violent. From mid-September 2013 there were growing numbers of reports of killing, rape and looting in the Central African Republic.
Into this chaotic and ungoverned context self-defence groups sprang up to defend local communities as well as settle old scores. These self-defence groups, known as anti-balaka, or anti-machete, militias were predominantly Christian. When these Christian militias attacked innocent Muslim communities in retaliation for earlier attacks by Séléka, ex-Séléka groups attacked more Christian communities in revenge, prompting another cycle of reprisals. Rapidly, the conflict became sectarian in nature.
Meanwhile, during the tenure of Séléka leader Michel Djotodia, the government institutions collapsed. Outside the capital, Bangui, basic services such as health and education were almost non-existent. In January 2014, as the country continued to fall into chaos, Michel Djotodia resigned under strong international pressure.
The National Transition Council elected a new interim president, Catherine Samba-Panza, who was the mayor of Bangui. She has stated she will abide by the road map adopted by countries of the Economic Community of Central African States and the NTC, including having elections as soon as feasible, as well as committing to reconciliation and to re-establishing security and state authority over all Central African Republic territory.
We must ask what the implications of the current chaos and violence in the CAR are.
Today, some 825,000 Central Africans, almost 20% of the country's population, are internally displaced, and over 86,000 Central Africans have fled as refugees to neighbouring countries.
Violence continues and there are reports that there is a steady stream of dead from intercommunal violence, punctuated by larger massacres where 500 or more people may have been killed.
Due to ongoing violence and the difficulty of accessing large swaths of the country, the true scale of the number of dead will likely only become clearer once a degree of stability has been restored. Meanwhile, people are seeking refuge in places of worship, which are no longer safe, or are hiding in the bush.
There are many real implications for regional security because of the current conflict in the CAR. The growing number of refugees has the potential to destabilize neighbouring countries where the governments have limited capacity to respond and address their needs. Some of these countries are already dealing with large numbers of internally displaced people due to their own internal conflicts. Refugee populations will likely put additional pressure on scarce resources in these contexts, raising the potential for increased tensions in isolated areas where governments in the region have a weaker presence.
Furthermore, the security vacuum in the Central African Republic could be used as a safe haven for armed groups active in neighbouring countries, such as armed opponents of the government of Chad operating in the CAR as well as the Lord's Resistance Army, a group notorious for recruiting children and for slaughtering civilians. The LRA is currently active in the southeastern region of the CAR and in northern Democratic Republic of Congo.
Meanwhile, criminal networks are actively smuggling diamonds, gold, timber, and ivory out of CAR. Some of the profits are potentially being used to sponsor armed and terrorist groups in Africa and beyond.
It is therefore imperative that the interim government of Catherine Samba-Panza be able to stabilize the situation and regain control of the country. The international community is taking active steps to help the Central African Republic. While the CAR used to be described as the forgotten crisis, the international community is now responding.
On December 11, 2013, the Inter-Agency Standing Committee, a inter-agency forum of UN and non-UN humanitarian partners, declared the CAR a level three emergency, the highest level of international humanitarian response. It is the same level as Syria.
Furthermore, on December 5, 2013, the United Nations Security Council adopted resolution 2127, which provided for an African Union force in the CAR, known as MISCA, to protect civilians and stabilize the country.
On January 28, the UN Security Council unanimously approved resolution 2134 on the CAR, which authorized the deployment of European Union troops to that country and allowed them to use all necessary measures to protect its civilians.
On December 15, Canada announced that it was contributing $5 million toward the UN trust fund for the MISCA mission. Over the course of 2013, Canada has contributed $6.95 million in humanitarian assistance. Just yesterday, on February 11, the Minister of International Development and La Francophonie announced an additional contribution of $5 million from Canada to address the dire humanitarian needs of the people affected by conflict in the CAR.
Canada continues to provide humanitarian assistance and to work with our allies on how best to address the conflict and stem the ongoing violence in the Central African Republic. We will continue to work with the international community in efforts to address the humanitarian needs of the people of the Central African Republic and to help bring stability to the region.
