For 10 days, nearly 20 people have been killed in the territory of Beni. This violence is accentuated in a context of a state of siege coupled with an offensive led by the Congolese and Ugandan armies in the region. A situation that is pushing thousands of people to flee their localities. This has been going on for several years. And in this context, family reunification operations are very difficult, especially in cases where thousands of kilometers separate family members.
With our special correspondent between Beni and Mano, Patient Ligodi
The small plane lands at Manono airport. On board, a dozen children including Jérémie, 15 years old. Relieved to finally leave the Beni region, he will meet his father more than ten years after their separation. “ I’m back home. I came to study. Later, I want to become a computer engineer. I want to work with computers “.
The vehicle stops. This is the big moment. Timothée, the father is moved by embracing his eldest son after several years of separation and anguish. After the reunion, Timothée recounts the day of separation in the city of Beni. ” That morning, I had already left the house. It was around 10 a.m. that gunshots began to ring out in the city. I did everything to get back and get home. My wife and children were gone. I held my head “.
He will never see his son again and will learn that his wife has been killed. Today, this shopkeeper is rebuilding his life in Manono and is already thinking about Jérémie’s future. ” My eldest son, he has to go home. He must go to school and do honor to his father. »
According to the ICRC, which facilitated these operations to restore family links, there are still more than 4,000 tracing requests in the DRC today.
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