REFUGEES IN MALAWI
Dzaleka Refugee camp in Malawi houses refugees from the Congo crisis that is still on-going. Many of these people WALKED all the way from the Congo to Malawi - about 1000 miles!! They were formerly housed in a better camp, Luwani but have recently been moved. This is how these refugees have been treated and this is where your tax dollars are going when you send money to the UN or any of its branches. "As for now all church people except 2 families have moved from Luwani to Dzaleka. Now there are about 150 members in this church. The life there is still very hard indeed. People don't have enough food. UNHCR provides only maize flour (13 kg per month per person) and beans (0.5 kg per month per person). Nobody provides salt and sugar and cooking oil or any money to buy it. Also there is a huge problem with cooking itself - people don't have fire wood because the territory is without any trees or bushes. In this new place people do not have possibility to even cultivate any crops because they are not provided with land. It means that people have no fresh vegetables orfruits. So people and especially children and pregnant women are facing malnutrition problems. Many are weak and sick. It is sad to tell about the death of this church elder Mambo Manenu who dies because he starved. Now summer has come and the weather is extremely hot and windy and air is full of dust. In the beginning church meetings were held in the open air. Now the church rents a school classroom - just a mud build room with no power and no facilities - for 500 kwacha per month (about 3.5 US dollars) but even this amount of money is big to pay for people who have almost nothing. The elders decided to start building a church but the problems are enormous and there is no money or supplies. Church members are ready to make mud bricks themselves but they are not able to buy cement and timber for roof constructions and iron sheets. On top of that the place is 450 miles from headquarters and the escalation of fuel prices here in Africa make things difficult." Refugees in Africa… we hear about them in our media but let’s look to them again. They are people like us – wonderful creation of God. They have feelings like us also. I have testimonies written by refugees from Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and other countries. For now they live in Malawi in Dzaleka Refugee Camp in Dowa. Some of these people escaped from the death just because of miracle. One church in Luwani Refugee Camp joined our ministry just few monthsago. Malawi government decided to withdraw this camp and to move all refugees to another camp which is located near the capital Lilongwe. Almost all the refugees are moved to the new camp. They left their houses, church building which they have built. There they are facing other problems for example lack of food. These people are caring for the future of their children, relatives and hemselves. Here are names of some of them and some moments of their lives. Atwanethe Alfosina, 30 years old, mother of five children two of them she sheltered when their parents were killed in Congo. She writes: “In Congo we lived in bad conditions, a gang of robbers and group of army of soldiers were comingduring the night to rape women and to rob. They were killing innocent people so we decided to run to Malawi.”Sharlote Nihasha, 36 years old, mother of five children: “As I am living here I again have undergone the same persecution, for missing medicines, food and education for our kids.”Espoir Mapenzi, 15 old orphan. She lives with her brother Aimable who is 11 years old and with another brother Digne who is 13. She writes: “We live like birds. We left our country because of hated and insecurity”.Isaac Fariji, 19 years old refugee from Congo: “I fled my country due to the chaos which made us to lose many people of our families and destroyed the houses and our richness and violence for our sisters and mothers. Those things made me to flee and to loose my father and being separated from my mother and my brothers and sisters. Up to now I don’t know where they are scattered. I live here alone. Here is nobody to care for me. No education, no treatment when I get sick, no enough food etc. Meanwhile, when I think a lot for that was happening for my family and how I live in this place I loose hope but because of salvation of Jesus Christ I am strong”.Mihigo Bazira, 16 years old orphan. His parents and sisters were killed in the war In Congo. He writes: “Some times is very hard when I remember the plans of my parents but when I turn my eyes to the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ I rest.”Adidja Homari: “I am Congolese girl orphan aged of 18 years. I live with another orphan boy of 2 years old. I found him when I was running from the war. He was lost. I took him and started to run together with him. We both have no parents; my parents were killed by solders. From the death of my parents up to now my life is hard and bad even I don’t know how to say. From some people whom I met I know that parents of this child were killed the same day as my parents. “Tupatupa Mikango: “I live with my young brother with whom I fled my country because of the war which killed my Father and Mother but we forgave them we have forgotten it.”Aron Rwakira is a pastor of the church in the Refugee Camp. He writes: “My parents were killed at night without any reason. They wanted to kill me too but God helped me to escape up to Kenya. When I was pastoring in Kenya, God almighty sent me to Malawi to help for His people to remain by trusting His mighty power and continue to love their enemies.”Sifa Jeaqueline, 26 years old mother of six children. Her parents moved from Burundi to Tanzania in 1972 as refugees. “In 1993 when the democracy had clamed in Burundi, my parents were refugees in Tanzania. When they heard that there was peace claimed in the country, they made a decision to be back but when they went, they found their land had been taken with Tutsi tribe people. That time, when they wanted to declare about their land the murdering of the president took place. Following president announced that he doesn’t know or consider the things and all people whom had fled on 1972. After this announcement, during the night, all people who had declared about their land were killed or fled. I am here among them who doe’s not have their own land. Were will I go now? Were my kids will prepare for their future?”Kugirwa Runanika writes: “There in Congo the Army soldiers were killing innocent people. They took people, cut their flesh and gave to people to eat their own flesh. After eating they killed these people. They were coming during the night and took women and young daughters and went with them to the bush to rape, they destroyed houses. One day soldiers came around 8 o’clock in the evening. They surrounded all the village and others came inside the village and started to shoot. We tried to run but many people were killed. God protected us! But here I find big problems which made me to loose peace again. I have got a daughter who is suffering from pneumonia and here are no tablets in the hospital. I don’t know were to get help but in God we trust every thing is possible.