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150 route de Ferney, P.O. Box 2100 1211 Geneva 2, Switzerland Tel: 41 22 791 6033 Fax: 41 22 791 6506 Appeal e-mail: [email protected] Coordinating Office Liberia Assistance to IDPs and Returnees - AFLR11 Appeal Target: US$ 297,628 Geneva, March 30, 2001 Dear Colleagues, The fighting in Liberia’s Kolahun District in Lofa between the Liberian Government troops and the rebels have caused great suffering to tens of thousands of people and responsible for the destruction of infrastructures including private homes, public buildings, schools, hospitals and clinics. The belligerents in the war have destroyed and looted homes and responsible for a number of people who have been killed. In addition to the 20,000 people who were displaced in the October, 2000 fighting another over 5,000 people have been displaced in the latest fighting this February, and have taken refugee in the districts of Kongba, Gbarma and Tubmanburg city in Bomi county. Lutheran World Federation / World Service (LWF/WS) proposes to assist IDPs in Lofa and Bomi Counties, affected by the current hostilities especially in the district of Salayea. Special attention will be given to the internally displaced numbering 25,000. The assistance will include: · Food distribution · Non Food Items (mainly blankets, and clothes) · Health (Support to Clinics) · Water & Sanitation · Seeds and Tools ACT is a worldwide network of churches and related agencies meeting human need through coordinated emergency response. The ACT Coordinating Office is based with the World Council of Churches (WCC) and the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) in Switzerland. Liberia – Relief for Internally Displaced & Returnees 2 AFLR-11 Project Completion Date: 15 September, 2001 Summary of Appeal Target, Pledges/Contributions Received and Balance Requested (US$) Total Appeal Target: 297,628 Anticipated Income: 0 Balance requested to ACT Network 297,628 Please kindly send your contributions to the following ACT bank account: Account Number - 102539/0.01.061 (USD) Account Name: ACT - Action by Churches Together Banque Edouard Constant Cours de Rive 11 Case postale 3754 1211 Genève 3 SWITZERLAND Please also inform the Finance Officer Jessie Kgoroeadira (direct tel. +4122/791.60.38, e-mail address [email protected]) of all pledges/contributions and transfers, including funds sent direct to the implementers, now that the Pledge Form is no longer attached to the Appeal. We would appreciate being informed of any intent to submit applications for EU, USAID and/or other back donor funding and the subsequent results. We thank you in advance for your kind cooperation. For further information please contact: ACT Co-ordinator, Thor-Arne Prois (phone ++41 22 791 6033 or mobile phone ++ 41 79 203 6055) or ACT Appeals Officer, John Nduna (phone +41 22 791 6040 or mobile phone ++41 79 433 0592) ACT Web Site address: http://www.act-intl.org Ms. Geneviève Jacques Thor-Arne Prois Rev. Rudolf Hinz Director ACT Coordinator Director WCC/Cluster on Relations LWF/World Service Liberia – Relief for Internally Displaced & Returnees 3 AFLR-11 I. REQUESTING ACT MEMBER ? Lutheran World Federation/World Service (LWF/WS) - Liberia Programme II. IMPLEMENTING ACT MEMBER The LWF/DWS Liberia Program began emergency assistance for victims of the Liberian Civil War in September 1990. Intervening initially in Sierra Leone, LWF/DWS emergency operations were moved to Liberia in early 1991 and has since then, been expanded to cover 8 of Liberia’s 14 Counties during the last 10 years. During this period more than 600,000 persons were assisted under different emergency interventions that included a large-scale general food and non-food distribution, emergency school feeding, the construction and management of shelters for internally displaced people and Sierra Leonean refugees. LWF/DWS continues to act as a major implementing partner of ACT, networking with other ACT partners in Liberia. In July 1999, a consolidated Appeal was launched for Liberia, involving other partners. The LWF/DWS section of this appeal originally intended to end in June, 2000, was extended to October, 2000. The appeal has officially ended and final reports submitted to the donors. III. DESCRIPTION OF THE EMERGENCY SITUATION The Liberian county of Lofa bordering Guinea and Sierra Leone has been besieged by insurgence fighting since early 1999. There have been several raids by insurgents allegedly based in Guinea. The upper portion of Lofa County (5 districts) have all been destabilized and plunged into instability. These attacks affecting the districts of Foya, Kolahun, Voinjama and Zorzor have left a trail of destruction of towns and villages and led to disruption of the farming system resulting into loss of harvest, disruption of basic social services including health, education, and access to clean water. As result of the fighting between insurgents and government troops the entire population of the area, estimated to be 150,000 have had their lives severely disrupted. Most of them have had to abandon their farms and flee into remote villages for safety. Current situation In February 2001, the latest fighting erupted in Kolahun District in Lofa, close to the Sierra Leonean border. This fighting has produced a new wave of internally displaced persons (IDPs). In addition to the 20,000 IDPs who moved to Salayea District following the October, 2000 fighting, an estimated 5,000 have moved further west and taken refuge in the districts of Kongba, Gbarma and Tubmanburg city in Bomi County. Major towns have been abandoned, with systematic looting going on. Houses are being burned and death toll still unknown. Fighting continues in the area, between insurgents reportedly based in and supported by Guinea and the Liberian government troops. The Guinean authorities on the other hand have accused the Liberian government of supporting Guinean dissidents who are fighting inside Guinea. There has recently been reported attacks on Liberian border towns by Guinean gun ships. Liberia – Relief for Internally Displaced & Returnees 4 AFLR-11 The situation in the area bordering Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea remains tense and very volatile. The fear of full scale war between Liberia and Guinea is not far fetched. An estimated 100,000 Liberian refugees are trapped in Guinea where fighting is raging between rebels and Guinean government troops. Liberian refugees are particularly vulnerable given that the local people are accusing Liberia of fueling their civil conflict. By implication, refugees are presumed to be rebels. UNHCR has lost contact with most of these Liberian refugees and some of their Sierra Leone counterparts. Impact on human lives The civilian casualties from recent cross border fighting remain unknown to date. As mentioned above, an estimated 150,000 persons are on the run for their lives, most of them having abandoned the major towns and took refuge in remote villages, running from the fighting forces. The death toll will be known only after the cessation of hostilities and relief agencies have full access to the area. Homes of civilians fleeing the fighting have been completely looted; while some homes have been burned. The situation forced humanitarian agencies working in the area to either scale down their activities, while others have pulled out completely. An estimated 25,000 are in need of urgent attention and basic services: food, non food items, water, sanitation, and health services. Life for these displaced people is extremely difficult, having lost properties and their farm crops. Schools are closed in the area. Once again the education of hundreds of thousands of Liberian children from this area, who had earlier lost a decade of schooling during the civil crisis, are again out of school. There is no functioning health facility in the area, so people are dying of common illnesses that could be treated. Description of damages The war in Liberia destroyed nearly all infrastructures including private homes, public buildings, schools, hospitals and clinics. Opposing forces indiscriminately burned down buildings. There is a lost of harvest, tools, seeds and other properties including household utensils. Fighters massively looted these items. In the part of the country (upper part of Lofa County) with the current fighting, whatever little infrastructure was left up to the end of the Liberian civil crisis (1997), has now been destroyed. The full scale of the destruction will only be known once LWF/DWS and other agencies are able to access the entire area and do a full scale assessment of the damages that are still up to now being done. Example of the damages is the destruction of Curran Hospital, a Lutheran Church run hospital in Zorzor, which up to October, 2000 served thousands of residents and displaced in the area. Furniture, hospital equipment, drugs, doors belonging to this health center were all looted. The Curran Hospital was among institutions renovated with contributions from donors including those of ACT. A mobile clinic has instead been established which caters to the health needs of the internally displaced and residents of Salayea, Zorzor and Belle Districts. This is one of the activities LWF/DWS propose to assist under the current appeal. Location for proposed response LWF/DWS proposes to assist IDPs in Lofa County, affected by the current hostilities in the area: specifically, the districts of Salayea. Special attention will be given to the internally displaced persons, numbering about 25,000 (20,000 in Liberia – Relief for Internally Displaced & Returnees 5 AFLR-11 Salayea District in Upper Lofa and 5,000 in the districts of Kongba, Gbarma in Lofa County and in Tubmanburg, Bomi County). There is an estimated IDP population of 5,000 persons who have trekked through the forests and ended up in the lower part of Lofa County and in Bomi County, while there is a displaced population of 20,000 in Salayea District. The project will therefore take place in the following districts and counties of Liberia, where the IDPs are currently residing.