Niangara is a town in the
Haut-Uele Province of the
Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...
, lying on both sides of the
Uele River
The Uele, also known by the phonetically identical Uélé, Ouélé, or Welle River, is a river in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Course
The Uele forms at Dungu, at the confluence of the Dungu and Kibali rivers, which both originate ...
. It is the headquarters of the
Niangara Territory.
The town has a hospital operated by
Médecins Sans Frontières
(MSF; pronounced ), also known as Doctors Without Borders, is a humanitarian medical non-governmental organisation (NGO) or charity of French origin known for its projects in conflict zones and in countries affected by endemic diseases. M ...
.
As of April 2010 the
United Nations peacekeeping mission in Congo had a base in Niangara town. However, the peacekeepers had few troops and the roads in the area are poor, so they rarely leave the town.
They have neither prevented nor responded to a series of attacks in the territory by the
Lord's Resistance Army
The Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), also known as the Lord's Resistance Movement, is a rebel group and heterodox Christian group which operates in northern Uganda, South Sudan, the Central African Republic, and the Democratic Republic of the Co ...
.
In December 2010 a group of 600 women, children and elderly of the
Mbororo
The Wodaabe ( ff, Woɗaaɓe, Adlam: ), also known as the Mbororo or Bororo (Adlam: , ), or Pullo, have a name that is designated to those of the Fula ethnic group who are traditionally nomadic and considered to be "ignorant of Islam." For thi ...
people set up camp on the edge of town.
They had been driven out of a nearby district by the army, and had come to the town to avoid being raped or killed in the bush. The Médecins sans Frontières doctors provided emergency care. In January 2011, the Mbororo disappeared from their camp, driven out by the army.
References
Populated places in Haut-Uélé
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