DATE=1/19/2000
TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT
TITLE=W-F-P / ANGOLAN REFUGEES (L-ONLY)
NUMBER=2-258205
BYLINE=LISA SCHLEIN
DATELINE=GENEVA
CONTENT=
VOICED AT:
INTRO: The United Nations World Food Program (W-
F-P) is urgently appealing for money to fly in
emergency food for more than seven-thousand
Angolan refugees who have fled to western Zambia.
Lisa Schlein in Geneva has this report.
TEXT: Since the beginning of the year, more than
seven-thousand refugees have fled to western
Zambia to escape intensified fighting between
Angolan government and UNITA rebel forces.
Christiane Berthiaume, of the World Food Program,
says the refugees have settled in a remote area
along the Zambezi River. She says it is very
difficult to access this area during the rainy
season because the roads are flooded.
/// BERTHIAUME ACT ///
So what we need now is to bring, urgently,
food to these people. Many are women and
children and they have arrived in bad shape
after walking for days and even for weeks.
And, they need food urgently. We've been
able so far to move in some food by road.
But, since last week, rain has started and
the roads are no good anymore. So, we need
100-thousand dollars to fly in food very
quickly for these people.
/// END ACT///
Ms. Berthiaume says it won't be easy to fly in
food because the runway is very short. This
means the World Food Program will not be able
to use a large cargo plane. Instead, she says
the agency will have to use smaller planes. And,
moving 330 tons of food into the area with small
planes will require 33 separate flights, which
becomes very expensive for the agency.
Ms. Berthiaume says the agency is racing against
time to get an additional 200-thousand dollars to
buy more food before other refugees arrive in
Zambia.
/// 2ND BERTHIAUME ACT ///
Refugees are telling us that there are more
refugees, more people on the move going
toward Zambia. If this proves true,
obviously we have to be prepared to receive
these people. This is why we have also
launched an appeal of 200-thousand dollars
to buy food for newly arrived refugees.
/// END ACT ///
More than 20-thousand Angolans have fled into
Zambia since October, when the fighting
escalated. Ms. Berthiaume says there could be an
influx of refugees into Zambia and Namibia if the
fighting continues at this level. She says the
long civil war has displaced a huge number of
people within the country. But, until recently,
the number of Angolans fleeing into neighboring
countries has been relatively low. She says this
large influx of refugees is a very new and
worrying trend for aid agencies. (Signed)
NEB/LS/GE/KL
19-Jan-2000 13:26 PM EDT (19-Jan-2000 1826 UTC)
NNNN
Source: Voice of America
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