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Mozambique: Population continues to abandon Palma due to insecurity – O País
2:49 CAT | 16 Apr 2021
Approximately 150 displaced people arrived on Wednesday by boat in Pemba seeking refuge and safety from conflict in Palma IOM Mozambique Camp Coordination and Camp Management together with MHPSS and DTM teams assisted with reception and settling in at the Centro Desportivo transit centre. [ All photos: IOM Mozambique on Twitter]
Hundreds of people, driven by the security situation, are gathering in the village of Quitunda, near the French multinational Total camp, waiting for sea transport to leave the district of Palma.
This was confirmed by some of those displaced, who arrived on Wednesday night in the provincial capital of Cabo Delgado on a vessel that docked at the port of Pemba.
“Many people want to leave Palma, and almost all are concentrated in Quitunda waiting for a rescue boat to arrive, ”said Faiza Kibuana, a 15-year-old girl who left her parents behind and now lives in the transit reception centre in Pemba. “When a boat appears, people struggle to get a place, but there are others who can’t, because they don’t have the money to pay for transportation.”
In addition to the lack of rescue boats, people in Quitunda are experiencing a dramatic situation and urgently need help. “There is no support. People are suffering from hunger, and, worse, the hospital isn’t open, and some people are dying of illness,” Faiza said.
Most of the people arriving in Pemba are women and children, evacuated from Palma by their husbands and parents because of the humanitarian and security conditions.
Some get one of the few places on the boats available by use of force. “My husband fought hard, but only got a place for me and the (three) children,” said Ancha Selemane, who left behind her brothers and an uncle. She wants them to leave Palma at the first opportunity.
Yesterday, 200 Mozambicans who fled insecurity in Palma arrived in Pemba by boat and received assistance from IOM. @DTM_IOM has recorded that more than 18,000 people have fled the attacks since late March.
This number continues to rise by the day. pic.twitter.com/SVwe1BeJRR
— IOM – UN Migration 🇺🇳 (@UNmigration) April 15, 2021
‘O País’ contacted the delegate of the National Institute for the Management of Natural Risks and Disasters in Cabo Delgado and the Administrator of the District of Pemba for information on the number of displaced people arriving on the latest vessel, as well as on the number of families waiting for rescue in Quitupo, but they were unavailable for comment.
By Hizidine Achá
Approx. 150 displaced people arrived yesterday by boat in #Pemba seeking refuge + safety from conflict in #Palma #CaboDelgado @IOM_Mozambique Camp Coordination and Camp Management + MHPSS + DTM teams assisted with reception + settling in at the Centro Desportivo transit center pic.twitter.com/VzXy4gQP7q
— IOM Mozambique (@IOM_Mozambique) April 15, 2021
Source: O País
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