As 100s of DRC refugees enter Uganda, MAF flies in partners of hope

Paul has lived in and out of refugee camps his whole life (credit: Damalie Hirwa)

More than 1,200 people from the DRC fled to Uganda on 13 November to escape fresh attacks by the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF). Uganda hosts the most refugees in Africa, but when do they return home? MAF’s Damalie Hirwa asks Paul – a second generation refugee, and MAF partner Flame International, who support survivors of war

Escalating violence in Watalinga Country in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo has forced over 1,200 people to flee their homes and seek refuge in neighbouring Uganda (source: Uganda’s ‘Monitor’).

These latest arrivals will stay in Africa’s largest refugee-hosting nation where, according to UNHCR, more than 1.5 million refugees live.

Most refugees in Uganda are from South Sudan and the DRC – countries, which have endured decades of war, killing millions of people.

1000s of refugees in Uganda live in mud huts like these at Rhino Camp (credit: R. Walker)

For thousands of refugees in Uganda, the prospect of returning home is bleak. Fear of the unknown, volatile security, uprooting families and disrupting their children’s lives once again are just too difficult to contemplate.

The alternative? Staying put in a refugee camp where life’s essentials and hope are in short supply does not sound promising either.

Due to aid cuts, basic supplies in Uganda’s camps are dwindling (credit: Damalie Hirwa)

Part of MAF’s work in Uganda is to ease their suffering. By teaming up with a range of partners including Flame International, MAF transports lifesaving supplies and personnel to the camps, which transform lives.

MAF Uganda’s latest shuttle service, which was launched in September, has been benefiting refugees in the south-west of the country.

Wherever the refugee camp, whatever the cargo and whoever the partner, MAF saves them many hours of exhausting overland travel.

Whoever the passenger, whatever the load, MAF saves time & hassle (credit: Ping Domtta)

Refugees can spend decades in exile

33-year-old Paul – a married father of three from southern Sudan (now South Sudan) – has been a refugee for most of his life. Paul and his parents escaped Sudan’s second civil war in 1993 when he was just three years old.

When South Sudan became an independent country in 2011, the promise of peace beckoned, so the family eventually returned home when Paul was aged 23.

But no sooner had they returned, war broke out in 2013 in the world’s youngest country, which dragged on for six years.

Once again, the family ran for their lives. In 2016, they fled to Rhino Refugee Camp in Arua, north-west Uganda, where Paul has since met his wife and had three children.

Rhino Camp in north Uganda is home to nearly 150,000 refugees (credit: Damalie Hirwa)

Seven years on from when he first arrived, Paul still lives in Rhino Camp, which today accommodates nearly 150,000 refugees (source: UNHCR).

Children born into refugee camps is common. According to Flame International, they have encountered fourth generation refugees at Rhino Camp.

Children born into refugee camps can spend decades living in exile (credit: Damalie Hirwa)

As per UNHCR, South Sudanese and Congolese refugees face a ‘protracted refugee situation’. They can spend anywhere from five years to decades living in exile.

These refugees exist in a state of limbo – whilst it’s not safe for many to return home, they have not been granted permanent residence in their host country either.

‘I don’t have a country’

‘I don’t have a country,’ sighs Paul (credit: Damalie Hirwa)

Before he first encountered Flame International in 2019 – a global Christian organisation, which aims to set people free from the trauma of war – Paul was in despair:

‘It hasn’t been easy being a refugee all my life. Things were getting out of hand and I was so frustrated. I felt like life had no meaning. At first, I blamed the government and the rebels. I even blamed my parents.

‘I don’t feel good about being a refugee. If anybody asks me to go back to my country, I wouldn’t. In fact, I feel like I don’t have a country.’

Paul – a beneficiary of Flame International’s ministry enabled by MAF

Flame use visual aids to get their message of hope across (credit: Damalie Hirwa)

Entire communities ravaged by war benefit from Flame’s ministry (credit: Damalie Hirwa)

Flame International use Bible-based workshops, prayer ministry and conferences to help survivors of war heal from trauma.

A Flame International volunteer works with one of the participants (credit: Damalie Hirwa)

Another volunteer comforts one of the participants (credit: Damalie Hirwa)

Flame seek out and equip potential leaders within local communities to pass on what they have learnt to others.

They use drama, visual aids and various activities to overcome cultural barriers and employ local translators to get the message of hope and healing across.

Valerie Batchelor is deputy director of Flame International (credit: Damalie Hirwa)

Flame’s deputy director Valerie Batchelor explains why their ministry is so vital:

‘They need to know how to handle trauma. We want to empower them. We want them to learn how to teach others. During the time of teaching, they experience God’s healing.’

Participants also benefit from heartfelt prayer (credit: Damalie Hirwa)

MAF brings hope into the darkness

For their latest mission trip to Rhino Camp, Flame used MAF to travel to Arua. Without MAF, the team would have spent 10 hours navigating unsafe, pot-hole ridden roads.

But with MAF’s smooth 80-minute flight from Kajjansi near Uganda’s capital Kampala, the team arrives fresh, using precious time to deliver their transformative ministry to hurting people, rather than battling bad roads. Valerie says MAF’s service is critical:

‘MAF is totally and utterly reliable. We’re able to depend on them and we know that they will always help us at the end of the day.’

Valerie Batchelor, deputy director of Flame International and MAF passenger

Participants & Flame International gather after the training (credit: Damalie Hirwa)

Thanks to Flame’s ministry, Paul has become a Christian:

‘Their programme has been of great help – it has freed my heart.’

However long Paul stays at Rhino Camp, he has the hope of Christ in his heart.

Paul has the hope of Christ in his heart (credit: Damalie Hirwa)

Read or listen to Rev Bernard Suwa’s story on the Flying for Life podcast – a fellow South Sudanese refugee who found healing and hope through MAF after devasting loss.

Read how MAF fixed the wheelchair of Jackson Mataya – an orphaned South Sudanese refugee who became a lab technician despite debilitating polio.

Read how MAF’s been supporting South Sudan’s refugee farmers.