Violence in Gambella: An Overview
The conflict is raging between the Anuak, an indigenous people who have always lived in Gambella, and the highlanders, a local term for Ethiopians who have moved to the Gambella region of western Ethiopia within the past 20 years.
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| An Anuak woman in Gambella stands in the rubble of a house burned in the December attack. Civilians from both sides of the conflict have told Oxfam that they are still living in constant fear of people from other ethnic groups, many of whom are their direct neighbors. By: Nathaniel Raymond/Oxfam |
The crisis in Gambella was sparked by an apparent Anuak attack on a United Nations vehicle in early December that left eight people dead, including three Ethiopian refugee workers. The conflict then ignited when highlanders—belonging to the same ethnic group as the UN workers—retaliated by attacking Anuak men in the Ommingah neighborhood of Gambella town.
Soon afterward another Anuak village, Fugnido, was attacked, and almost every house was burned to the ground. Two months later, a highlander settlement, Abobo, was attacked by armed Anuak groups, and many people fled from their homes or were killed.
Civilians from both sides of the conflict have told Oxfam that they are still living in constant fear of people from other ethnic groups, many of whom are their direct neighbors.
Just weeks ago there was a small-arms and grenade attack by Anuak guerillas on two highlander vehicles, in which an estimated 30 people were killed.
Malnutrition, Lack of Shelter, and Food Shortages Growing Concerns
In recent weeks, some of those who fled the violence have begun to return to Gambella town. The local authorities are unable to provide adequate shelter, food, and other services required by the displaced population. Without outside humanitarian assistance, it is unclear how the returnees will be able to reintegrate into the communities from which they fled.
Farmers, fishermen, and hunters—who have traditionally provided Ommingah with its staple foods, namely maize and fish—have fled their homes outside Gambella town. As a result, most villagers in Ommingah are surviving on a meager diet of wheat and cabbage, keeping them alive but critically malnourished. Elderly villagers are emaciated. Many of them have open sores on their limbs, and some are too weak to move most of the day. The majority of children have enlarged stomachs, as well as white spots on their trunks and orange-colored hair, both signs of protein deficiency.