- Title: Congo's Killing Fields
- Date: 17th August 2003
- Summary: While the team is in Bunia,a French-lead intervention force arrives to reinforce the small UN contingent of Uruguayan soldiers who were forced to stand by and watch as hundreds were massacred at the start of the summer. But they remain restricted to policing the town only. The killing continues in the countryside. The Dispatches team travels with the French force as they arrive to clear the militia from the village of Muzi Pela,on the outskirts of Bunia. However,their action has unforeseen results as after the troops' departure,the Dispatches team finds the entire village evacuating. They're terrified the enemy militia will take over the village and slaughter them. Surrounded by terrified angry villagers,Kiley phones the French Commanding Officer to let him know what has happened,and the French agree to place a patrol in the village Back in Bunia,the Lendu militia,notorious for their savagery,have decided to try and reclaim the town. The Dispatches team films panicked refugees fleeing into the UN compound while the Hema fighters regroup around them. As the Lendu get closer,the team are forced to take refuge in the compound alongside the 6,000 refugees,where they are trapped as the battle rages around them. After enduring several hours of assault,including rocket-propelled grenades,the Hema repel the invading fighters. But outside in the town's makeshift hospital,the wounded are already quietly queuing: for the locals,it's just another day in Bunia.
- Description:SEE RECORD 102381 FOR SHOTLIST Dispatches: Congo's Killing Fields Sam Kiley and a Dispatches team report from a besieged town in the heart of the war in Congo. They meet the warlords presiding over a battlefield where rape,slaughter and cannibalism are a reality - and the civilians who're struggling to survive. And they reveal how locals blame neighbouring Rwanda and Uganda for arming the gunslingers. Rwanda and Uganda are Britain's closest allies in central Africa and they receive aid of over ?100 million a year. Produced and Directed by: Rachel Rendall
- Broadcaster:Channel 4
- Collection: Channel 4
- Genre:Documentary and Factual
- Producer:Mentorn Barraclough Carey Productions Ltd.
- Transmission Date:17/08/2003
- Rights:On Request
- Decade: 2000s