A Catholic nutrition officer working in the Hela Province has highlighted high rates of severe malnutrition within communities of people displaced by ongoing tribal conflicts. Sylvester Walanduo, who has worked in over 40 communities in four districts of Hela, said food shortages and the lack of understanding about nutrition put very young children at risk. “Over the last two years, I’ve screened 31,463 children…this is from data I have personally collected,” Walanduo said. “Eleven thousand and ninety-five children suffer from mild to severe cases of malnutrition.” Sylvester Walanduo is employed by the Catholic Diocese of Mendi through its Caritas office,…
Author: Scott WAIDE
A gathering in Goroka, attended by over 30 community-based anti-violence advocates, has brought to light the harrowing reality of young girls being used as “comfort women” by gunmen hired to fight in tribal conflicts. This UN-sponsored training on gender-based violence (GBV) and sorcery accusation-related violence has exposed the severe trauma these girls endure. A senior community member from Mendi, who remains anonymous due to security concerns, revealed that it has become a common practice for these armed “hire men” to demand young girls for sex as part of their payment. “This has been happening, but communities don’t talk about it.…