CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC: “We fear we will never see our husbands again”

PAOUA Wednesday, June 11, 2008 (IRIN) - Years of armed conflict and banditry have wreaked havoc in northwestern Central African Republic (CAR). For many in this region, especially cattle-raising communities, by far the worst threat is posed by criminals who kidnap heads of families or children for exorbitant ransoms. This often forces people to sell their entire herds to secure the release of their relatives. Aroun Gombo is a member of the Mbororo ethnic group, for whom cattle-raising has long...