Life, Interrupted

Photo: Eric Vaughan for Mercy Corps

Luc Mbarte was awoken by shouting outside his house on the night of May 2, 2007. Seven armed bandits had entered his village, Bokoyan, under the cover of night.

Bokayan, in the largely lawless northwest region of Central African Republic, was a particular target for well-organised gangs taking advantage of the choas caused by years of rebellion and civil unrest. Groups of bandits worked with local informants to target families that could afford to pay large ransoms for kidnapped loved ones. Luc was certain that his name was on the list because he owned cattle, a farm and a small blacksmithing business.

Aware of the dangers facing them, Luc and his family desperately fled into a wooded area nearby to seek the cover of darkness until the bandits left town. These armed men had been here three months earlier and, luckily, he and his family had escaped just in time.

But this this time, Luc was not so lucky. His family was able to find cover in the bush, but he was captured by the bandits. The armed men were very upset that he had fled during their first robbery attempt — and more upset by the fact that the rest of his family had gotten away that night and could not be ransomed.

They shot Luc at close range. He dropped to the ground and feigned death while they looted his house and took a number of his cattle. When he believed they had left, he dragged himself up and sought help. Luc's injuries were severe: a bullet had entered into his side, torn through his rib cage and exited through his stomach doing serious internal damage.

His friends pushed him 20 km along a dirt road in a cart before finding a motorcycle to take him the remaining 20 km to the closest hospital in the city Bouar. His family made their way from the village to rejoin him the next night, their only belongings the clothes on their backs.

Luc stayed in the hospital for two and a half months. He required three blood transfusions and a very difficult surgery. In order to pay the large medical bills he used what little money he had left but quickly depended on local friends and family in Bouar to help. In his absence, his home was looted and his remaining animals taken leaving his family with nothing. The debilitating injuries have left Luc unable to work — today his family struggles to keep food on the table, everyone in good health and the children in school.

Mercy Corps is assisting Mbarte family and more than 400 other vulnerable families in this troubled area of Central African Republic through a cash-for-work project supported by the of the Gates Foundation-funded Global Food Crisis Response Programme. Nearly a quarter of participating families have fled violence and banditry in their villages, arriving in Bouar with no food, shelter or livelihood.

Mercy Corps is providing participating families with monetary assistance during the difficult dry season in exchange for providing day labour for local construction projects — building and repairing public infrastructure like bridges, paths and roads. Luc’s oldest son Hibert is helping rehabilitate local roads. The Mbartes are using the money Hibert earns each day to eat properly, as well as keep several children in school.

Though this programme helps the short term needs of families the Mbartes, many challenges remain. Luc's family cannot return to their home in Bokayan because of continuing insecurity and Luc’s ongoing medical needs. Luc is educated, committed and has experience to run a successful business, but needs capital to start again from scratch. His story is repeated in hundreds of families around this part of Central African Republic.

Mercy Corps will continue to work with families like the Mbartes — with generous support from the Gates Foundation — to develop lasting solutions to these problems, as well as encouraging peace in one of the world's most dangerous places.