The United Nations has raised concerns after the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has a record-high level of acute hunger.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP), 27.3 million people face “acute” food insecurity. There are also around seven million people who are suffering from “emergency” levels of acute hunger.

The scale of acute hunger in #DRCongo is “staggering” – @FAO @WFP warn.

Over 27.3 million Congolese – one in three people – are now critically hungry.

FAO & WFP call for urgent intervention to scale up support in crisis areas.

More: https://t.co/NsMfM0p7Dl #DRC https://t.co/sjGP7EM44z

— FAO in New York (@FAONewYork) April 6, 2021

One of the factors, according to the UN, is a slump in the country’s economy as well as the effects brought by the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. Militia violence also persisted in the area for decades.

Aristide Ongone Obame, FAO Representative in DRC said social and political stability are “essential to strengthen food security and boost the resilience of vulnerable populations”.

There is also a need to boost livestock and the growing of more food.

“The main agricultural season is around the corner and there is no time to waste,” he said. -AAC

The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), more commonly known as the United Nations Human Rights Office, has condemned the ‘escalating violence’ in Myanmar after 18 were killed during an anti-coup protest on Sunday (February 28).

In a statement, Secretary-General António Guterres said he is “deeply disturbed by the increase in deaths and serious injuries.”

“The use of lethal force against peaceful protestors and arbitrary arrests are unacceptable,” he added.

Guterres also urged the international community “to come together and send a clear signal to the military that it must respect the will of the people of Myanmar as expressed through the election and stop the repression.” -AAC

The United Nations (UN) has warned Myanmar’s military for its harsh treatment of protesters, saying that the “world is watching closely.”

In a press briefing, UN Deputy Spokesman Farhan Haq said that UN Special Envoy on Myanmar Christine Schraner Burgener has called on the Myanmar military to refrain from using violence and respect human rights.

“The right of peaceful assembly must fully be respected, and that demonstrators are not subjected to reprisals. She has conveyed to the Myanmar military that the world is watching closely, and any form of heavy-handed response is likely to have severe consequences,” she said.

The Secretary-General calls on the military authorities urgently to allow his Special Envoy, Christine Schraner Burgener, to visit #Myanmar to assess the situation first-hand, the @UN_Spokesperson said today.https://t.co/vy43IT56Kb pic.twitter.com/iQW4GCN3UJ

— UN Political and Peacebuilding Affairs (@UNDPPA) February 15, 2021

Protests across Myanmar have grown after the military takeover on February 1 where top political leaders were arrested.

Several of the high officials detained include State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and President Win Myint.  

There are also reports that the military use excessive force against the demonstrators.

According to the UN human rights office (OHCHR), as of February 12, more than 350 political and state officials, activists, and civil society members have been taken into custody. Several members of the media, monks, and students were also detained

“Several face criminal charges on dubious grounds, and most have received no form of due process or permitted legal representation, family visitations or communication,” according to the UN.

Burgener also reiterated UN Secretary-General António Guterres’s statement and called for a visit to Myanmar under agreeable conditions. -AAC