The international medical humanitarian organization Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) strongly condemns the killing on April 4 of Gaulbert Mokafe, an assistant nurse in Batangafo, Central African Republic (CAR) , by an armed group.
MSF once again calls on all armed groups involved in the conflict in CAR to comply with international law on conflicts and to respect the safety and security of medical activities, medical professionals and health care facilities.
Gaulbert Mokafe, 41, had worked at the Batangafo hospital, where MSF operates in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, since 2012. He had a wife and five children. Mokafe was murdered on the road between Batangafo and the neighboring city of Bouca, while traveling by motorcycle to visit his family. MSF has found out that he was forced to stop by a group of armed men and was held by them in a nearby forest. Mokafe was shot and killed, for unknown reasons.
"If those responsible for the death of Gaulbert or their relatives had needed medical attention, Gaulbert would have taken care of them. His killing is a cowardly crime, which has left the MSF family in Batangafo and in CAR shocked and outraged. It is unacceptable," said Omar Abenza, MSF head of mission in CAR. "We demand that armed groups control their members and ensure the protection of the population while respecting the health personnel, from whom they and their families also benefit. We want to continue offering medical and humanitarian assistance, but for this we need to work in safety and everybody has to fulfill their responsibilities."
MSF has worked in Central African Republic since 1997. MSF currently has more than 200 international staff and more than 2,000 Central African staff in the country. MSF provides medical care in Batangafo, Carnot, Kabo, Paoua, Bria, Bossangoa, Bangassou, Bangui, Bambari, and Boguila, and responds to emergencies in other areas.
