Central African Republic: From "Pre-Genocide" to Genocide?

This is not the first hearing that we have had on the Central African Republic. It follows up on a hearing that we held last November; many of us, like our distinguished witnesses, have been in ongoing and numerous meetings with bishops, imams, humanitarian NGOs, diplomats, and interested parties. We are witnessing a country that is in rapid disintegration, apparently descending again from a pre-genocide stage to one characterized by a word almost too painful to articulate, genocide. For in a country that for decades has been characterized by brutal misrule and brazen corruption, we are seeing for the first time sectarian divisions that never existed before. Economic tensions and rivalry over land use for grazing versus planting have always existed, but they have given way to a butchery based on religious and ethnic affiliation. In a country with a population of roughly 5.2 million people, 1.3 million are at risk of starvation while 2.5 million are estimated to be in need of other forms of humanitarian assistance.