A bus throws up dust as it rumbles away from the sprawling expanse of the refugee camp at Gado-Badzere in easternSecondary school student Abdel Aziz is among those being voluntarily repatriated. He and his mother fled fighting the fighting in CAR five years ago; Aziz's father is believed dead."Now, I aspire to become a criminal investigative police officer to help fight crimes in society, like the war in the Central African Republic," Aziz told DW, before climbing the bus.
"Since I was a Christian before converting to Islam, I have become a target of the Seleka as well as the anti-Balaka. Both sides see me as a danger for them."Her daughter said returning would also be difficult because they don't have family there anymore. The Seleka rebels unleashed violence upon Christians, leading Christian youths to organize themselves into a militia known as the anti-Balaka. Despite the eventual ousting of the Seleka faction, a cycle of tit-for-tat violence persists between the two groups.
As a result of the volatile security situation, one in five of the country's 5.5 million population are displaced within and across CAR's borders.