Congo's east dire, Goma prison Africa's worst: UN

By Thomas Hubert

KINSHASA (Reuters) - A prison in eastern Congo's town of Goma is the worst in Africa, with 850 prisoners crammed into a jail built for 150 making conditions "inhumane", a top United Nations human rights official said.

Dmitry Titov, the U.N. assistant-secretary general for rule of law, said the humanitarian situation in Congo's east was "dire" but he said U.N. peacekeepers were right to back the army in operations to stop the carnage despite intense criticism.

Congo's government, backed by the U.N.'s largest peacekeeping force, is still struggling to stabilise swathes of its east, three years after the international community helped organise elections meant to offer the nation a new start.

"I've travelled in many parts of Africa in post-conflict situations, but the prison in Goma is the most terrible I've ever seen," Titov told reporters in Kinshasa late on Friday after visiting three of Congo's eastern provinces.

Titov acknowledged efforts by some donors to improve conditions, which he described as "inhumane", but he called on Congo's government to match them with their own efforts.

Over 650 of the prisoners were being held but had not yet faced any charges, he said.

"Inmates sleep in hallways, near septic tanks, which spreads diseases in the prison and beyond. Civilian and military detainees are not separated. Neither are men, women and children, which is unacceptable in any prison," he added.

"STOP THE CARNAGE"

The 2006 elections were seen as an important step towards the return of law and order after nearly 15 years of violence, during which Congolese rebel groups and foreign armies fought two wars, committed abuses and looted the nation's minerals.

But rights groups have become increasingly frustrated that President Joseph Kabila's government and the U.N. peacekeepers who back him have failed make lasting progress in improving human rights and the rule of law.

Ongoing operations that Congo's army and the U.N. are carrying out against rebels in the east have drawn particular criticism as they have displaced hundreds of thousands of civilians and are being led by some alleged rights abusers.

"The situation is dire. We do admit criticism," Titov said, adding that disarming militia was the only way to improve security and ease the plight of the civilians.

"What we are trying to do is to stop the carnage and to bring the perpetrators to justice on both sides ... It is vital that the chain of command to the very top support the extension of justice, including in the most notorious cases," he added.

Kabila has vowed a zero tolerance policy against abuse by his soldiers, which analysts say commit as many, if not more, abuses than the rebels they are fighting against.

But Bosco Ntaganda, a former rebel who joined the army under a peace deal, continues to help lead the U.N.-backed operations despite a warrant for his arrest from the International Criminal Court on charges of war crimes.