Chaos and suffering persist in Central African Republic

“The chaos is over, the pillaging is over”, according to the interim leader of the Central African Republic.

But although people are returning to the supermarkets of central Bangui and the boulevards are busy again, a few miles away we heard reports of fresh violence today with Muslim businesses looted and a church torched.

Many armed militiamen remain in their camps. We visited one today where Christian fighters sharpened their machetes, shaved their bows and arrows and drank heavily. Suddenly, with the former Muslim president ousted, they are confident.

One has ‘Anti Balaka’ – the name of the Christian militia – etched onto a pouch he proudly wears on his chest. It apparently contains "souvenirs" from battle. They are said to give his men supernatural powers.

So, no, despite the claims of the interim leader, this is not "over". Not while the legacy of this bloody conflict endures. Not when the innocent people caught in the middle – Christian and Muslim – are too frightened to return to their homes.

Some 100,000 displaced people remain at the airport, sheltering underneath discarded airplanes and helicopter gunships. In the half-built St Paul’s monastery, aid agencies hand out food where the pews should stand. Washing lines have been hung from the majestic beams.

This is a tense and dangerous place without functioning institutions and without authority - where the chaos and the suffering continue.

More: Ex-president of Central African Republic 'goes into exile'