Before we headed out into this trip, we had a broad understanding about the recent ongoing war to the Congo was due to the internal fighting on the Kivu region for minerals (in particular Coltan) used in many of the personal computer and mobile electronics. However on this visit to the Congo, we have come to see that the ongoing war and disarray is a very complex one.
The Congo has been on an ongoing unrest for most of its history. Since the Belgium colonialism, the Congo has been one the poorest countries in the world, but is also one of the richest ones in terms of minerals and natural resources. After Congo regained independence from Belgium in the 1960’s, the country continued under the totalitarian dictatorship of corrupted General Mobutu whom was overthrown by Congolese Colonel Laurent Kabila and his forces in 1997. Given the instability of the Congo during this period (soon after the Rwanda genocide had also finished), a war between various central African countries ensued to split the Congo and take control on its rich natural resources.
During the Rwanda genocide of the mid 90’s, the militia group largely responsible for the genocide of the Rwanda Tutsi population was called the Interahamwe. This militia group made of Rwanda Hutu rebels had many young people who got brainwashed to eliminate the Rwanda Tutsi race and create destruction. After the genocide of the Tutsi’s ended in 1994, many members of this group fled Rwanda into neighboring countries such as Burindi, Uganda and Congo. In the Congo, around the Kivu area, they formed a militia group called the FDLR (Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda).
As Central Africa ensued on war, Colonel Kabila was assassinated in 2001 and his son Joseph Kabila was sworn in as president. The new president Kabila used the services of the FDLR (among other militia groups) to fight the Rwanda and Uganda troops out of the Congo. A final cease fire was agreed on 2004.
By 2006, Congo re-elected Kabila and adopted a new constitution. However, given the weaken infrastructure of the Congolese government, fighting in the Eastern Kivu side has increased since then. The FDLR (made of former Interahamwe Hutu soldiers) is still running at large in the Eastern area. On that same area another militia group called the CNDP (lead by a former Colonel of the Congolese Army – Laurent Nkunda) is formed by mostly Tutsi Congolese soldiers and which had apparently being supported by the current Rwanda Tutsi-dominated government.
Even though by January 2009, Congo and Rwanda special army forces captured the heads of both FLDR and CNDP, the present corruption in the Congo is possibly the biggest ongoing war.
Most of the Congolese army soldiers do NOT get paid, since the money is given to the commanders of the troops who are then in charge of passing the money down into the various levels within their infantry; so in a poor country most people at the top will cover themselves first, the soldiers at the bottom barely get any money. During this trip we have heard the accounts of many victims of the ongoing war who had mentioned the Army as being the main perpetrators in some of the rapes and atrocities committed to women as well as being responsible for the looting and destruction of the communities .
Bribes and kickbacks are part of the daily business within the country. We had to pay extra amounts of bribes to get our visas, as well as during our boat trip. In one of my rides into the Western Union in Kivu, as our driver was stopped by the police for a traffic offense, rather than reaching for his papers, he just simply pull some francs to give it to the officer (of course, given that I was a “Muzungu” in the car watching) the officer played “hard to get” which led to our driver get more money to settle his offence.
Due the lack of a strong social infrastructure in this country, there is an on-going social war within the people of the Congo. Rape on women (from all ages) has become a norm that is not only experienced on the villages with the militia groups and the army fight, but also in the current social infrastructure. Since the Army and the various militias have set a horrific example on how to mistreat women; many men, young and older, are starting to rape women within their own villages.
Given the weakness and corruption of the Congolese government, this whole Kivu area is a complete no-man’s land. Even though we had very little time within the Congo, it was really disheartening seeing that the Congolese government has been doing very little to try stabilizing and rebuilding this area.
As we are about to set out, we have heard from various aid workers of a new insurgence by militia groups on the southern villages by the FDLR (former Interhamwe Hutu members who are trained to be barbarians). I can only hope that International advocacy can put pressure to the Congolese government in take true control on this painful unrest……
Silvia
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thank you for taking the time to distill the complex history of this area into something that I can get my head around and even begin to understand. From personal experience I know how difficult it is to keep one's chin up with regard to advocacy for change in these parts of the world. I look forward to hearing what your final diagnosis is for targeting key areas malleable to re-edification and what I for one can do to further the cause.
ReplyDeletemuch love to you both...I will send my guardians out each night to meet yours and thus strengthen your cause against the preservation of woman's health and safety in all corners of our beautiful earth.
cabieza abierta,to each and all, now.