Conflict in Congo

Update: There will be a meeting on Thursday (Nov 6th) with "DRC President Joseph Kabila, and his Rwandan counterpart Paul Kagame will both take part in an African Union summit on Thursday Nov. 6 in Nairobi, Kenya. The summit's goal is to find solutions to the problems in the DRC, and it is possible that UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon will attend as well." (Ceasefire Under Threat) ... this situation is breaking right now! I'll post some more with videos and such in the morning

My brother, pastor in Indianapolis, sent along this link to Conflict in Congo article with some stunning photos telling the story of the last few days in Congo. You have to go to the story and check out the unbelievable photos!

In the eastern mountains of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo), a rebel army led by Laurent Nkunda - a former General of the DR Congo armed forces - recently launched attacks and captured territory after a peace treaty had failed with the government. Nkunda's forces are Tutsi rebels, fighting against the DR Congo government forces and U.N. peacekeeeping forces. The U.N. has over 17,000 troops in the Congo right now, but they are widely dispersed, and have been unable to fully protect civilians or even defend their own bases. Nkunda's rebels forced government soldiers to retreat from intense battles up to the edges of the provincial capital of Goma.

Like I do sometimes when confronted with a new story, I did a little digging.

Formerly the Belgian colony of the Belgian Congo, the country's post-independence name was the Republic of the Congo until August 1, 1964,^[3] when its name was changed to Democratic Republic of the Congo (to distinguish it from the neighboring Republic of the Congo).^[4] On October 27, 1971,^[3] then-President Mobutu renamed the country Zaire, from a Portuguese mispronunciation of the Kikongo word nzere or nzadi, which translates to "the river that swallows all rivers."^[5]

Following the First Congo War which led to the overthrow of Mobutu in 1997, the country was renamed Democratic Republic of the Congo. The Second Congo War, beginning in 1998, devastated the country greatly and involved seven foreign armies and is sometimes referred to as the "African World War".^[6] Despite the signing of peace accords in 2003, fighting continues in the east of the country. In eastern Congo, the prevalence and intensity of rape and other sexual violence is described as the worst in the world.^[7] The war is the world's deadliest conflict since World War II killing 5.4 million people. (Source Wikipedia)

I didn't even know there were two countries with the name Congo, some more digging.

DR Congo had a transitional government until the election was over. A constitution was approved by voters and on July 30, 2006 the Congo held its first multi-party elections since independence in 1960. After this Joseph Kabila took 45% of the votes and his opponent Jean-Pierre Bemba took 20%. That was the origin of a fight between the two parts from August 20-22, 2006 in the streets of the capital, Kinshasa. Sixteen people died before policemen and UN mission MONUC took control of the city. A new election was held on October 29, 2006, which Kabila won with 70% of the vote. Bemba has made multiple public statements saying the election has "irregularities," despite the fact that every neutral observer has praised the elections. On December 6, 2006 the Transitional Government came to an end as Joseph Kabila was sworn in as President.

The fragility of the state has allowed continued conflict and human rights abuses. In the ongoing Kivu conflict, Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) continues to threaten the Rwandan border and the Banyamulenge, and where Rwanda supports RCD-Goma rebels against Kinshasa. In Ituri, where MONUC has proved unable to contain the numerous militia and groups driving the Ituri conflict. In the northeast, Joseph Kony's LRA moved from their original bases in Uganda, where they have fought a 20-year rebellion, and South Sudan to DR Congo in 2005 and have set up camps in the Garamba National Park.^[12][13] In northern Katanga, the Mai-Mai created by Laurent Kabila slipped out of the control of Kinshasa. The war is the world's deadliest conflict since World War II killing 5.4 million people.

With a supposedly free election only two years ago, the tribal groups have all move to their respective corners of the country, and are attacking each other. The real losers are the citizens, who deserve an end to the multiple decade war that has spilled over multiple countries in the region.

I'll be keeping an eye on this place in the world, once I take an interest I tend to want to pray and learn.