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In the light of humanitarian crises happening in the world, we shift our gaze to Gaza. We know so much about Gaza but maybe we have shifted our gaze so far that we didn’t see the problems within. There in Congo, East of Africa, terror has been looming from decades.
Growing up, I watched movies of war. Truth be told, I sometimes delighted in it. Then I started to watch movies about wars in Africa. Trust me, I wasn’t so frightened watching movies about the World Wars . But when I watched a movie about the Rwanda genocide, I became so melancholic.
Maybe because I saw the capability of people of my race when it comes to war. I imagine the reality of the war if the movie was portrayed with such cruelty and violence. We might have been fighting for so long that it has become so innate of us to choose an enemy. The strife for independence is over, why make an enemy of ourselves? We’re one blood- one race.
What about the women and children in Congo who face the realities of the war silently?
Reports on the conflicts in Congo
The war has been looming since 1996 with ‘the First Congo War (1996ā1997) which began in the wake of the 1994 Rwandan Genocide, during which ethnic Hutu extremists killed an estimated one million minority ethnic Tutsis and moderate Hutus in Rwanda (DRCās neighbor to the east).” The New York Times describes the Congolese conflicts as “never-ending “.
The peace treaty signed in 2002 has no effect as the war continued subtly in different parts of the country. According to the Center for Prevention Action, the war took a fresh start in December 2023 during the violent national elections in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC; the Congo). This is also tied to the re-emergence of a dormant rebel group, M23 which is rumoured to be sponsored by Rwanda. The war has taken full force most especially in the Eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Read more about the Center for Prevention Action report on the conflict here
Read more about the International Crisis Group’s report on the conflict here
The reality of the conflicts in Congo
In the East of Africa, second most populous country in Africa, war continues to loom subjecting 70% of citizens to abject poverty.
“The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is the second largest country in Africa and has a total population of 67.8 million people, of which 51% are women and 48% of the total population is below 15 years old. Despite being endowed with extraordinary natural resources, the DRC remains one of the poorest countries in the world, classified 186th out of 187 countries on the Human Development Index (UNDP, 2010). Over 70% of the population lives below the poverty threshold.”- UN Women Africa.
According to UNICEF, in DRC more than 25 million people need humanitarian assistance, including almost 15 million children. In the east of the country alone, 7 million people are displaced, making DRC one of the biggest displacement crises globally.
The crisis in DRC has caused a lot of ruckus and calamity . We don’t know when it will all stop. Even if the war stops today, its effects will still linger on for years. Liberia can tell that story well.
As at March 2024, over 7.2 million people are internally displaced in Congo. The ongoing crisis has led to the violation of basic human rights as well as access to basic human provision. There is food, water, shelter and security crisis.
In a UNICEF report, it was reported that across DRC, more than 25 million people need humanitarian assistance, including almost 15 million children. In the east of the country alone, 7 million people are displaced, making DRC one of the biggest displacement crises globally.
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The toll of crisis on the women and children
According to the World Food Programme’s press release published by Relief Web, Eastern DRC is one of the most dangerous places in the world for women and girls, the IRC has found. As conflict intensifies, so do the atrocious violations and crimes perpetrated against women and children, notably sexual violence, child recruitment into armed groups and abductions.
In the fore front of wars, there are men that face the brutal killings of war. However, the women and children suffer in silence. They face the harsh effects of war, hunger, idleness.They are the ones the rival groups meet at home and use as object of rape, sexual violence to show their opponents their prowess.
Photo Credit: Alex Huguet/AFP via Getty Images
Children in Congo are subjected to harsh labour at a very tender age. According to the Bureau of International Labour Acts, this includes commercial sexual exploitation, sometimes as a result of human trafficking, and forced domestic work. Children also perform dangerous tasks such as working in mines and quarries, farming, including harvesting crops. Many children in Congo have been subjected to child labour by mining cobalt for technological companies!
According to the UN Women Africa, up to 52% of women in DRC are survivors of domestic violence and 39% of Congolese women report having being threatened or injured. 27% of women in DRC are victims of harmful traditional practices. Early marriage is common, with 2007 reports indicting 39% of women in their early twenties were married or in a union before the age of 18.
In situations like this, diseases spread faster than usual because of the congestion of people in a single place. With the recent outbreak of monkey pox, UNICEF reports that, from the beginning of the year to 31 August 2024, the DRC has recorded more than 21,000 suspected mpox cases, including over 5,000 confirmed cases and 700 deaths.
What is the way forward?
One thing I know is that if the war continues, there will be always be violation of basic human rights. What is to say to let the militants in Congo take rest? The blood that wash the streets have paid just enough for the birth of a peaceful Congo. The screams and cries of oppressed women and children has resounded the gong of a better Congo. What is to gain from this whole crisis?
Various humanitarian bodies have been rendering help to the Congolese people to make sure they make their lives liveable. UNICEF, WHO, WFP have all rallied round to ease living but there is nothing so bliss like a country in peace.
From your end, you can support these organisations in donation of funds. You can volunteer for different positions to make lives better for the Congolese people. One can assume the role of a peacekeeper to draft treaties that can end the conflicts in Congo.
There is a call from UNICEF to support Congolese women struggling to recover from decades of conflict and oppression with:
Physical and mental health
Education and job training
Cash assistance
Prevention of violence against women
To get more details , you can click this link
All for a peaceful DRC!
#Democratic Republic of Congo
#Congolese conflict
#UN
#women and children in Congo
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