Gazing in the Congo (DRC): the dark heart of Africa (2006-2017)

[Stan]

Nice link David.
Speaking however of movie themes, I believe the history of what most call "Africa's World War" has a slightly different twist regarding Kitona and the RPA. While the Zairians viewed the Bas Zaire Province as something of strategic significance (oil, a port and a hydroelectric power dam), little worked even in 1990. There was no oil, the Port of Matadi was a den of thieves, Kitona tower couldn't be raised any day of the week, and the Shaba electric dam routinely shut down for up to 8 hours a day due to lack of skilled maintenance personnel (previously handled under a USG contract) and frequent outages.

The former Zairian soldiers at Kitona were literally exiled there for "retraining" and even on a good day would offer little resistance to anyone offering food and money.

Lastly, there wasn't even a popular uprising in the suburbs other than some ceremoniously burned tires and dead bodies (which Zairians do with elections and paydays).

If it didn't already look bleak for the Rwandans and Ugandans, the sight of Angolan tanks and aircraft must have scared the bejesus out of those still left wondering where to turn

Most of us tend to think it was ironic that the Rwandans would naively place Kabila into power (much like the US did with Uncle Mobutu) and then, when he no longer wanted to play they could just dust him off. Well, at least their plan included killing him instead of beating him with political rhetoric

[davidbfpo]

Another review of ''Dancing in the glory of monsters' by Jason Stearns:http://www.spectator.co.uk/books/691...he-congo.thtml

I noted it referred to Stearns having:

a consistently illuminating blog on DRC...

and identified as:http://congosiasa.blogspot.com/

The Spectator has a column on a visit to:

Kisangani, capital of the province of Orientale, DRC

which I expect sees few non-commercial visitors:http://www.spectator.co.uk/essays/al...notebook.thtml

[carl]

I read "Dancing In the Glory of Monsters" and liked it. It is not a detailed historical narrative of the conflict and how it progressed. It is more like a series of stories about individuals and their experiences in different phases of the conflict and in different places. The author ties these together and puts them in context with an overview of what was happening and why, but the book is primarily a vehicle to tell the stories of the individuals. I would guess for somebody like Stan who has seen it and heard all the stories it might not be so high up on the list but for somebody like me who doesn't know much about the origins of the various peoples in the Congo, it was very useful.

I did find it a little disappointing that in cases, the Rwanda vs. Uganda fights in Kisangani for example, the book sets up the conflict, tells story of people caught up in it, but then doesn't say how it ended, except to say that it did.

The book make it clear that the Rwandan Army is a very interesting force that is probably worth a book of its own. There may be one out there but I don't know.

[JMA]

For those who have access to Al Jazeera (and are interested) there is a 1-hr programme- Murder in Kinshasa - scheduled for Tuesday 7 June @ 14h00 South African time. About the death of Laurent Kabila.

[M-A Lagrange]

From Al Jazera
http://english.aljazeera.net/video/a...201469866.html

An interresting short video on land mines left by Mobutu serbs mercenaries in Kisangani in 1996.
And probably also from the Kisangani battle between Rwanda and Uganda...

[J Wolfsberger]

I just bought "Dancing In the Glory of Monsters." There are some good comments already, and I'd be interested in hearing anything you could add on the quality of the book.

[M-A Lagrange]

I just bought "Dancing In the Glory of Monsters." There are some good comments already, and I'd be interested in hearing anything you could add on the quality of the book.

If I may come in, Jason Stearn book is not bad but his assertion that it's all about politic puzzeles me.
DRC wars out comes are extremely difficult to evaluate. Except changing some (And I really mean some as a limited number) of heads, they are part of those wars which did not change anything: not in the gouvernance, not in regional role of DRC, not in the political class...
It's a good book and Jason a long time well informed observer. But still... I stood on my hunger as we say in French.

This said, I recommend it for all who do not have read dozen of books on DRC before.

[J Wolfsberger]

If I may come in, ...

This said, I recommend it for all who do not have read dozen of books on DRC before.

Thanks, M-A. And my apologies for not including you with Stan and Tom.

[Stan]

Hey John,
Tom is in the process of reviewing the book and we've had some discussions regarding specific details.

I agree with M-A and conclude most of the assessments are oversimplified. Zaire and the DRC are inexplicable by most.

Send Tom a PM for his personal view

Regards, Stan

[M-A Lagrange]

Congo: The Electoral Process Seen from the East
Africa Briefing N°80
5 Sep 2011


The full briefing is currently only available in French.

OVERVIEW

Voter registration that began across the Congo in April 2011 concluded on 17 July, on time even in troubled regions such as the Kivu provinces and the Ituri district, and produced a nearly 6.3 million increase in the electorate, 24.5 per cent over the 2006 exercise. If it went relatively well, it was mainly because the voter’s card also serves as an identity card, so is as useful to militiamen as to ordinary citizens. Neither civil society nor political parties fundamentally challenged the operation at the local level, but this is not synonymous with satisfaction. The surprising results the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) announced and lack of dialogue and verification by the voters themselves feed latent but widespread suspicions in the opposition and civil society. To ensure credible elections, it is necessary to improve transparency, respect the electoral law and establish a forum for dialogue between INEC, the parties and civil society.


Ituri and North and South Kivu form a key region for two reasons: they are the sole part of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) still harbouring armed groups, and they provided an important reservoir of votes for the ruling party in the 2006 elections. With Katanga and Maniema, it was the East – Orientale (including Ituri) and the Kivus – that elected Joseph Kabila and his People’s Party for Reconstruction and Democracy (PPRD), giving it more than 90 per cent support. However, the political landscape has changed in this region: an opposition party has emerged – the Congolese Union for the Nation (UNC) led by Vital Kamerhe, the former chair of the National Assembly – and the popularity of the government is falling due to persistent insecurity.

In an area that is electorally and militarily strategic, the campaign has just begun, in an atmosphere of relative political freedom that does not exclude, however, some restrictions and intimidation. Access to the media remains unbalanced, and there is pressure on the opposition, especially the UNC, because it is very active in this region. Nevertheless, due to the asymmetry of political forces, local politicians regard the presidential election as already decided in the East and the main stakes to be the legislative and provincial elections.

The electoral process in the East has generated suspicion on a national scale that risks developing into a crisis of confidence in the whole electoral process. Based on Crisis Group’s regional observations, the following measures should be taken across the country:

•the international community should observe the entire electoral process in detail, particularly in rural areas;
•political parties and civil society should prepare now for observing the voting, and the former should be allowed to campaign freely;
•INEC should scrupulously respect the electoral code, especially regarding accreditation of observers, and should establish a formal platform for dialogue with political parties and civil society at both national and provincial level;
•INEC should establish transparent and widely publicised procedures for receiving grievances from civil society and the political parties regarding the approaching elections;
•INEC should publish the voters list and the breakdown of registration by district and territory in 2006 and 2011 and publicly explain its methodology for finalising the voters roll;
•INEC should establish a standardised procedure for challenging the results and publish those results by each voting station;
•the High Council for Media should quickly become operational;
•all stakeholders in the electoral process should accept the code of conduct introduced by the Special Representative of the Secretary-General of the UN; and the UN mission in the Congo (MONUSCO) should encourage a more sustained respect for political freedom and dialogue between INEC, the political parties and civil society at national and provincial level, since dialogue is the key element in building trust;
•MONUSCO should continue to deploy its troops in the areas where the armed groups are active;
•MONUSCO and the international community should increase their crowd management training program for the Congolese police;
•MONUSCO should increase its logistical support for the timely distribution of electoral material; and
•the presidential majority and the opposition should, for the contingency that postponement of the elections cannot be avoided, negotiate an agreement that sets a new deadline for the elections and provides that government would limit itself to routine business until they are held.

Having already analysed the main challenges of the electoral process nationally in the report Congo: The Electoral Dilemma, Crisis Group in this briefing examines voter registration and the beginning of the campaign on the ground in the East, putting the preparations for elections in late 2011 in their local context and highlighting the electoral stakes in a region that remains fundamental for durable stability in the country.

Kinshasa/Nairobi/Brussels, 5 September 2011

http://www.crisisgroup.org/en/region...-the-east.aspx

An english version of this up date briefing should be soon available.
Anyways, comments are welcomed.

[M-A Lagrange]

Activist dies in Democratic Republic of Congo unrest
An opposition activist has been shot dead in Democratic Republic of Congo during clashes with police in Kinshasa.
The fighting came after the offices of the opposition Union for Democracy and Social Progress were set alight, and an opposition TV station was attacked.
UDPS activists said police had opened fire with live ammunition. The police have not yet commented on the claims.
UDPS candidate Etienne Tshisekedi is the main challenger to President Joseph Kabila in an election set for November.
Some of the gang that attacked the UDPS offices wore T-shirts of Mr Kabila's People's Party for Reconstruction and Democracy (PPRD), a witness told Reuters news agency.
DR Congo's Interior Minister Adolphe Lumanu Mulenda told a news conference the attacks may have been retribution for a similar attack on a PPRD building on Monday.
"Probably reacting to the attack on the inter-federal seat of the PPRD, some troublemakers have sacked the offices of the UDPS and RLTV television channel," he said.
Several people have been injured in various clashes over the past few days, says the BBC's Thomas Hubert in Kinshasa, adding that the capital remains tense.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-14810845

[Stan]

Hey M-A !

Sorry for the late replies herein as I just returned.

Now what was Tshisekedi thinking would happen considering his past performance as a Minister (3 weeks in 2 decades) and openly calling Mobutu's henchmen toads Say the least of his purported involvement in sending militants to disturb polls and destroying electoral banners !

Getting around to your document (my French is rusty as ever )

Regards, Stan

[M-A Lagrange]

Activist dies in Democratic Republic of Congo unrest
An opposition activist has been shot dead in Democratic Republic of Congo during clashes with police in Kinshasa.
The fighting came after the offices of the opposition Union for Democracy and Social Progress were set alight, and an opposition TV station was attacked.
UDPS activists said police had opened fire with live ammunition. The police have not yet commented on the claims.
UDPS candidate Etienne Tshisekedi is the main challenger to President Joseph Kabila in an election set for November.
Some of the gang that attacked the UDPS offices wore T-shirts of Mr Kabila's People's Party for Reconstruction and Democracy (PPRD), a witness told Reuters news agency.
DR Congo's Interior Minister Adolphe Lumanu Mulenda told a news conference the attacks may have been retribution for a similar attack on a PPRD building on Monday.
"Probably reacting to the attack on the inter-federal seat of the PPRD, some troublemakers have sacked the offices of the UDPS and RLTV television channel," he said.
Several people have been injured in various clashes over the past few days, says the BBC's Thomas Hubert in Kinshasa, adding that the capital remains tense.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-14810845

Apparently the US and EU ambassadors called for calm and elections in peace. But it would be worse reminding them that this time there is no EUFOR to stabilize Kinshasa and that 8 RPIMA is busy in Afghanistan.
So might be good to think further than just deploying some UNPOL in poling stations and crying at burial after things went wrong.
Especially as strongest opposition party (UDPS) refused to sign the good behavious code for election and is planing, since the first day, to play the street to contest any result coming from the pole different than a victory for them.

[Stan]

DR Congo bounty for fugitive Gedeon Kyungu Mutanga

Authorities in Democratic Republic of Congo have offered a reward of $100,000 (£63,000) for information leading to the capture of a top militia leader who broke out of jail.

Escapes and mutinies are common in DR Congo's prisons, analysts say, with the east largely lawless as rival militias battle for power.

[carl]

That is odd, $100,000 just for info. Of course even if somebody gave him up, I doubt they would ever see the money. Still it is odd. Gedeon didn't have much of a following if I remember. He mostly had a village that moved around and robbed.

[Stan]

Hey Carl !
Indeed odd as if someone in the DRC actually had 100K.

Gédéon, like many other militia commanders, is but a scape goat for the DRC govt. in order to act like they are cleaning up and get ahold of all that cash offered in exchange for war crimes accountability. He was later sentenced to death for acts of insurgency and terrorism ! What ?

Imagine the Zairois faces when they found out the HRW actually opposes capital punishment

Regards, Stan

That is odd, $100,000 just for info. Of course even if somebody gave him up, I doubt they would ever see the money. Still it is odd. Gedeon didn't have much of a following if I remember. He mostly had a village that moved around and robbed.

[M-A Lagrange]

Hey Carl,

Well, apparently it was Gedeon wife who was behind his escape. She was liberated few weeks before.
He is probably in his village now, lost in the bush.

I agree with Stan, Gedeon was a skip goat for government weapons and ammunitions dropping. But he went a little too far in the Triangle de la mort.

The funniest or sadest in that story is that's the third massive evasion since begining of the year in DRC.

M-A

[carl]

That is a woman I would like to meet...maybe.

[M-A Lagrange]

It took longer than expected but here is the last briefing up date from ICG in english on DRC:
The electoral process seen from the East.
http://www.crisisgroup.org/~/media/F...%20ENGLISH.pdf

Do not hesitate to shoot questions, remarques and comments.

M-A

[M-A Lagrange]

http://fsddc.wordpress.com/2011/11/2...alles-reelles/

The video was shot yesterday after noon at N'Djili airport when UDPS supporters (Opposition) tried to welcome their leader.

That very same day, the president Kabila was supposed to have a meeting in Stade des Martyres.
Kinshasa governor (pro government) banned all political rally for security reasons.

In fact their was nobody at Kabila meeting, all the population was waiting for UDPS leader.

MONUSCO has been extremely weak in providing good offices between political parties and with the government to allow the coming electoral process to be free, fair, credible and democratic.