Tuesday 23 December 2008
Thursday 18 December 2008
Congo Justice Report Launch
Women in the Democratic Republic of Congo who have been raped during war are being imprisoned for aborting their resulting pregnancies, and then being left to starve in overcrowded cells. This is just one of the findings of a recent report, ‘Justice, Impunity, and Sexual Violence in Eastern DRC’, which was put together by a group from the UK parliament called the APPG Great Lakes of Africa. At the launch of the report, Jonathan Mance, the British Law Lord who headed the team, said that the time he had spent in the Congo was a “quite shocking experience”. Having recently returned from the DRC myself, I can safely say that Mance’s assertion that “government is little more than a phantom” in the east of the country is mirrored in the west.By taking a close look at the DRC’s budget, however, Mance has put into concrete terms exactly how neglected the justice system is. The country budgets just $6 per prisoner per year, so starving behind bars is common, unless the prisoners can find a way to either bribe a guard, or break out. A lack of funds for new prisons means that overcrowding is endemic, and Mance highlighted one prison in Goma where 600 people were crammed into a facility built for 220. Many of those locked up are imprisoned without trial, due to the lack of effective legal proceedings, and while damage awards for military crimes totaling $1.5 million have been awarded, not a single penny has ever been paid. The entire budget for damage awards is just $5,000. Mance urged that the most important step was to “support, or rather, introduce the rule of law” as “justice is one of the pillars of a democratic state” and essential to “rid the DRC of the threat of random or targeted sexual violence.”
Also at the launch, Marie-Claire Faray, from Common Cause UK, a group which gives a platform to Congolese women, spoke passionately about the way that “war has shattered the lives of women”. She said that women in the Congo who have been the victims of sexual violence “live a non-existence, they are wreckages. Like vegetables, in so much sadness.” She highlighted the link between poor governance and the continuing violent attacks on women when she described them as “a consequence of a state which is not working” and asked “how can we implement protection for women when we are living in a state of anarchy?” “We have a human catastrophe happening before our eyes”, she said, and the only solution is that “power needs to go back to the people”.
Later, at an event to mark ten years of the APPG, former MP Oona King, who established the group, added her voice to those expressing their concern for the region, remarking wryly that while people in the UK might complain about public services, in the Congo there are “18 million people with no access to any services”. Both events demonstrated that while intervening in the internal politics of foreign countries is a difficult and controversial area, sometimes a different perspective can be essential in identifying problems and suggesting solutions.
This article was originally published by Ctrl.Alt.Shift
Wednesday 26 November 2008
Meet Nadine
Just over 2 weeks ago I was in the DR Congo with the rest of the Christian Aid gap year volunteers, visiting some of our partners there. We got to meet a lot of incredibly inspiring people, people who do an awful lot of good with limited resources. One of those partners we meet was Vorsi Congo, a community organization that works through the church to combat AIDS.
I meet Nadine when we visited Vorsi Congo. She is the pastor of a church, and also is a woman living with HIV.
They travel across the whole country, training religious leaders, who in turn get their religious communities talking about the issues, often for the first time. Rodger, the technical director, estimated that across the 11 provinces of the DRC, their message has reached about 8million people. They try to break down the stigma surrounding HIV using mediums such as song & drama.
“Before, if you were HIV positive, no-one wanted to sit in the same pew as you at church. Now people are more happy to sit with them & even take communion with them.”
[Rodger]
I meet Nadine when we visited Vorsi Congo. She is the pastor of a church, and also is a woman living with HIV.
At one point as she shared her story with us, she said, “If I hadn’t have worked with Vorsi Congo, I’d be buried.” It really is a matter of life and death for people. The level of stigma surrounding HIV is still massive, and though Nadine is doing well, there are many people who have been shunned by their families and their churches when they find out they are HIV+.
We use this phrase a lot at Christian Aid, about ‘living positively with HIV’, and it’s only after meeting Nadine that I’m starting to understand what that really means. Nadine doesn’t sit around feeling sorry for herself, but instead she’s throwing herself into being a part of the solution. She’s using her story and her position in the church to help educate people.
To find out more about the issues surrounding HIV/AIDS, visit our website here.
To support our DR Congo crisis appeal , click here.
Wednesday 19 November 2008
A personal privilege...
I was speaking about DRC at the Queen's University International Prayer Meeting yesterday; presenting stories from our trip along with some prayer points. It was great to get to pray with these students about the trip in general, but the prayer of one of the girls really stood out:
"Lord, I thank you that we can pray not only for the Congo as a whole, but also for these individual people: their lives, their hopes and fears."
This just made me realise that, although it is a privilege to have even been to the Congo and seen a glimpse of the country and its culture, the real privilege is that we got to meet such amazing people and talk to them about things that mattered to them. These people aren't just "people from the Congo" or even "people from 'Partner X' in Kinshasa". They are Nana from Project Photo, who told us about the stigma surrounding HIV in her family; Santa from the university in Kinshasa who confided in us that she can't trust her male lecturers; Neil who is part of the VORSI Congo choir and spoke to us about their work. They are real people. And I think its important for us to remember this as well, as we go out and tell their stories - to remember that they aren't just a name in our notebook or a face in a photograph.
How privileged we are to have met them! Though we can speak of the Congo as one whole, massive country, its these individual lives that make it, and that made our trip. I hope I never forget them.
"Lord, I thank you that we can pray not only for the Congo as a whole, but also for these individual people: their lives, their hopes and fears."
This just made me realise that, although it is a privilege to have even been to the Congo and seen a glimpse of the country and its culture, the real privilege is that we got to meet such amazing people and talk to them about things that mattered to them. These people aren't just "people from the Congo" or even "people from 'Partner X' in Kinshasa". They are Nana from Project Photo, who told us about the stigma surrounding HIV in her family; Santa from the university in Kinshasa who confided in us that she can't trust her male lecturers; Neil who is part of the VORSI Congo choir and spoke to us about their work. They are real people. And I think its important for us to remember this as well, as we go out and tell their stories - to remember that they aren't just a name in our notebook or a face in a photograph.
How privileged we are to have met them! Though we can speak of the Congo as one whole, massive country, its these individual lives that make it, and that made our trip. I hope I never forget them.
Sunday 16 November 2008
West vs East
I recieved my first injection of western culture when we landed in Heathrow...things were orderly, people swanning around in their smart suits, clean toilets e.t.c. but just like an injection, I felt the pain when we arrived. The pain of seeing the two extremes...the western developed world vs the Eastern developing world. I felt like I had just experienced two worlds in the space of 24 hours. Arriving into a world where our priorities all seem upside down, a time when buying is at it's peak at Christmas. The reverse culture shock was alot worse than the culture shock I experienced when I first landed in Kinshasa.
I have been back in the UK for a week now and I still don't feel that I have quite accepted the culture we live in. But I don't think that is a bad thing. I don't want to find myself becoming so comfortable in it that I forget about the people we met in the DRC. But I reassure myself that these people have had such a deep impact on me, that this won't be possible. Flicking on my TV to see the DRC as a main headline just fuelled my passion even further to get out and start yelling the message of desperation but yet hope of the DRC to the UK.
I keep coming back to the phrase one of the students said to us when we were out there 'we are living for a better tomorrow', and I want to have my role in making it a better tommorrow for them.
I have been back in the UK for a week now and I still don't feel that I have quite accepted the culture we live in. But I don't think that is a bad thing. I don't want to find myself becoming so comfortable in it that I forget about the people we met in the DRC. But I reassure myself that these people have had such a deep impact on me, that this won't be possible. Flicking on my TV to see the DRC as a main headline just fuelled my passion even further to get out and start yelling the message of desperation but yet hope of the DRC to the UK.
I keep coming back to the phrase one of the students said to us when we were out there 'we are living for a better tomorrow', and I want to have my role in making it a better tommorrow for them.
Thursday 13 November 2008
Heavenly beings and neon lights
Life changing I was told and I didn’t know what to make of that. I was almost waiting for the life changing moment I had been told about. I got off the plane, nope my life felt pretty much the same, I got in the minibus still having the same life I did a few moments ago and so it went on. In fact it went on so long I was starting to think I may have missed the life changing moment and what a bummer that would have been. I had been waiting literally my whole life for this moment, and then I go and miss it. I started to get frustrated. These life changing moments should be obvious, I thought, there should be an angel present just before it happens holding a flashing sign saying ‘your life changing moment is just about to occur, please prepare yourself’, just so people don’t miss these moments. I had two weeks in the DRC and didn’t have my angel flashing sign moment. Then I came home. Still no angel and no flashing sign, but I’ve realised life isn’t like that (at least not for me). We’ve posted on this blog about what we did, who we visited and what we saw while in the DRC and it was incredible, sometimes shocking but there isn’t one life changing moment for me to pick out. There were days I laughed with people and days I cried with people and the variety in the trip was brilliant. Two weeks isn’t a massive amount of time but we filled it with an amazing amount of stuff. Now I’m back in the UK it’s all starting to sink in, or perhaps a better way of putting that would be to say now I’m not in the DRC I’m starting to realise how incredible the two weeks were and how much it has given me to think about. It will take a while for me to work out the impact of the trip on me and maybe a while longer before I can communicate that properly but it’s good to get started on that process. I feel passionate about the DRC, the Congolese people and the work Christian Aid does there. I would encourage everyone reading this to not limit their knowledge of the country to what’s on this blog but to take this as a starting point to discover and understand more about what makes the DRC and its people so incredible. Maybe I’m not the best person to judge if the trip has changed me as a person, others could probably judge it better. I don’t think I ever will get my angel and the flashing sign but that doesn’t mean my life hasn’t changed, it’s just more subtle than heavenly beings and neon lights, and I rather like the fact that it is.
Saturday 8 November 2008
Paradise found?
As I sit here on a cold morning in a country cottage in the heart of middle England, it is surreal to know that 36 hours ago I was in the Kinshasa, the bustling capital city of the country which is dominating our headlines with images of war and an ever growing refugee crisis. My mind is full of contrasting images; lush tropical rain Forrest and the polluted congested roads of Kinshasa, my luxurious home and the thousands of abandoned villages.
The last two weeks, without any exaggeration have probably been the most informative and life changing two weeks of my adult life so far. I could write for hours on exactly what we did but I'd like to say share a few thoughts.
I think that I have learnt what 'development' as a concept away from its theoretical explanation, looks like in reality. Development is not pouring food aid into a country and sticking a plaster over its wounds. It is not building a school for a rural village, who lets face are generally more capable of construction. Whilst these are sometimes necessary, real development needs to come from the country itself. Christian Aid are always talking about 'partnership', which although I always thought sounded like a nice idea, I am ashamed to say was slightly dubious about. However, I have seen first hand how it is investing in 'partnerships' with local people who know what they need and how to do it which can develop communities and change lives. In our short visit to the DRC, we saw time and time again, how just a small amount of money from Christian Aid could provide the resources for a community to start training people in a new skills which would the be multiplied when they taught other. Our partner PDI, focus on training people in more efficient and sustainable ways of farming. They have set up some training centres where people can come on courses ranging from just one day to a couple of months, they then go back to their communities and train others. Similarly, in the area of HIV, our partner Vorsi Congo, focuses on training religious leaders on HIV awareness to not only combat the spreading of the virus but also the huge stigma attached to it. They realise that by training the local church leader or Imam, they can reach whole communities because of the importance of religion in society. They estimate that through the country they have educated literally millions of people through this programme. It is still a drop in the ocean but it is far more effective than a government sponsored pamphlet that no-one respects let alone no-one can read or. May be this is true meaning of Christian Aids strap line, 'You add. We multiply.'
I also understood the importance of the accountable governance work which is being done. We visited an organisation called RECIC which helps educate people on their rights and responsibilities as a citizen and to work together as communities to hold the authorities to account. We don't get party political, but we do support politics. As long as people are intimidated by a policeman with a gun demanded money for a fine which the population is completely ignorant of then corruption will never cease. And if corruption doesn't cease the country will never be able to function. It was so exciting to visit one of the groups that RECIC has been supporting, we could see how their community had really been changed by standing up to the authorities and demanding their rights.
And yet, despite all this success and sense of hope, underlying it lies the reality that the projects we saw are not going to change the country whilst there is still war. Organisations like Christian Aid cannot bring peace but simply aid those who are suffering in the mean time. But when peace eventually comes, which I believe it will, hopefully there will be a society which is strong enough to develop and be the paradise it was made to be.
The last two weeks, without any exaggeration have probably been the most informative and life changing two weeks of my adult life so far. I could write for hours on exactly what we did but I'd like to say share a few thoughts.
I think that I have learnt what 'development' as a concept away from its theoretical explanation, looks like in reality. Development is not pouring food aid into a country and sticking a plaster over its wounds. It is not building a school for a rural village, who lets face are generally more capable of construction. Whilst these are sometimes necessary, real development needs to come from the country itself. Christian Aid are always talking about 'partnership', which although I always thought sounded like a nice idea, I am ashamed to say was slightly dubious about. However, I have seen first hand how it is investing in 'partnerships' with local people who know what they need and how to do it which can develop communities and change lives. In our short visit to the DRC, we saw time and time again, how just a small amount of money from Christian Aid could provide the resources for a community to start training people in a new skills which would the be multiplied when they taught other. Our partner PDI, focus on training people in more efficient and sustainable ways of farming. They have set up some training centres where people can come on courses ranging from just one day to a couple of months, they then go back to their communities and train others. Similarly, in the area of HIV, our partner Vorsi Congo, focuses on training religious leaders on HIV awareness to not only combat the spreading of the virus but also the huge stigma attached to it. They realise that by training the local church leader or Imam, they can reach whole communities because of the importance of religion in society. They estimate that through the country they have educated literally millions of people through this programme. It is still a drop in the ocean but it is far more effective than a government sponsored pamphlet that no-one respects let alone no-one can read or. May be this is true meaning of Christian Aids strap line, 'You add. We multiply.'
I also understood the importance of the accountable governance work which is being done. We visited an organisation called RECIC which helps educate people on their rights and responsibilities as a citizen and to work together as communities to hold the authorities to account. We don't get party political, but we do support politics. As long as people are intimidated by a policeman with a gun demanded money for a fine which the population is completely ignorant of then corruption will never cease. And if corruption doesn't cease the country will never be able to function. It was so exciting to visit one of the groups that RECIC has been supporting, we could see how their community had really been changed by standing up to the authorities and demanding their rights.
And yet, despite all this success and sense of hope, underlying it lies the reality that the projects we saw are not going to change the country whilst there is still war. Organisations like Christian Aid cannot bring peace but simply aid those who are suffering in the mean time. But when peace eventually comes, which I believe it will, hopefully there will be a society which is strong enough to develop and be the paradise it was made to be.
Thursday 6 November 2008
Au revoir, DRC...
Well, not quite yet. Right now we're still all in the office, but we have already been to Air France and checked in for our flight tonight (and left our bags there, so they have to get to the airport, then to Paris and on to London... place your bets...)
We're doing a photo exhibition this afternoon for around 70 guests (including possibly the British Ambassador) and have each been asked to choose2 photos to display. However, although we have each chosen 2 photos that mean something to us individually, weve just been looking through all the pictures for it and every single one brings back memories. It really has ben unforgettable!
That's all for now - I should let someone else get on the computer! May post tomorrow when I'm back in Norn Iron!
Rach x
We're doing a photo exhibition this afternoon for around 70 guests (including possibly the British Ambassador) and have each been asked to choose2 photos to display. However, although we have each chosen 2 photos that mean something to us individually, weve just been looking through all the pictures for it and every single one brings back memories. It really has ben unforgettable!
That's all for now - I should let someone else get on the computer! May post tomorrow when I'm back in Norn Iron!
Rach x
Friday 31 October 2008
The Chief, The Chicken And The Challenge!
Talking dogs, women that morph into insects and phallic roots that taste like feet are a staple it seems, of a traditional Congolese evening. I am not talking about the witchcraft and mystery that so many westerner’s associate with the ‘Dark Continent’ but a jovial experience of sharing stories, songs, traditional food and good company even through a common language barrier we now found ourselves in.
It was hard therefore, as I sat grinning with the chief or ‘Papa’ of ‘Kinkosi’ under a star littered sky and discussed the movements of the smoke in the wind from our glowing fire with much gesticulation and repetition, not to attach a friendly face to every one of the thousands of people fleeing their homes and livelihoods a thousand miles away on the other side of the country that we had learned of less than one hour ago.
Beer in hand and legs outstretched the words “thousands fleeing their homes” hung upon my conscience. I stared up at the night’s sky and tried to get my head around the many miles of political legislation and moral conflicts that needed tackling before bringing about real change in this war torn state.
Before leaving from London a leading manager for Christian Aid posed the question “Is the two week trip essential to your Gap year experience?” He asked this question in relation to the responsibility that Christian Aid has to reduce its carbon emissions for the year, not an invalid question at all but not one that I am going to answer here.
Congo needs help. I didn’t know quite how much up until now. If carbon was a currency I may have paid over the odds but the rewards will prove to outweigh the price as more and more people learn of the modest lifestyles that most Congolese people aspire for but so many are denied.
Tonight over ten thousand people in the DRC are huddled together in fear not knowing what their future holds. Two hours flight to the west I will be in a heavily secure compound thinking about the hospitality and love that these people have shown me. I think the gap year has started.
Jim
It was hard therefore, as I sat grinning with the chief or ‘Papa’ of ‘Kinkosi’ under a star littered sky and discussed the movements of the smoke in the wind from our glowing fire with much gesticulation and repetition, not to attach a friendly face to every one of the thousands of people fleeing their homes and livelihoods a thousand miles away on the other side of the country that we had learned of less than one hour ago.
Beer in hand and legs outstretched the words “thousands fleeing their homes” hung upon my conscience. I stared up at the night’s sky and tried to get my head around the many miles of political legislation and moral conflicts that needed tackling before bringing about real change in this war torn state.
Before leaving from London a leading manager for Christian Aid posed the question “Is the two week trip essential to your Gap year experience?” He asked this question in relation to the responsibility that Christian Aid has to reduce its carbon emissions for the year, not an invalid question at all but not one that I am going to answer here.
Congo needs help. I didn’t know quite how much up until now. If carbon was a currency I may have paid over the odds but the rewards will prove to outweigh the price as more and more people learn of the modest lifestyles that most Congolese people aspire for but so many are denied.
Tonight over ten thousand people in the DRC are huddled together in fear not knowing what their future holds. Two hours flight to the west I will be in a heavily secure compound thinking about the hospitality and love that these people have shown me. I think the gap year has started.
Jim
Welcome to the Jungle
Thats what those tribal leaders will be saying to us come Sunday night, because thats where we're going.
I've had 5 or so days in Congo's version of the big smoke, the capital city, Kinchasa has near enough the same population as London, and to be honest if you took out all the factors that make life difficult here I'd say the people are not a million miles from the ones that we meet on a daily basis in england.
I'm not going to dwell on that "theyre just like us" vibe, and in many ways i would say we could learn a lot from them, resilliance, togetherness and warmth are all values that we could benefit from learning a few of these traits, but the point is when you get past all that they still use mobile phones, watch TV and chase girls.
The other day i was digging shit out of an open sewer, well i was present, i avoided the digging using the excuse of wanting to talk to the locals, but i was present for the digging. Shovelling shit is a shit job but in England if you're a plumber it pays damn well, over here though people are doing it for their community, so when the floods come they dont have shit floating around the streets. It's a grim image but its also a grim reality that I experienced. I had boots on and I also had a mask, but there were school kids just running around like it was a playground it didnt phase them.
You might think these people I'm talking about would be uneducated helpless people but one thing I've noticed is theres such a high University rate in the Congo these kids are educated well, theres just no hope of getting a job when you graduate.
im in a rush, theres gunfire an stuff outside but stay locked on and look out for the next peice.... peace.
Ben
I've had 5 or so days in Congo's version of the big smoke, the capital city, Kinchasa has near enough the same population as London, and to be honest if you took out all the factors that make life difficult here I'd say the people are not a million miles from the ones that we meet on a daily basis in england.
I'm not going to dwell on that "theyre just like us" vibe, and in many ways i would say we could learn a lot from them, resilliance, togetherness and warmth are all values that we could benefit from learning a few of these traits, but the point is when you get past all that they still use mobile phones, watch TV and chase girls.
The other day i was digging shit out of an open sewer, well i was present, i avoided the digging using the excuse of wanting to talk to the locals, but i was present for the digging. Shovelling shit is a shit job but in England if you're a plumber it pays damn well, over here though people are doing it for their community, so when the floods come they dont have shit floating around the streets. It's a grim image but its also a grim reality that I experienced. I had boots on and I also had a mask, but there were school kids just running around like it was a playground it didnt phase them.
You might think these people I'm talking about would be uneducated helpless people but one thing I've noticed is theres such a high University rate in the Congo these kids are educated well, theres just no hope of getting a job when you graduate.
im in a rush, theres gunfire an stuff outside but stay locked on and look out for the next peice.... peace.
Ben
From rags to riches
Seven days, 33 degree heat, 4 villages, landslides, invasive geckos and consistent rude awakenings = 1 trip to remember. Bear in mind we are only half way through this experience, I have had a pretty substantial taste of the Congo. It's the people, the culture and their mentality that has opened my eyes, and in more ways than one.
On first glance, it is hard to see kids bare foot and walking 6km to school, mothers strapping their babies on back selling plantain attached to their heads, countless young men sitting on the side of roads contemplating over what to do next...poverty and strife comes in many forms...
But please let’s not be patronising.
Two nights ago the tiny village of Nkandu welcomes us with tradish Congolese food, dancing, fables around a fireplace with shooting stars in the sky...call me soppy, but it was pretty freakin great. Such sentiments and warmth has been recurring aspects in Congo. The majority has infectious smiles; they love their country, their people, those who want it work hard, they don't complain, they have astounding faith and welcome us outsiders with open arms and a plate of foo foo.
The package looks damaged, but the inside is golden.
I wouldn’t even dare look down on these people, as some evoke such happiness and belief than seems too much of an effort back home. Do I envy their aura? I guess I do a little. Do they envy my smoking, drinking, clubbing lifestyle? It seems not so much.
Of course this is just my perception, but the Congolese folk have humbled my preconceptions of being another Westerner with all the right answers. We obviously have a lot to learn too.
As Felix, our amazing Congolese translator said:
“In your eyes of course we look poor. But in our hearts we are richer than you can imagine.”
Dwain Lucktung
On first glance, it is hard to see kids bare foot and walking 6km to school, mothers strapping their babies on back selling plantain attached to their heads, countless young men sitting on the side of roads contemplating over what to do next...poverty and strife comes in many forms...
But please let’s not be patronising.
Two nights ago the tiny village of Nkandu welcomes us with tradish Congolese food, dancing, fables around a fireplace with shooting stars in the sky...call me soppy, but it was pretty freakin great. Such sentiments and warmth has been recurring aspects in Congo. The majority has infectious smiles; they love their country, their people, those who want it work hard, they don't complain, they have astounding faith and welcome us outsiders with open arms and a plate of foo foo.
The package looks damaged, but the inside is golden.
I wouldn’t even dare look down on these people, as some evoke such happiness and belief than seems too much of an effort back home. Do I envy their aura? I guess I do a little. Do they envy my smoking, drinking, clubbing lifestyle? It seems not so much.
Of course this is just my perception, but the Congolese folk have humbled my preconceptions of being another Westerner with all the right answers. We obviously have a lot to learn too.
As Felix, our amazing Congolese translator said:
“In your eyes of course we look poor. But in our hearts we are richer than you can imagine.”
Dwain Lucktung
Words and just one or two sentences...
It feels a little hot and a little too hard to put together sentences about this intense week so far! As the week has gone on I've written down a 3 words that have summed up my day. So, since most people have covered the ins and outs I'm just gonna give you a snipit of my thoughts of what we have been up to - hopefully this can sum up the experience so far and give you a little insight into how this trip so far has been for me...
Exciting, smelly, eye-opening, awe inspriring, close to home, hard to get my head around, belly ache laughs, beautiful, struggle, very-Christian-Aid!, unexpected, long anticipated, tiring, long chats, speechless, struggle, hope, joy, cold air con, mind boggling supermarket.
One thing that I can get my head around is how much the ups and downs of this trip have been so much more digestable as we've experienced them together. Lets just hope that we do this real justice on our return. I've got a pretty good feeling we will...
Hannah Mah
Exciting, smelly, eye-opening, awe inspriring, close to home, hard to get my head around, belly ache laughs, beautiful, struggle, very-Christian-Aid!, unexpected, long anticipated, tiring, long chats, speechless, struggle, hope, joy, cold air con, mind boggling supermarket.
One thing that I can get my head around is how much the ups and downs of this trip have been so much more digestable as we've experienced them together. Lets just hope that we do this real justice on our return. I've got a pretty good feeling we will...
Hannah Mah
No peace, No development
It's ironic to think I am writing this blog entry sat in the safety of the Christian Aid office in an air conditioned room in the relatively stable capital of Kinshasa, when I know that 1000 miles away there is conflict and unrest in the town of Goma in the East of the country. I guess hearing about the situation worsening over the past few days has focused my mind on the question of 'How can the DRC develop further without there being total peace?'
Over the last four days, we have visited a number of Christian Aid's partners, including Humanitarian Nouvelle, which works with street children to restore family relationships with the aim of reuniting these children with their familys; RECIC, which focuses alot on accountable governance and community action projects, three HIV projects; and CONAFED, which focuses on gender equality.
I have learnt so much from these development projects including what does 'development' actually mean? I have met so many amazing Congolese people who have really inspired me. This trip so far has hugely fuelled my passion for development work. I burn with anger to see people living in conditions like these. I have been to other developing countries where there has been more a divide between the rich and poor, but what has really struck me in the DRC is that whereever you look, there is a great need.
I could go on and on about the different things I've learnt, but what has struck me recently with the news of the situation in Goma, and has been stressed by so many of the Congolese people I have met is that to have development, you firstly need peace. Pedi (a student from the University) said 'without peace, we cannot stand up and without development in the DRC, Africa won't stand up, we need peace.' He also said 'there is a social war happening in the East of our country, but there is also the economic war of our country. You can tell your government to give peace to our country.' This need for peace was also stressed by Jacques, the head of the Christian Aid office here in DRC when he said 'for development, we need peace, which means we need democracy.'
Over the last four days, we have visited a number of Christian Aid's partners, including Humanitarian Nouvelle, which works with street children to restore family relationships with the aim of reuniting these children with their familys; RECIC, which focuses alot on accountable governance and community action projects, three HIV projects; and CONAFED, which focuses on gender equality.
I have learnt so much from these development projects including what does 'development' actually mean? I have met so many amazing Congolese people who have really inspired me. This trip so far has hugely fuelled my passion for development work. I burn with anger to see people living in conditions like these. I have been to other developing countries where there has been more a divide between the rich and poor, but what has really struck me in the DRC is that whereever you look, there is a great need.
I could go on and on about the different things I've learnt, but what has struck me recently with the news of the situation in Goma, and has been stressed by so many of the Congolese people I have met is that to have development, you firstly need peace. Pedi (a student from the University) said 'without peace, we cannot stand up and without development in the DRC, Africa won't stand up, we need peace.' He also said 'there is a social war happening in the East of our country, but there is also the economic war of our country. You can tell your government to give peace to our country.' This need for peace was also stressed by Jacques, the head of the Christian Aid office here in DRC when he said 'for development, we need peace, which means we need democracy.'
Questions & Answers
As I type from the office in Kinshasa this morning, I´ve been reflecting on the past few days spent in Bas Congo. I´m a pretty adaptable person, which is perhaps one of the reasons I adore traveling so much, and yet sometimes by its very nature that works against me. We sat around the campfire in the jungle just two nights ago, amazed by the intensity and the vast expanse of sky and stars above us. I felt so at home in that situation, so comfortable in it; then it dawns upon me... I´m in the middle of the Congolese jungle! Not something that I can say everyday.
It´s been an incredible experience so far; yet one fraught with personal tensions. I find myself looking around at some of the sights and feeling so superior; feeling like I know better, that the farmers should grow two fields instead of one, have two cows instead of one, etc. I´m having my own perceptions challenged again as to how much we in the west impose consumerism and greed upon the African nations. Is bigger always better?
One of the other things I´m finding is that this trip is a lesson in learning to ask the right questions. Often we find ourselves asking the same question 3 or 4 times, with slightly different phrasing, to get the answer to the question we really wanted to ask. A part of that is issues with translation, but I also wonder if it is somehow indicitave of the way in which we ´waste´words. We don´t spend much time ensuring that our words convey meaning; we speak without thinking. How much trouble has our carelessness with words got us into at school, at work, etc?
Perhaps the real question is, how much is enough?
It´s been an incredible experience so far; yet one fraught with personal tensions. I find myself looking around at some of the sights and feeling so superior; feeling like I know better, that the farmers should grow two fields instead of one, have two cows instead of one, etc. I´m having my own perceptions challenged again as to how much we in the west impose consumerism and greed upon the African nations. Is bigger always better?
One of the other things I´m finding is that this trip is a lesson in learning to ask the right questions. Often we find ourselves asking the same question 3 or 4 times, with slightly different phrasing, to get the answer to the question we really wanted to ask. A part of that is issues with translation, but I also wonder if it is somehow indicitave of the way in which we ´waste´words. We don´t spend much time ensuring that our words convey meaning; we speak without thinking. How much trouble has our carelessness with words got us into at school, at work, etc?
Perhaps the real question is, how much is enough?
Anyone know what a genogramme is?
Yesterday we visited Humanite Nouvelle - a relatively small organisation working with street children. They mainly work with boys living on the street - often as a result of breakdown in the family, but they also work with some girls (identified by the church as being extremely vulnerable to prostitution). The girls are given training in sewing so that they can set themselves up in business. We all had shirts made (see photo) and now look like an African barbershop quartet!).
The work with the boys is painstakingly slow - they are often hardened by being on the streets for a long time, or from being abused by their family (sometimes because they're accused of being possessed). Emile, the programme manager for HUNO, is an inspirational man (see man crouching in photo) who works with each boy over several days drawing a family tree (genogramme) in order to establish who he should approach to try to find the boy a family member to live with. Over the last few months Emile has reconciled 4 families. Not a huge number I know - but priceless.
Daniel
Thursday 30 October 2008
Kosy in Kinkosi
I had finally, joyfully slipped into a lovely dream where the mosquito buzzing in my ear had been transformed by some somnambulistic sleight of hand into the comforting hum of an air conditioning unit. As if by magic I had immediately forgotten where I actually was, 14 of us stuffed end to end in a tiny hut in the middle of the rural village of Kinkosi. We had, in all fairness, stayed up past our bedtimes the night before, villagers and visitors huddled round a fire as we exchanged stories and songs while the sun bled into the horizon and the stars shone above us with an unfamiliar clarity. There had been highs (a beautiful call and response worship hymn sung in the native Lingala), lows (our inexplicable decision to respond with the Grease Megamix) and laughter as people took turns to entertain the group. And there I was performing ‘Jaberwocky’ to a bunch of village children who had no idea what in God’s name was going on as I stomped around the fire, face pulled back into a gurning death mask of horror, roaring surrealist verse into the night sky.
But that had been then, and now, as I was blissfully carried away on a tide of sleepy nothingness, I heard a voice cut through the fug …
“We need to get out of here. Now!”
And we were done with the sleeping. In the next few frantic minutes it became immediately clear that a storm was coming, one of sufficient intensity to make the roads out of the village impassable if we didn’t leave in the next five minutes. Half-asleep, half-understanding we dressed, threw our stuff into our bags and ran for the truck, the rain beginning to thunder down around us as we jammed into every available space on the two tiny 4x4s. Twenty minutes of aggressive driving later, the soggy landscape flying past our window in smudges of reds and green, we were on tarmac and safe, our little convoy catching its breath and laughing at our little adventure.
And as we clapped each other on the back and congratulated ourselves on our ‘lucky' escape, on the other side of the country, tides turned, forces fell and people lost their lives. Thousands alone and displaced, facing an uncertain future and the every present threat of more violence to come.
We play at being travellers and story tellers and sometimes we get caught up in our own fictions.
Real life is a scarier, more unpredictable place.
Chris.
Injustice
So… we’ve been here for 5 days so far and I love it! This is the first time we’ve been able to access the internet but to be honest, it really hasn’t mattered. Being cut off from the outside world is a pretty accurate picture of life here in the DRC. For the last couple of days we’ve been mainly visiting agricultural projects in Bas Congo (the region South of Kinshasa) seeing how local people are being helped by horticultural education to improve crop efficiency and how cows and ploughs have helped whole communities really improve their lives. This sounds so cliquéd but I have been astounded by how the small things like 4 day agricultural training programmes are really helping the Congolese people to learn about and effectively be able to put into place techniques which we have known about for years.
However, despite poverty in which they are clearly living I am finding it so difficult to see these smiling, friendly and hugely hospitable people as impoverished purely because their joy and laughter are shining through. We have been made to feel so welcome by every person we have met and every village we have driven through. The Congolese people are incredible and I feel so undeserving of their love for it is us in the West who are keeping these people poor. It is such an injustice that we will be flying back in a week to our comfortable homes, our full fridges and our lives full of variety and choice whilst the people we have seen will continue to live from hand to mouth for the foreseeable future. It is just so unfair that we have so much and they have so little and I can’t wait to get back home and start telling people about the DRC and about what we can do to help these wonderful people.
However, despite poverty in which they are clearly living I am finding it so difficult to see these smiling, friendly and hugely hospitable people as impoverished purely because their joy and laughter are shining through. We have been made to feel so welcome by every person we have met and every village we have driven through. The Congolese people are incredible and I feel so undeserving of their love for it is us in the West who are keeping these people poor. It is such an injustice that we will be flying back in a week to our comfortable homes, our full fridges and our lives full of variety and choice whilst the people we have seen will continue to live from hand to mouth for the foreseeable future. It is just so unfair that we have so much and they have so little and I can’t wait to get back home and start telling people about the DRC and about what we can do to help these wonderful people.
Où est la piscine?
I thought it might be good to let you know how this first experience is going for me. I’m not going to type much because my patience with the French keyboard is already wearing thin. It’s very strange being here, in a good way. I’m glad to be here with all these other people who can help me try and make sense of what’s going on and people who can tell me what’s being said; my GCSE French is only getting me so far. There are only so many times you can have a conversation asking directions to the swimming pool without it becoming old or just plain rude. It doesn’t seem like I’m here and I don’t know if it ever will hit me but I’m trying to learn as much as possible and make sure I can do some good work back in the UK. When I asked one of the translators what message she would like me to tell people back in the UK she said, “tell them everything you have seen, and what’s in your heart”, in just over a week I’ll be trying to do that. I feel a connection to this place already and the people, there’s so much to tell to people and it’s got nothing to do with how to find the closest swimming pool.
Campfires and evacuations...
Thought I would follow Bens lead and sum up the past day in 2 words... Last night the group who had spent the past few days in Bas Congo (to the west of Kinshasa) stayed in the tiny vilage of Kikosi, where we had what was quite possibly the most fun and memorable night ever - sitting round a canpfire with the villagers and village chief, exchanging traditional stories (our offering: the 3 little pigs) and songs (our offerings ranging from traditional hymns to Summer Nights from Grease), watching a lightning storm in the distance and staring at the stars... and the cockroaches. Sorry to shatter the romantic imagery there... there werent that many of them though, and I saw a shooting star so it was all worth it. I'm far too easily awed by things like that... After finally going to bed and getting to sleep - not easy when theres 4 of you in a bed and another 10 on the floor - we were woken at 6am by our translator, Betty, telling us the rain was coming and we had to get out before the roads became impassible. Very proud of us all for getting out in about 4 minutes, though pity the ones who had to sit in the open back of the truck...
So anyway; we're currently in the Christian Aid office in the centre of Kinshasa, looking forward to catching up with the othre half of the team tonight and doing some sightseeing over the weekend - no more pqrtners to visit til Monday when (I think) we're going to see Humqnite nouvelle, who I've been looking forward to seeing. Will post more when I can, but right now I should let someone else on the computer...
Rach :)
PS - Apologies for any typing errors - the keyboqrd is a different layout and its confusing me!
So anyway; we're currently in the Christian Aid office in the centre of Kinshasa, looking forward to catching up with the othre half of the team tonight and doing some sightseeing over the weekend - no more pqrtners to visit til Monday when (I think) we're going to see Humqnite nouvelle, who I've been looking forward to seeing. Will post more when I can, but right now I should let someone else on the computer...
Rach :)
PS - Apologies for any typing errors - the keyboqrd is a different layout and its confusing me!
Tuesday 28 October 2008
digging holes and shaking hands...
...thats basically what yesterday consisted of for me,
yesterday was my first experience of being in a developing country, and first hand its no surprise when it hits you harder than if it were on a tv screen.
We as a group were helping to dig a massive hole in preperation for the yearly floods that usually wipes out the village that we were visiting, now if that was my village i would be pissed off, but these people just get on with it which is impressive in itself.
I was also surprised at how well recepted we were, the locals all wanted to talk to us and it was smiles and handshakes all the way....
ben
The Myth of Sisyphus
In Greek mythology, Sisyphus was a man doomed to spend eternity rolling a boulder up a hill, at which point it would roll down again, and he would have to start all over again. Camus thought Sisyphus personified the absurd condition.Yesterday a few of us visited a community project which is digging holes alongside the only road which leads to the town of Kindele. The holes form a drainage system, while the dirt they dig up is used for sandbags which shore up the road itself. All of the workers are unpaid volunteers from the town, who work in shifts when they can because they rely on the road, and because the town is downhill from the road, so the drainage systems are also essential to try and reduce the threat to their houses, schools and hospitals. The project is doing essential work, and at first glance seemed to have the potential to solve the problem and protect the town.
However, Freddie, who established the project, explained that they do the same job every year. Whenever the rainy season comes, which is from October to May, it washes away what they have done, and they must start all over again. Each year buildings and lives are lost, but there is no state support, even for the rebuilding of schools or hospitals, like the one which was destroyed in last year's rains. Freddie told me that "Hope is permitted", but not for now, only for the future. He said they need to construct a solid canal and to properly repair the road, but they cannot afford to do this themselves and the state has no concern with the road to Kindele, so they have no choice but to keep digging and to remain in an absurd condition.
First impressions in Kinshasa
Having an amazing if somewhat sureal experience in the DRC. The groups we´ve spoken to so far have such big visions for the future of the country but can still continue working and perservering even when they´re not seeing much in the way of progess. I can´t imagine how they avoid just getting totally discouraged and cynical. Small victories seem to make all the difference.
Coming from the UK where you find any information you want in under 5mins on the internet, the difficulties of comunication here are really striking. There are plenty of cyber cafes around the capital at least but it still seems to be a big obstacle. Even when free services like HIV drugs are theoretically available people often don´t know they have a right to it. I get the impression people don´t expect the government to do anything for them.
It´s only been a few days and I´m really looking forward to seeing more aspects of the place. I al pretty glad I haven´t seen too many beasties though, thats one part of Congo I´d rather skip.
Coming from the UK where you find any information you want in under 5mins on the internet, the difficulties of comunication here are really striking. There are plenty of cyber cafes around the capital at least but it still seems to be a big obstacle. Even when free services like HIV drugs are theoretically available people often don´t know they have a right to it. I get the impression people don´t expect the government to do anything for them.
It´s only been a few days and I´m really looking forward to seeing more aspects of the place. I al pretty glad I haven´t seen too many beasties though, thats one part of Congo I´d rather skip.
Monday 27 October 2008
First post from DRC
Well - it's late afternoon on Monday and we've been in Kinshasa for almost 48 hours. Arriving at the airport was, for some of us, a baptism of fire - forms being demanded (sometimes with accompanying money), queues being 'formed', people being helpful and some others being 'helpful' and general mayhem. This was replicated in the baggage hall which became a free for all, and they mayhem continued with all the passengers from our flight being squeezed through a single narrow door to leave the airport (this was made all the more difficult because of the people trying to come in through the same door and the policemen standing right in front of the door!
The place we're staying is much nicer than I had anticipâted and we had a tasty carb-rich dinner.
Sunday morning we split into three groups for church and then spent the afternoon in the incongruous surroundings of an expat French club (complete with swimming pool). As with most developing countries the contrasts strike home - the streets of Kinshasa bear no resemblance to the relative luxury of the French club; and the brand new red HYummer parked in the church carpark on Sunday morning is a world apart from the prematurely aged cars and other vehicles on the roads. It's not unusul to see cars with their windscreen completely smashed but still driving - not sure they can see a thing, but then I'm not sure that makes much difference.
There's obviously much more to say - but that's for another time.
Daniel
The place we're staying is much nicer than I had anticipâted and we had a tasty carb-rich dinner.
Sunday morning we split into three groups for church and then spent the afternoon in the incongruous surroundings of an expat French club (complete with swimming pool). As with most developing countries the contrasts strike home - the streets of Kinshasa bear no resemblance to the relative luxury of the French club; and the brand new red HYummer parked in the church carpark on Sunday morning is a world apart from the prematurely aged cars and other vehicles on the roads. It's not unusul to see cars with their windscreen completely smashed but still driving - not sure they can see a thing, but then I'm not sure that makes much difference.
There's obviously much more to say - but that's for another time.
Daniel
Um Bongo in the Congo?
I can't quite believe I am sat in the Christian Aid office in the middle of Kinshasa writing this. But to sum up in one word what is has been like so far..Amazing! We have only had two proper days here so far but I already feel so comfortable here.
Arriving at the airport was hilarious and I guess, our first experience of life here in the DRC. Us Biritsh are renowned for queuing, but here in the DRC, no-one quite knows the meaning of the word..its hilarious. So there was alot of pushing and shoving to get our bags and lots of shouting to get us out of the airport to our taxi. Alot of the security men were very interested in becoming 'friends' with us...just asking for a small fee of $20 dollars to get us through security..AS IF! My baggage unfortunately didn't arrive with everyone elses but it's just one of those things that I guess makes all this experience more memorable.
Arriving in the evening here (around 8pm) meant that it was pitch black (it gets dark here at about 6pm). It would have been great to see Kinshasa in the day but there was something very exciting about seeing it at night. Ther were many small food stalls lining the roads and many people going about their business. I was surprised at how developed the road was that we drove on, but we were told by Jacques (the Christian aid office manager) that there are only about four roads in Kinshasa which are like that, the rest are pretty dodge.
The accomodation we are staying at (CAP) is amazing. I have to say I was expecting to all be in one big room, no air-con, and one shower/toilet between all 22 of us. But we all have a room between two with air-con and ensuites. It's great! All the staff are so welcome too. They provided us with a gorgeous meal of beef, rice, chips(!) and vegetables on our first night. And then we pretty much crashed as we were knackered from our 7am flight.
The sunday was a pretty chilled day. I went to an international church in the morning which is close to the centre and really enjoyed it! They made us stand up and inroduce ourselves at the beginning of the sevrice.The rest of the day was spent having a gorgeous buffet, chilling by a pool and drinking beer at a place which is frequently visited by ex-pats. A very easy introduction to DRC...I enjoyed it, but was looking forward to getting out and seeing the real Congo.
Today was the first of our trips to visit Christian Aid's partners. We visited one called CONAFED which works on gender equality. it was so interesting to hear of their work. We then visited some students at the university who told us what work they were doing that is linked to CONAFED. one thing that really stood out to me was how desperate they are to have peace in the country. They said without peace and security, there will be no development. They asked us to talk to our government to enable them to bring peace to the DRC. I would have liked more time to talk to the students in greater depth about what they are doing to help the university and community.
Tomorrow, we will be visiting another of Christian Aid's partners which is very exciting. I am having a fantastic time here!
Arriving at the airport was hilarious and I guess, our first experience of life here in the DRC. Us Biritsh are renowned for queuing, but here in the DRC, no-one quite knows the meaning of the word..its hilarious. So there was alot of pushing and shoving to get our bags and lots of shouting to get us out of the airport to our taxi. Alot of the security men were very interested in becoming 'friends' with us...just asking for a small fee of $20 dollars to get us through security..AS IF! My baggage unfortunately didn't arrive with everyone elses but it's just one of those things that I guess makes all this experience more memorable.
Arriving in the evening here (around 8pm) meant that it was pitch black (it gets dark here at about 6pm). It would have been great to see Kinshasa in the day but there was something very exciting about seeing it at night. Ther were many small food stalls lining the roads and many people going about their business. I was surprised at how developed the road was that we drove on, but we were told by Jacques (the Christian aid office manager) that there are only about four roads in Kinshasa which are like that, the rest are pretty dodge.
The accomodation we are staying at (CAP) is amazing. I have to say I was expecting to all be in one big room, no air-con, and one shower/toilet between all 22 of us. But we all have a room between two with air-con and ensuites. It's great! All the staff are so welcome too. They provided us with a gorgeous meal of beef, rice, chips(!) and vegetables on our first night. And then we pretty much crashed as we were knackered from our 7am flight.
The sunday was a pretty chilled day. I went to an international church in the morning which is close to the centre and really enjoyed it! They made us stand up and inroduce ourselves at the beginning of the sevrice.The rest of the day was spent having a gorgeous buffet, chilling by a pool and drinking beer at a place which is frequently visited by ex-pats. A very easy introduction to DRC...I enjoyed it, but was looking forward to getting out and seeing the real Congo.
Today was the first of our trips to visit Christian Aid's partners. We visited one called CONAFED which works on gender equality. it was so interesting to hear of their work. We then visited some students at the university who told us what work they were doing that is linked to CONAFED. one thing that really stood out to me was how desperate they are to have peace in the country. They said without peace and security, there will be no development. They asked us to talk to our government to enable them to bring peace to the DRC. I would have liked more time to talk to the students in greater depth about what they are doing to help the university and community.
Tomorrow, we will be visiting another of Christian Aid's partners which is very exciting. I am having a fantastic time here!
Friday 24 October 2008
The World needs to wake up
With less than 24 hours till we arrive, I am getting extremely excited! It's so interesting to hear peoples different reactions when I first told them I was going out to visit Christian Aid's partners in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Some people didn't know where the 'DRC' actually is, , others were those who were very scared and nervous for me, and the rest were extremely excited for me. I definately fit into the latter of those categories when I was told where we would be going on our 'gapper' trip.
Until a few weeks ago, my knowledge of the DRC was extremely limted-I just about knew where it was and that it has a history of war. However, having spent time over the past few weeks reading about this amazing country, I feel alot more informed. But still, due to this country being an extremely complicated and vast one, there ae huge holes in my knowledge which need to be filled in.
Many people not knowing where the DRC actually is means that most likely even more people don't know about the monstrosaties that have gone on in this country. I found it extremely hard reading some of the stories I came accross about the DRC, some even making me feel incredibly sick. This is a country which is so scarred it is hard to believe that full healing will ever take place. When I read the figure '5.4 million' as the number of people who have been killed since the outbreak of fighting in August 1998, it was almost a figure that skipped me by as it's so hard to comprehend how many that really looks like.
When you hear other facts and figures banded around about this country, it is so easy to disgard them as merely 'facts and figures'. But this country has experienced the world’s deadliest conflict since World War II, and yet the world has not woken up and taken notice of it. And it's time we did! We need to raise so much awareness of this country that the world can no longer ignore it.
I am so looking forward to going out and experiencing the culture and meeting the locals out there. It will be absolutely fantastic to see what good work Christian Aid is doing through it's partners out there. I will fill you in on it all when I am back!
Until a few weeks ago, my knowledge of the DRC was extremely limted-I just about knew where it was and that it has a history of war. However, having spent time over the past few weeks reading about this amazing country, I feel alot more informed. But still, due to this country being an extremely complicated and vast one, there ae huge holes in my knowledge which need to be filled in.
Many people not knowing where the DRC actually is means that most likely even more people don't know about the monstrosaties that have gone on in this country. I found it extremely hard reading some of the stories I came accross about the DRC, some even making me feel incredibly sick. This is a country which is so scarred it is hard to believe that full healing will ever take place. When I read the figure '5.4 million' as the number of people who have been killed since the outbreak of fighting in August 1998, it was almost a figure that skipped me by as it's so hard to comprehend how many that really looks like.
When you hear other facts and figures banded around about this country, it is so easy to disgard them as merely 'facts and figures'. But this country has experienced the world’s deadliest conflict since World War II, and yet the world has not woken up and taken notice of it. And it's time we did! We need to raise so much awareness of this country that the world can no longer ignore it.
I am so looking forward to going out and experiencing the culture and meeting the locals out there. It will be absolutely fantastic to see what good work Christian Aid is doing through it's partners out there. I will fill you in on it all when I am back!
Tuesday 21 October 2008
What a difference...
I was just reading Hannah's blog about how different this trip is to her life a year ago, and began trying to work out exactly what I was up to this time last year. Obviously I was still at university, living in Cambridge and reading (that's the technical term, don'cha know!?) for my degree in Education with Religious Studies.
Then I realised - it's almost exactly a year (I believe it was a year on Saturday to be precise) since I started my school placement; the placement which confirmed for me that I did not wish to pursue teaching as a career. I had already kinda decided this in the summer following my first year at university, but I had hoped this placement would change my mind. I seem to remember it taking less than in hour with a class of Year 3-4 kids (P4/5 for anyone from Northern Ireland where we use a sensible year system!) to confirm that wasn't going to happen.
One year ago I had an experience which confirmed what I didn't want to do with my life. Now, I'm still not completely sure what I want to do. However, I'm setting off an absolutely life-changing experience which may well decide my entire future, if what people have been telling me about getting addicted to development work once you've been to Africa is true! One year ago I couldn't have told you what I'd be doing right now if you'd asked... I'd probably have hazarded a guess at working a classroom assistant to earn some money for further study, or doing a psychology conversion course to train as an educational psychologist. Anything I could think of remotely related to my degree, basically. I didn't want to consider doing anything not related to it; not because that would mean I had wasted 3 years, but because that would mean admitting I didn't have a clue what I wanted to do!
If you'd told during that school placement that in a year's time I was going to be heading off to DRC with Christian Aid I'd have laughed in your face... well, I would have once you'd pointed out to me where it was on a map (Geography was never my strong point)! But here I am - me, who has shied away from church mission teams to Africa for years, preferring instead to stay in the UK or, in a moment of madness and daring, sign up to go to Romania for a week. This trip is going to be by far the scariest thing I've ever done. But - assuming I don't get eaten by a giant man-eating snake whilst there which is, I still insist (no matter what anyone says), a distinct possibility - I get the feeling its going to be the most exciting, emotional and empowering (spot the Presbyterian with the 3 points beginning with the same letters!) experience EVER! And I'M SO EXCITED!
I also couldn't be going with a better group of people! We're going to have an absolute blast, guys!
Rach x
Then I realised - it's almost exactly a year (I believe it was a year on Saturday to be precise) since I started my school placement; the placement which confirmed for me that I did not wish to pursue teaching as a career. I had already kinda decided this in the summer following my first year at university, but I had hoped this placement would change my mind. I seem to remember it taking less than in hour with a class of Year 3-4 kids (P4/5 for anyone from Northern Ireland where we use a sensible year system!) to confirm that wasn't going to happen.
One year ago I had an experience which confirmed what I didn't want to do with my life. Now, I'm still not completely sure what I want to do. However, I'm setting off an absolutely life-changing experience which may well decide my entire future, if what people have been telling me about getting addicted to development work once you've been to Africa is true! One year ago I couldn't have told you what I'd be doing right now if you'd asked... I'd probably have hazarded a guess at working a classroom assistant to earn some money for further study, or doing a psychology conversion course to train as an educational psychologist. Anything I could think of remotely related to my degree, basically. I didn't want to consider doing anything not related to it; not because that would mean I had wasted 3 years, but because that would mean admitting I didn't have a clue what I wanted to do!
If you'd told during that school placement that in a year's time I was going to be heading off to DRC with Christian Aid I'd have laughed in your face... well, I would have once you'd pointed out to me where it was on a map (Geography was never my strong point)! But here I am - me, who has shied away from church mission teams to Africa for years, preferring instead to stay in the UK or, in a moment of madness and daring, sign up to go to Romania for a week. This trip is going to be by far the scariest thing I've ever done. But - assuming I don't get eaten by a giant man-eating snake whilst there which is, I still insist (no matter what anyone says), a distinct possibility - I get the feeling its going to be the most exciting, emotional and empowering (spot the Presbyterian with the 3 points beginning with the same letters!) experience EVER! And I'M SO EXCITED!
I also couldn't be going with a better group of people! We're going to have an absolute blast, guys!
Rach x
Monday 20 October 2008
A Dark Continent?
A dark, bloody, war stricken and diseased continent is what so often occupies our minds when we think of Africa. Even Tim Butcher's new book 'Blood River', in conjunction with his unfortunate name, gives the impression of never ending pointless violence. Whilst one must not neglect the tragic history of many African countries, this so often implies a neutral passivity of the conflicts which removes any sense of responsibility from the West.
This was particularly highlighted for me in a study of the international media's coverage of the Bosnian War and the Rwandan genocide which occurred during the same time frame. Needless to say that one could immediately see the difference in the amount of coverage in favour of the Bosnian conflict in our back yard. Yet the most shocking was looking at how starkingly different the type of language used to describe conflicts, which were essentially two ethnically motivated civil wars. With regard to Rwanda, the genocide (or acts of genocide as we liked to call it), frequently used phrases such as 'never ending African blood baths', 'orgy's of animalist killing', 'brutal butchering' and 'animal-like killings'. By contrast, the language used to describe the Bosnian conflict was inevitably phrases such as 'clean cross fire', 'strategic collateral damage' and 'strategic air campaigns'. Evidentally, the latter sounds cleaner, more modern, more humane, more white. Yes more white. That is the issue. Yes Rwandans did set against each other, neighbour against neighbour, using whatever they could find. However, I'm sure they would have used 'strategic collate bombing campaigns' if they had the means to do so. Moreover, who propped up the resented Tutsi regime which was so hated and led to the awful killings? I know I seem trite, but the point is that it is still killing. Essentially its the same. Africans aren't more bloody than anyone else, let me remind you how bloody our history has been, we had the hundred years war, the crusades, oh and Bush's latest mission in the middle east, to name but a few. Indeed, we in the West, the decendents of our imperial history have been the generations guilty of the worst evil ever; to be aware of our past injustices and yet still continue to act in ways which further the fatal consequences.
The Africa I know is one of joy, love, faith and hope. It is not a passive victim embroiled in continuous 'orgies of blood'. Yes it is scarred and still hurting very deeply in many places. But it is not all dark and hopeless as our media would like us to believe. Would it be too much to suggest that this may be because if it is seen as a pointless and hopeless continent then we have no pressing responsibility to do anything? Charity begins at home after all. No, the Africa I know, and I should hasten to add that I am not claiming to be an expert by any means, is full of people just like you and me trying their very hardest, in circumstances which we can't even imagine, through no fault of thier own, to make ends meet and live.
On thursday I am holding debate entitled 'Colonialisation and Democracy: A Reality?'. Focusing particularly on the cases of Kenya and Zimbabwe I have been reminded of the complexity of the context in which 'democracy' is expected to work, as if it is something you can simply do over night, like the ever frequent cabinet reshuffles of the New Labour government and hope its going to all OK. I will be interested to hear what the experts have to say. Surely encouraging democracy and in particular civic right education is surely needed if countries are going to be able to develop? But on the other hand are we expecting too much to soon? How much time does a political culture of pluralism take to emerge? Indeed, what makes us think we have the ultimate answer, how any of us think our democractic government has it right?
The Democratic Republic of Congo in the heart of the African continent has had it bad. In the eastern provinces of Kivu, the country is still burdened by an ongoing conflict no doubt fuelled by the fact that it is is one of the most resource rich regions in the world. Another tragic irony in African history; it should be, if left to its own devices, among the richest countries in the world. Yet, as we visit Christian Aid partners in the coming weeks I am eager to be back on African soil and meet people, who by accident of birth are so much less fortunate than myself, but stripped bare of western comforts, can see the world as it should be. Where family and community isn't an added extra to your starbucks coffee but an essential part of what life is. To quote Martin John Nichols, a singer song writer, I yearn to 'see the world through the poor's eyes'. The way God sees it.
This was particularly highlighted for me in a study of the international media's coverage of the Bosnian War and the Rwandan genocide which occurred during the same time frame. Needless to say that one could immediately see the difference in the amount of coverage in favour of the Bosnian conflict in our back yard. Yet the most shocking was looking at how starkingly different the type of language used to describe conflicts, which were essentially two ethnically motivated civil wars. With regard to Rwanda, the genocide (or acts of genocide as we liked to call it), frequently used phrases such as 'never ending African blood baths', 'orgy's of animalist killing', 'brutal butchering' and 'animal-like killings'. By contrast, the language used to describe the Bosnian conflict was inevitably phrases such as 'clean cross fire', 'strategic collateral damage' and 'strategic air campaigns'. Evidentally, the latter sounds cleaner, more modern, more humane, more white. Yes more white. That is the issue. Yes Rwandans did set against each other, neighbour against neighbour, using whatever they could find. However, I'm sure they would have used 'strategic collate bombing campaigns' if they had the means to do so. Moreover, who propped up the resented Tutsi regime which was so hated and led to the awful killings? I know I seem trite, but the point is that it is still killing. Essentially its the same. Africans aren't more bloody than anyone else, let me remind you how bloody our history has been, we had the hundred years war, the crusades, oh and Bush's latest mission in the middle east, to name but a few. Indeed, we in the West, the decendents of our imperial history have been the generations guilty of the worst evil ever; to be aware of our past injustices and yet still continue to act in ways which further the fatal consequences.
The Africa I know is one of joy, love, faith and hope. It is not a passive victim embroiled in continuous 'orgies of blood'. Yes it is scarred and still hurting very deeply in many places. But it is not all dark and hopeless as our media would like us to believe. Would it be too much to suggest that this may be because if it is seen as a pointless and hopeless continent then we have no pressing responsibility to do anything? Charity begins at home after all. No, the Africa I know, and I should hasten to add that I am not claiming to be an expert by any means, is full of people just like you and me trying their very hardest, in circumstances which we can't even imagine, through no fault of thier own, to make ends meet and live.
On thursday I am holding debate entitled 'Colonialisation and Democracy: A Reality?'. Focusing particularly on the cases of Kenya and Zimbabwe I have been reminded of the complexity of the context in which 'democracy' is expected to work, as if it is something you can simply do over night, like the ever frequent cabinet reshuffles of the New Labour government and hope its going to all OK. I will be interested to hear what the experts have to say. Surely encouraging democracy and in particular civic right education is surely needed if countries are going to be able to develop? But on the other hand are we expecting too much to soon? How much time does a political culture of pluralism take to emerge? Indeed, what makes us think we have the ultimate answer, how any of us think our democractic government has it right?
The Democratic Republic of Congo in the heart of the African continent has had it bad. In the eastern provinces of Kivu, the country is still burdened by an ongoing conflict no doubt fuelled by the fact that it is is one of the most resource rich regions in the world. Another tragic irony in African history; it should be, if left to its own devices, among the richest countries in the world. Yet, as we visit Christian Aid partners in the coming weeks I am eager to be back on African soil and meet people, who by accident of birth are so much less fortunate than myself, but stripped bare of western comforts, can see the world as it should be. Where family and community isn't an added extra to your starbucks coffee but an essential part of what life is. To quote Martin John Nichols, a singer song writer, I yearn to 'see the world through the poor's eyes'. The way God sees it.
Friday 17 October 2008
A life changing experience?
I wasn’t even entirely sure where the Democratic Republic of Congo was when I first heard it was the country I would be visiting with Christian Aid. Of course I was in a group of people so I tried to avoid looking ignorant and instead appear as if I knew not only the location but many other important details about it varying from the size of the population (estimated to be 66 million) to the head of state (President Joseph Kabila). It wasn’t as if I hadn’t heard of the place, I just didn’t know very much about it. With just over a week before I go I can now point it out on a map, and not just because it says ‘The Democratic Republic of Congo’ on the map. Aside from that I’m not really sure if I’m ready for it. On the practical side of things I’ve a fair few things to do these next 7 days, but what about the mental preparation needed for going to a place that is massively different to anywhere else I have ever been? A place where 80% of the population live on less than US $0.20 a day. I have no personal experience to fall back on, this will be the first time I will have visited a developing country and as well as being grateful to be given this opportunity I am massively aware of how different my experience is likely to be from some other peoples’ and how little I know about what to expect. I suppose in the same way I didn’t want to appear an idiot when I heard where I was going, I want to avoid seeming completely ignorant when I’m there. In light of that I am reading plenty about the country and becoming more engrossed in both the history and current situation by the day.I often find it strange to look at the situation I’m in now. A year ago I was at Reading University starting my third year of study for a degree entitled ‘Physics and the Universe’, had no idea what I would be doing after graduation and couldn’t point to the DRC on a map. Now I’m preparing to visit the DRC with Christian Aid and experience what I’ve only been reading about.
I’ve been told this trip may well be a life changing experience for me, I’m not sure you can know if that will be the case or how to prepare yourself for that. I can’t wait to find out the impact it will have on me though and see where these next few weeks and then 8 months lead me.
Congo With Me
“Rape and violence rife in Congo again”.Last week the Metro headline did slightly mar my upcoming trip to the Democratic Republic of Congo. I fly out on October 25 with a team of volunteers to provide aid and gather reports in the war-torn country, and if it wasn’t enough that constant supervision and hostage training was acquired to enter such a world, this article pokes it head up at the most inconvenient of times just to remind me that nothing can prepare me for the Congo. It is a way of life so intangible at least for now.
continued at Ctrl.Alt.Shift.
Posted by Dwain Lucktung
Friday 10 October 2008
Tim Butcher Interview
Tim Butcher’s book, ‘Blood River: A Journey to Africa’s Broken Heart’, part-travelogue, part-history of the Congo, topped bestseller lists early this year. The premise of the book was that Butcher would follow in the footsteps of Stanley, the first man to map the length of the Congo River, and in doing so tell the story of the country. We had the chance to speak to Butcher recently about his experiences.You seem to spend every moment of the book in fear for your life, did you actually enjoy the experience?
“I think enjoy would be the wrong word. It was an ordeal, and it was challenging and rewarding, but I wouldn’t say I enjoyed it. I’ve been told that there aren’t many laughs in the book, and I’m afraid that that’s because you can’t really make light of the situation. Of course I enjoyed meeting the fantastic people who helped me, but that enjoyment was tempered by the fact that I had to leave them there. I’m still in contact with Benoit, who was one of the motorbike drivers who took me on a large part of the journey, and since the book he has lost his job with Care International simply because they were downsizing their operation. He is now forced to eke out a shitty, miserable living, while in a stable country he’d have a great job, maybe the head teacher of a school. Benoit is one of the most incredible men I’ve ever met, and I would trust him with my life – well, I did trust him with my life. Some people accused me of being too negative in the book, but I reject that claim. I think I wrote about the way that the human spirit had survived, but it’s not a situation to be made light of. I think I was realistic in the book.”Why were the local Congolese people happy to go so far out of their way to help you on your journey?
“The milk of human kindness runs very deep there. People like Benoit and Georges Mbuyu, the pygmy leader, didn’t even ask for money. They really wanted to help me. The people of the Congo are incredibly generous. It’s one of those classic cases of a tiny fringe of radicals colouring the perception of an entire group of people.”Your journey wasn’t just unusual in that it was done by a non-Congolese person, even the locals rarely travel through the dangerous eastern provinces. How unified can the country be if communities are so isolated?
“That’s a very good question, because why would the country be unified along such arbitrary geographic lines? – lines drawn up by the very worst kind of colonialism. Amazingly there is a national identity, though, because the country passes the football test. Everybody cheers for the Simba. It’s astonishing, but even in areas of the country where it’s impossible to get television coverage of the games, everybody knows that there’s a game on and are behind the team. Since the 60s with Katanga, none of the regions have really talked of secession. I mean, some rebels have talked about making various provinces independent, but it’s just pie in the sky. Considering that it’s basically a failed state there is a remarkable amount of national unity.”
‘Blood River’ mentions the lack of institutional memory, the fact that the reasons for fighting wars can quickly be forgotten. Is Patrice Lumumba remembered as a hero of independence?"It’s difficult to have that memory because it’s a country of young people. Lumumba doesn’t really have a Mandela-like following. He was a man of his time, and his murder was shrouded in so much mystery. It's only relatively recently that the truth has come out. The violence is so complicated and multi-layered that it is difficult for anyone to keep track of it and remember it.”The book is full of examples of decaying infrastructure, as the jungle reclaims roads and train-tracks. Is there a part of you that enjoys the unspoilt nature of the rainforest?
"If I could guarantee that my children would be safe and that my wife wouldn’t be raped, then the Congo would be a beautiful place to visit. It’s an incredible environmental paradise.”What does the Congo need, above all else?
“There are strange benefits. It is an African irony that HIV started in the Congo, the first samples are from Leopoldville, and there’s evidence from the 30s, 40s and 50s. But the country hasn’t been that badly affected by HIV. There is HIV there, certainly, but it hasn’t spread as rapidly as it could have done, simply because the transport infrastructure isn’t there. HIV needs two things to spread quickly: poverty and good transport, and that’s why countries like Botswana and South Africa have been so badly affected.”
“So there is a positive side to the unspoilt nature. The oxygen we breath comes from the Congo rainforest, it’s one of the lungs of the world. And the unfortunate fact is that I can guarantee that the first roads that go into those areas will be logging roads.”
“Some of the remoter regions support fantastic ecosystems. An expedition recently found something like nine new species of mammal. So there is a pure, exciting, Garden of Eden, element to the country, but at the moment it’s not safe for the people.”
“The rule of law, and transparency. People have to know that if someone takes something that belongs to them, they can do something other than take a gun and shoot them. There is money in the country. The cobalt mines are generating fantastic amounts of money, but where is it going? Into Swiss bank accounts. Of course it’s easy for me to say what the Congo needs. The million dollar question, the million dollar developmental question, is how you implement the rule of law and transparency.”
Thursday 2 October 2008
DR Congo Conference in Sussex
On the 11th November, a conference entitled "The Occupation in DR Congo: The new scramble for Africa" will be held in Mandela Hall, Falmer House at the University of Sussex.
The event is organised by the Hear Afrika and Suubira Uganda societies from the University of Sussex Students' Union, with the support of the International Relations and Anthropology departments.
The impressive list of confirmed speakers include:
• Hon.Tshela Compton, the DRC's ambassador to the UK
• Aldridge Harry, representing Nigel Farage MEP
• Stephen Carter, coordinator of the All Party Parliamentary Group on the Great Lakes Region of Africa
• Kofi Mawuli Klu, from the Afrika Soree-Ubuntu Democracy In Action Network
• Prof James Fairhead, of the University of Sussex's Anthropology Dept.
• Dr. Denis Tull, from Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik (SWP),German Institute for International and Security Affairs
• Bob Labi, The Committee for a Workers' International
The event starts from 1pm, and we'll be in attendance running a stall, so come along and say Hi!
Wednesday 1 October 2008
Crisis? What Crisis?
A survey published today by the British Red Cross showed that most British people are "unaware of African conflicts".
99% of respondents to the survey did not know that the Democratic Republic of Congo has suffered the highest civilian death toll of any country in conflict in the last ten years. 47% of people guessed that the country in question would be Iraq, while 14% went for Afghanistan.
People were also asked to name countries currently experiencing conflict. 69% of respondents identified Iraq and 65% Afghanistan, which could be expected given the British military's involvement, although the figures still seem relatively low given the media coverage of both conflicts.
12% identified Russia and 10% identified Zimbabwe but less than one percent of people interviewed identified areas such as Sudan or Somalia.
The results of the survey come just a day after the Red Cross appealed for access to victims of the fighting in North and South Kivu, in the eastern DRC.
Tuesday 30 September 2008
Support Computer Training in DRC
By the very fact that you are reading this blog, I can safely say that using a computer is a part of your life. For most of you, I'd go so far as predicting that a good proportion of your life is spent at a computer, whether at work or at home.As is the case everywhere else in the world, computer skills are becoming an increasingly important part of working life in the DRC, and some basic training can mean the difference between employment and unemployment. AMO-Congo is an organisation that was set up to help children who have been orphaned by HIV/AIDS to learn computer skills.
You can support the work they do by purchasing computer training as a gift here at Present Aid
Friday 26 September 2008
Optimum Primus
Throughout the Congo's troubled history, there has been at least one industry whose continued productivity has been enjoyed by the locals, and that's the Bramlima Brewery, and it's flagship beer Primus.
As their TV advert shows, they've been an ever present fixture since they were founded in 1923, when the country was still a Belgian territory.
They then jump to 1960, where independence appears to have been marked by some relatively restrained dancing.
Next up is the 1974 football celebrations which mark the Congo's first qualification for the World Cup, as Zaire. In truth, however, they found the going tough in West Germany, losing 2-0 to Scotland, whose side included Kenny Dalglish, and 3-0 to Brazil. Their nadir however was in their second game, as they were beaten 9-0 by a rampant Yugoslavia. Enough to make you reach for a bottle of Primus...
Later in the same year, we see people chanting 'Ali' as they watch the 'Rumble in the Jungle' beamed around the country from the Mai 20 Stadium in Kinshasa.
The party continues in 1987 and today, but perhaps the less said about the somewhat sinister vision of 2050 the better...
Friday 5 September 2008
Under African Skies
The tragic news of yesterday’s plane crash between Kisangani to Bukavu that killed 15 UN and NGO workers and 2 crew emphasises once again the dangers and difficulties of providing aid to the remotest regions of the Congo.In a country so densely forested that earlier this year the BBC reported that villages are still being added to the maps, this means that aid workers must take incredible risks to transport supplies.
Tuesday 2 September 2008
Once, Twice, Three times... Ilunga
Congolese international Hérita Ilunga (left) today completed a loan transfer to West Ham. Ilunga's surname, a common name in the DRC, was identifed in 2004 as the 'most untranslatable' word in the world. The word is said to roughly indicate "a person who is ready to forgive any abuse for the first time, to tolerate it a second time, but never a third time", although the true meaning, and it's cultural connotations, are apparently lost in translation.
Monday 25 August 2008
They don't drink Um Bongo in the Congo
Contrary to the wildly popular 90s advert, the "sunny, funny one they call Um Bongo" remains unavailable. The fruits may grow there, but one crucial ingredient - namely clean drinking water - is unavailable to most Congolese. Despite living on the banks of the world's second largest river, which discharges 41,800 cubic metres of water every second, over half of the 62 million people living in the DRC have no access to a single glass of drinkable water.
Kinshasa, for example, is home to almost eight million people but has no central sewerage system. Steven Lauwerier, who works for UNICEF in the DRC, argues that "Mainly the causes (of diseases in the DRC) are water quality."
Monday 21 July 2008
Do the Makélélé
Claude Makélélé has today completed a move from Chelsea to Paris Saint German. While Makélélé is famous as a French international, he was actually born in Kinshasa, during the reign of Mobutu.Last year he talked to The Independent about his father's experience in what was then Zaire.
"My father came from Zaire to play football but the problem was he was quite old, 26," Makelele says. "It was because of President Mobutu, he wouldn't let any of the national team players in Zaire leave. My father's nickname was 'Soucousse' [it means a dance or shimmy]. He played in the No 10 role, behind the strikers but he had to stop because he was living in a different country and my mother wanted him to be with us."
Wednesday 2 July 2008
Patrice Lumumba: "The greatest black man who ever walked the African continent"
Today would have been the 83rd birthday of Patrice Lumumba. Lumumba became the first legally elected Prime Minister of the Congo in 1960, but was murdered in 1961. Both Belgium and the USA had been involved in plots against his life.Perhaps his most famous moment came at the Congo's independence ceremony, when he refused to quietly accept the Belgian King's patronising notion that the Congo should be grateful to Belgium. His speech that day was referenced by Malcolm X when he paid tribute to Lumumba in 1964:
"Lumumba [is] the greatest black man who ever walked the African continent. He didn't fear anybody. He had those people so scared they had to kill him. They couldn't buy him, they couldn't frighten him, they couldn't reach him. Why, he told the king of Belgium, Man, you may let us free, you may have given us our independence, but we can never forget these scars. The greatest speech— you should take that speech and tack it up over your door. This is what Lumumba said: You aren't giving us anything. Why, can you take back these scars that you put on our bodies? Can you give us back the limbs that you cut off while you were here?- Malcolm X, June 28, 1964
No, you should never forget what that man did to you. And you bear the scars of the same kind of colonization and oppression not on your body, but in your brain, in your heart, in your soul, right now."
In 2000, Raoul Peck directed an award-winning biopic of Lumumba:
Monday 30 June 2008
Dawn In The Heart Of Africa
Today is the 48th anniversary of the Democratic Republic of Congo's independence from Belgium.
This poem, Dawn In The Heart Of Africa was written by Patrice Lumumba:
This poem, Dawn In The Heart Of Africa was written by Patrice Lumumba:
For a thousand years, you, African, suffered like beast,
Your ashes strewn to the wind that roams the desert.
Your tyrants built the lustrous, magic temples
To preserve your soul, reserve your suffering.
Barbaric right of fist and the white right to a whip,
You had the right to die, you also could weep.
On your totem they carved endless hunger, endless bonds,
And even in the cover of the woods a ghastly cruel death
Was watching, snaky, crawling to you
Like branches from the holes and heads of trees
Embraced your body and your ailing soul.
Then they put a treacherous big viper on your chest:
On your neck they laid the yoke of fire-water,
They took your sweet wife for glitter of cheap pearls,
Your incredible riches that nobody could measure.
From your hut, the tom-toms sounded into dark of night
Carrying cruel laments up mighty black rivers
About abused girls, streams of tears and blood,
About ships that sailed to countries where the little man
Wallows in an ant hill and the dollar is king,
To that damned land which they called a motherland.
There your child, your wife were ground, day and night
In a frightful, merciless mill, crushing them in dreadful pain.
You are a man like others. They preach you to believe
That good white God will reconcile all men at last.
By fire you grieved and sang the moaning songs
Of a homeless beggar that sinks at strangers' doors.
And when a craze possessed you
And your blood boiled through he night
You danced, you moaned, obsessed by father's passion.
Like furry of a storm to lyrics of a manly tune
From a thousand years of misery a strength burst out of you
In metallic voice of jazz, in uncovered outcry
That thunders through he continent like gigantic surf.
The whole world surprised , wakes up in panic
To the violent rhythm of blood, to the violent rhythm of jazz,
The white man turning pallid over this new song
That carries torch of purple through the dark of night.
The dawn is here, my brother! Dawn! Look in our faces,
A new morning breaks in our old Africa.
Ours alone will now be the land, the water, mighty rivers
Poor African surrendered for a thousand years.
Hard torches of the sun will shine for us again
They'll dry the tears in eyes and spittle on your face.
The moment when you break the chains, the heavy fetters,
The evil cruel times will go never to come again.
A free and gallant Congo will rise from black soil,
A free and gallant Congo-black blossom from black seed!
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