Despite the Democratic Republic of Congo being as large as the United States territory east of the Mississippi, the Congo stands as one of the poorest, most erratic nations in Africa, as years of political and social unrest have left outskirts of the country living in severe third world conditions. In these outer parts, things such as law, order, electricity, and medicine and hygiene are nonexistent. A country such as the Congo has looked to the government, or lack thereof, for answers to these problems. Often times, the government is the source of the problem. Mass rape has been a tactic practiced by the government, where government forces and the militias that hold power in the stretches of the country have accounted for untold killings and rapes. Since the early 2000's, the Congo has turned to a president to govern the country. Since 2001, the Congo has been ruled by President Kabila, who has often had to fight to stay in power, which shows the chaotic nature of the Congo. In recent months, Joseph Kabila has engaged in a struggle to hold the presidency as Kabila is widely unpopular in the country, especially in the countries capital Kinshasa, one of the poorest slums.
In 2011 President Kabila was declared the winner of the recent election with about 50% of the 18.14 million votes cast. Justly or not, Kabila was the expected winner. The election was also just another reminder of how much of a struggle keeping the government in place is, as polling stations were burned to the ground, violence erupted at many, and many poll workers were assaulted just for working the booths. It is because of this it is hard to tell who truly won the election, as ballots were burned along with the polling stations, so the votes disappeared in the ashes. Ballots were also lost and tampered with, which made the tallying centers look like war zones.
In the end, a place such as the Congo seems to take one step forward and two steps back. The very government that was put in place to unify the country and protect the peoples is one of the worst offenders . It seems every step the government takes results in violence and killings, as social unrest in the poor slums only leads to more violence.
Article:
http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/international/countriesandterritories/congothedemocraticrepublicof/index.html
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Government_of_the_Democratic_Republic_of_the_Congo
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-13283212
While reading this entry it is impossible to not thing about how lucky we truly are to live how and where we do. It appears the people trying to establish a set government are on a slipper slope; the harder they try to get up, the further they fall down. I have heard about the terrible mass rape incidences before but this is the first time I have heard they were orchestrated by their own governmental figures. Although the election of their leader President Kabila seemed to be elected by immoral measures, at least it might become a stepping-stone for the government to secure power in a more civil way. This struggle makes me wonder how much influence outside countries have had on this conflict. I also wonder if there is any way of these conflicts being resolved in the new future.
ReplyDelete