DRC: People and nature in eastern Congo need peace!
Children in Kanya Bayonga have only ever known troubled times (© RdR/Mathias Rittgerott)
Gorillas like these in Virunga National Park easily get caught in the crossfire (© RdR/Mathias Rittgerott)
Militias and smugglers profit from destroying the environment and exploiting people for “blood minerals” (© CCBY-NC-ND20)
Legal or illegal? A weak state makes monitoring a challenge (© RdR/Mathias Rittgerott)
For 30 years, the people of the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have endured constant violence. Recently, the conflict has intensified: A rebel militia has surrounded the city of Goma, and Virunga National Park is under threat. Our Congolese partners RIAO-RDC are organizing peace marches and calling for your solidarity.
Call to actionTo: the President of the Democratic Republic of Congo, representatives of the UN and EU
“Eastern DRC needs security and peace. Otherwise, respect for human rights and environmental protection will remain out of reach.”
Media in the global North rarely report on the violence in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Even dramatic events such as the M23 rebels surrounding the provincial capital of Goma in February 2024 remain a side note.
The situation is getting worse. No one can ignore the cruelty of the militias and the gravity of the human rights violations.” – Jean François Mombia Atuku, Chairman, RIAO-RDC
Local people are living through an endless nightmare: For 30 years they have suffered massacres, rape and pillage. Millions have died, while hundreds of thousands have fled and many live in slums near Goma and in Uganda.
Security is desperately needed, not only for the local population, but also to protect nature and the breathtaking biodiversity with which the region is blessed, including the gorillas in the world-renowned Virunga National Park.
Lawlessness has led to gold, cobalt and coltan being mined under inhumane conditions and smuggled into neighboring Uganda and Rwanda. Some armed groups finance themselves with the mining and smuggling of “blood minerals”. Human rights organizations are increasingly denouncing this “genocost”, or genocide based on economic exploitation. In addition, many villages have been forcibly dispossessed of their land for carbon offset schemes so that Western corporations such as oil companies can greenwash their operations.
Jean François knows that it will take more than marches and petitions to end the violence and exploitation.
The march and a petition with thousands of signatures from all over the world will send a strong signal denouncing the violence and human rights violations.”
Please show your solidarity with Jean-Francois and our partner organization RIAO-RDC by signing our petition.
BackgroundThe main driver of violence in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is the 1994 genocide in neighboring Rwanda, in which up to one million people, mostly Tutsis, were murdered.
Well over 100 armed groups are active in the DRC. The most important are the M23 and the FDLR. Both militias have committed numerous massacres against the civilian population.
The Tutsi rebels of the M23 (Mouvement du 23 Mars) are supported by Rwanda. The M23 claims to be protecting the Tutsi people in Congo from further attacks.
The Hutu rebels of the FDLR (Forces Démocratiques de Libération du Rwanda), on the other hand, are supported by the DRC. The FDLR was formed by genocide perpetrators who fled to the Congo and intend to overthrow the government in Kigali.
Armed mobilization has often become an end in itself – a way for young men to make a living, enrich themselves, or feel safer in a group.
The rangers of Virunga National Park are also armed and are sometimes seen as a party to the conflict. More than 200 rangers have been killed in the line of duty, and the rangers themselves have been accused of attacks on the local population. In 2014, an attempt was made to assassinate the park’s director, Emmanuel de Merode.
Rainforests of the Congo Basin
The Congo Basin is home to the second largest area of rainforest in the world, surpassed only by the Amazon. It is home to more than 600 species of trees, 450 species of mammals, 1,000 species of butterflies, 1,200 species of birds and 700 species of fish.
Because most of these rainforests are located in the DRC, the country has a special responsibility. The forests are home to bonobos, chimpanzees and gorillas; bonobos are found nowhere else.
Virunga and Kahuzi-Biega National Parks
At 7,900 square kilometers, Virunga National Park is about five times the size of London. About a quarter of the world’s mountain gorillas (Gorilla beringei beringei) live in the park near the Rwandan border. Many eastern lowland gorillas (Gorilla beringei graueri) live in Kahuzi-Biega National Park, also in eastern DRC.
Both national parks are on the World Heritage in Danger list due to threats such as poaching and violent conflict.
To: the President of the Democratic Republic of Congo, representatives of the UN and EU
Dear Mr. President,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
For the past 30 years, the people of the Democratic Republic of Congo, especially in the east, have suffered terrible violence at the hands of rebel groups and militias who massacre, rape and pillage the civilian population.
The population also suffers from the mining and smuggling of “blood minerals”, which are used to finance armed groups and benefit major corporations around the world.
Human rights organizations are increasingly denouncing this “genocost”, or genocide based on economic exploitation. It has intensified since rich countries, especially in Europe and North America, have adopted “green” economic policies that have triggered a boom in raw materials such as coltan, copper and gold. Many villages have already been robbed of their land for misguided climate protection measures such as carbon offset schemes. This type of exploitation continues to spread.
As a result of this endless spiral of war, violence and exploitation, people are living in poverty, the economy is in ruins, food security is threatened, the education system is broken and healthcare is extremely poor.
The men, women and children of the Democratic Republic of Congo long for peace so that they can live in safety and without hardship.
Please make it a top priority to bring about peace, bring the perpetrators of crimes to justice, and ensure that the impoverished population shares in the natural wealth of their homeland.
Otherwise, respect for human rights and the protection of nature will remain out of reach.
Yours faithfully,
Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)
A great deal of our work is focused on the DRC. The country’s forests are among the largest in the world and are key to preserving biodiversity and protecting the climate.
We work closely with the environmental and human rights organizations RIAO-RDC, Réseau CREF, CAMV and Bonobo Alive.
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