Democratic Republic Congo Must Guarantee ‘Space’ for Opposition Ahead of Vote: UN

KINSHASA:  The United Nations on Sunday called on the Democratic Republic of Congo to respect its citizens’ civil liberties as the political climate has turned tense ahead of key elections next year. “Political space must be guaranteed, space for the opposition, space for civil society, for the defenders of human rights,” Martin Kobler, head of the UN peacekeeping mission MONUSCO in… Read More

When the Victors Tell the Story: The UN’s Victims in Rwanda, By: Captain Amadou Deme

A book review By: Jennifer Fierberg “History isn’t all fact–it’s just the story the victors tell to keep themselves in power. And it’s been a slow revision. The more time passes, the easier it becomes to reinvent the past.” There is no lack of books written about Rwanda and specifically about the war that was started in 1990 by the… Read More

U.S. envoy urges Congo to set date for presidential election

By Aaron Ross KINSHASA (Reuters) – Democratic Republic of Congo should promptly set a date for a presidential election in 2016, a senior U.S. envoy said on Monday, increasing international pressure on President Joseph Kabila to step down at the polls next year. Last month, street protests killed 42 people and forced lawmakers to drop an electoral reform bill the… Read More

DR Congo unrest: Catholic church backs protests

The Catholic Church in the Democratic Republic of Congo has thrown its weight behind protests against President Joseph Kabila extending his rule. It called on people to peacefully oppose his move to delay presidential elections until a census is held. At least 11 people have so far been been killed in the protests. It is the worst unrest in the… Read More

Congo-Kinshasa: Extending the FDLR Disarmament Deadline Will Only Prolong the Agony

This week all eyes were to be on the joint summit between the South African Development Community (SADC) and the International Conference on the Great Lakes (ICGLR) that was proposed by South African President Jacob Zuma earlier this month, but this event has now been cancelled, apparently at the behest of Angola, which currently holds the presidency of the ICGLR.… Read More

Tanzania: We won’t be ready to join any combined attack against the rebels because not all people in eastern DR Congo are FDLR rebels

“As a country (Tanzania) we won’t be ready to join any combined attack against the rebels because not all people in eastern DR Congo are FDLR rebels,” Bernard Membe, Tanzania’s Minister for Foreign Affairs told the media in Dar-es-Salaam Tanzania, hence rejecting, for some observers, the urgency of conducting military operations against Rwandan rebels and refugees based in Eastern Democratic… Read More

Rwanda Militia Commander ‘Tired Of War’

The commander of one of the Rwandan militia hiding out in the eastern Congolese mountains has told Sky News his men will not disarm without guarantees for their safety. Colonel Bonheur – as he called himself but which is almost certainly not his real name – said his band of soldiers would be forced to continue fighting unless a political… Read More

Kagame started the genocide in Rwanda, then Congo

In protest of Rwanda Day, Atlanta, Georgia, Sept. 20, 2014 Click to enlarge To the City of Atlanta, former Mayor Andrew Young and Bernice King: Individuals and organizations listed below have come to know that the President of Rwanda, Paul Kagame, is organizing what he calls Rwanda Day, a meeting with the Rwandan Diaspora and the American public in the… Read More