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Eastern Congo

Eastern Congo

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Over 5.4 million dead. Over 2 million displaced. Congo is home to the deadliest conflict since World War II.

The war in eastern Congo began in the early 1990s and continues to this day. It has encompassed two international wars—from 1996 to 1997 and 1998 to 2003—and multiple invasions from neighboring countries, with combatants from many armed groups, both foreign and domestic. While Congo has abundant natural resources, it is also the world’s poorest country per capita, according to the United Nations. Congo is also home to the largest and most expensive U.N. peacekeeping mission in the world, MONUSCO, which has more than 20,000 personnel and an annual budget of $1.4 billion. The eastern part of the country is plagued by instability, as militias continue to wreak havoc on the population. Meanwhile, the conflict gets very little coverage by the international media.

The conflict in Congo is notorious for serious violations of human rights, including violence against women and the use of child soldiers. Since 1996 the International Rescue Committee has calculated that approximately 5.4 million people have died from war-related causes. In 2012 Congo ranked lowest on the United Nations Human Development Index.

Armed GroupsArmed Groups

Armed groups wreak havoc in eastern Congo by terrorizing communities and fighting for power and access to mineral resources. Read More

Conflict MineralsConflict Minerals

Armed groups and Congolese military use profits from trading in conflict minerals to self-finance campaigns of brutal violence against civilians. Read More

Justice and AccountabilityJustice and Accountability

Congo needs a system of justice and accountability by which perpetrators of atrocity crimes are caught, tried, and punished for their crimes. Read More

Security Sector ReformSecurity Sector Reform

Congolese security forces pose a significant threat to civilians. In eastern Congo, they commit murder and rape, and carry out torture and extortion. Read More

Congolese WomanSexual Violence

Every day, women and girls face threats from armed militias, the military, and even the police who are responsible for protecting them. Read More

Sustaining LivelihoodsSustaining Livelihoods

As Congo's mining industry transitions from conflict minerals trade to legitimate business, miners need help transitioning to other sustainable sources of livelihood. Read More

 

Help end the crisis in eastern Congo: Take action now. 

 

Groups Push for Unity of African States at A.U. 50th Anniversary Summit

Posted by David Carden on May 23, 2013
Heads of the African States pose in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

More than 70 Heads of State will gather this week to attend the 21st Africa Union summit which coincides with a celebration of the 50th anniversary of the continental institution.  The summit’s theme “Pan-Africanism and African Renaissance” will unfold with a call for Africans to “realize the dream of the founding fathers for a peaceful, prosperous, and united Africa”.   Read More »

Stars and Stripes Op-ed: More U.S. can do to reform Congolese military

Posted by Enough Team on May 23, 2013
Congolese government soldiers (FARDC) patrol the streets of Minova.

The Congolese military has again been accused of significant human-rights abuses, including mass rape. Recently, the United Nations Joint Human Rights Office released a report concerning abuses by the Congolese Army (FARDC) as it retreated from advancing M23 rebels in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo between Nov. 15 and Dec. 2.  Read More »

Field Update: Goma's Destiny

Posted by Timo Mueller and Fidel Bafilemba on May 21, 2013
Displaced civilians in eastern Congo camped outside of MONUSCO military base.

On Monday morning, the M23 rebel group and the Congolese army, or FARDC, clashed in the village of Mutaho, approximately six miles northwest of the provincial capital of Goma. The fighting comes after six months of relative calm between the warring parties following the 12-day occupation of Goma by M23 in November 2012.  Read More »

Mary Robinson's Policy Options for Peace in Congo – Report

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Date: 
May 16, 2013

Enough Project Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Carine Umuhumuza, cumuhumuza@enoughproject.org, +1-202-478-5314

Goma, DR Congo and Washington, DC – Significant international repercussions for neighboring government support to rebels in Congo, and consumer pressure on companies that trade in conflict minerals, are weakening armed groups and providing new leverage for U.N. envoy Mary Robinson’s efforts to help build peace in the Democratic Republic of Congo, argues the Enough Project in a new report [http://www.enoughproject.org/files/MaryRobinsonsNextStepsToEndCongosDeadlyWar.pdf].

Enough Project Congo Researcher and report co-author Fidel Bafilemba said:

International pressure on Rwanda to stop supporting armed groups, and on Congo to enact reforms, helped split M23 and led to Bosco Ntaganda’s surrender to the International Criminal Court.  U.N. envoy Mary Robinson can take advantage of this moment and initiate a comprehensive peace process that includes regional negotiations and a Congolese democratic reform process. Civil society must be at the negotiation table this time around.

Eleven African heads of state and U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon signed the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework for the Congo and the Region on February 24, diplomatic framework to address the drivers of the war. And in March, the U.N. appointed Mary Robinson as Special Envoy.

Enough Project Senior Policy Analyst and report co-author Sasha Lezhnev said:

For too long, the “Three K’s”— Kigali, Kampala, and Kinshasa – have been competing violently in eastern Congo, but the Dodd-Frank legislation on conflict minerals has made it much more difficult to profit from the illicit trade. Now is the time to offer the region a forum to legitimately cooperate on economic and security issues. To provide incentives for the economic talks, the Obama administration should launch a responsible investment initiative with the private sector and NGOs that explores expanded investments in conflict-free natural resources in the region.

Because of its close relationship with, and ability to influence Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda, the U.S. government should play an active role in Congo’s peace process. The report, “Mary Robinson’s Next Steps to Help End Congo’s Deadly War,” offers six recommendations, including that the U.S. rapidly deploy a senior U.S. envoy to support the peace process; sanction key gold smugglers and officials aiding armed groups; provide military advisors to the U.N. Intervention Brigade to combat spoiler armed groups; and support the International Criminal Court to investigate and issue arrest warrants for at-large war criminals in eastern Congo.

Enough Project Co-founder and report co-author John Prendergast said:

One of the most pressing challenges for Special Envoy Robinson and other diplomats will be the construction of a credible process that allows Rwanda, Uganda, and Congo to work together to address the security and economic drivers of violence in eastern Congo. Working together to enhance regional infrastructure, undertake joint economic projects, and create a conflict-free minerals trade will attract foreign investment and allow the regional economic pie to grow larger, thus benefiting everyone. That will be the biggest incentive for peace in the Great Lakes region, and provide the international community with real leverage to end violent conflict there.

Read the full paper: “Mary Robinson’s Next Steps to Help End Congo’s Deadly War” [http://www.enoughproject.org/files/MaryRobinsonsNextStepsToEndCongosDeadlyWar.pdf] 

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The Enough Project is a project of the Center for American Progress to end genocide and crimes against humanity. Founded in 2007, Enough focuses on the crises in Sudan, South Sudan, eastern Congo, and areas affected by the Lord’s Resistance Army. Enough conducts intensive field research, develops practical policies to address these crises, and shares sensible tools to empower citizens and groups working for change. To learn more about Enough, go to www.enoughproject.org.

Mary Robinson's Next Steps to Help End Congo's Deadly War

Peace has a better chance to take root in eastern Congo now than at any time since the cycle of conflict began in the early to mid-1990s. This report analyzes the factors that contribute to the unique role the U.N. special envoy Mary Robinson can play in establishing a more comprehensive and inclusive peace process that addresses the core drivers of violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. 

By Fidel Bafilemba, Sasha Lezhnev, and John Prendergast | May 16, 2013
Full Report (PDF)
Joseph Kabila and Mary Robinson
Full Report (PDF)

Conflict-Free in Canada

Posted by Rachel Finn on May 03, 2013
Gold traders weigh gold at mines on small scales, but miners earn very little fr

The conflict-free movement is gaining momentum worldwide, with the newest development happening in Canada.  In March 2013, New Democrat Foreign Affairs Critic Paul Dewar introduced a comprehensive conflict-free mineral bill to the Canadian Parliament.  Bill C-486 requires companies to regularly report how they obtain their supply of minerals such as gold, tin, tungsten, and tantalum from Central Africa, particularly Congo.  Read More »

HuffPo Op-ed: On Our Watch

Posted by John Prendergast on May 02, 2013
Refugee children in Djabal Refugee Camp, Chad

As we gather to mark April as Genocide Awareness month, to recognize atrocities across the world and throughout history, it's important not just to recognize the past, but to learn from it.  Read More »

Congo Security Update: M23, the United Nations, and the U.S. Government in the Kivus

Posted by Timo Mueller on Apr 29, 2013
UN and Government Forces Secure DRC Town against Rebel Attacks

Rumors circulated last week that the M23 rebel group reportedly signed an agreement with eleven other armed groups on April 21, 2013. The groups are said to include FAP-Nyatura, FDC, FPC-AP, FPD, Mai-Mai Cheka, MPA, M26, PARECO Lafontaine, PRM, URDC, and Vutura. They allegedly agreed on mutual defense – an armed attack against any one of them would be considered an attack against them all – in response to an attack by the forthcoming United Nations Foreign Intervention Brigade, or FIB.  Read More »

Politico Op-ed: Amid Congo's horror, courage and hope

Posted by Enough Team on Apr 26, 2013
Robin Wright in eastern Congo, July 2011

I learned about the conflict in Congo because Javier Bardem was under the weather. Javier was supposed to join John Prendergast, co-founder of the Enough Project, at a screening of "The Greatest Silence," a film showcasing the use of rape as a weapon of war by militias in Congo, but he was too sick to attend.   Read More »

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