There is a political showdown between two men in Congo: incumbent President Joseph Kabila and opposition leader Etienne Tshisekedi. Kabila controls the army and Tshisekedi controls the streets. Both are vying for the presidency, yet at Recorder press time Congolese officials delayed declaring a winner for fear of violence.
During Congo’s 2006 election, major violence occurred including armed forces fighting in the streets before the election results were announced. This election has already resulted in dozens of deaths and hundreds of people injured.
Here’s some background to give you a better understanding of the situation in the Congo:
In 2001 at age 30, Kabila became the first world leader born in the 1970s. He became president after his father Laurent-Desire Kabila was assassinated, but the young Kabila was ill-prepared for the position. One of the first instances that proved this was his delay in giving his “inauguration speech.” Many Congolese people speak French and the young Kabila didn’t. He had to first learn the language before he could even address his country. In addition, Kabila was a high school dropout at the time he assumed office; something that was of obvious concern to many Congolese people. It’s also important to note that Laurent-Desire Kabila governed Congo as a dictatorship.
Tshisekedi on the other hand has a more experienced background. At 78-years-old, Tshisekedi has been an advocate for democracy for years and has spoken out against the regime. He has been a major supporter of free elections.
In addition to Tshisekedi, there are nine other opposition candidates who are running for president. Though there were no official numbers released at Recorder press time, estimates placed Kabila in the lead and Tshisekedi at a close second. Certainly if Kabila wins, the fact that opposition candidates failed to have a united force with one candidate, thus splitting the vote contributed to it.
It’s projected that Kabila will win. If that is indeed the case, there’s a lot to consider.
The Good
There are some good things about the young Kabila. For starters, he now speaks fluent French and went on to graduate from college as well as earn his master’s degree. And to Kabila’s credit he also corrected some of the wrongs of his father. For instance, the senior Kabila turned his back on the Western world and went to China and Cuba. And though former President Bill Clinton tried to reach out to him a couple of different ways, the older Kabila never changed his position. Realizing the benefits of a solid relationship with the West, the younger Kabila met with Bush only a few days after his inauguration. This effort immediately improved the relationship the United States had with Congo.
Perhaps the best thing that Joseph Kabila did was establish free elections in 2006. Though the elections are unorganized and even dangerous, at least Congo allows people the opportunity to vote.
The Bad
After Kabila’s 2006 victory, he began to change and become more corrupt. According to the Human Rights Watch, Congo has endured civil war, murder and sexual violence by Kabila’s soldiers as well as opposition forces. It is common knowledge among the people of the Congo that Kabila has people killed who oppose or speak against him. These killings can be as violent as shootings or as unobtrusive as poisoning a person. A journalist in Congo who writes a disapproving article about Kabila could even be subject to his wrath.
When the United States tried to tell Kabila of his shortcomings, he turned on the West and went to the Chinese. A positive aspect of his alliance with China is that Kabila is now building roads in the Congo. However, while the roads are great for accessibility, the Congolese people are not benefiting from the jobs because the Chinese sent their own people to work on the roads. Those sent from China are rumored to be Chinese prisoners. In essence, work that would have benefited the Congo’s unemployed is being outsourced by China. And if China is actually sending prisoners to work on Congo’s roads, they are doing it at incredibly lower rates – if they are getting paid at all. In the meantime, Congo’s unemployment continues to rise.
Another bad aspect of Kabila’s is the voting system. While people are allowed to vote, many don’t because of intimidation. There is also the potential for voting fraud (which has already been evidenced with this election). Congo’s unorganized voting system doesn’t help matters either. Generally votes are collected in trash bags. This is currently the rainy season in the Congo so many of the ballots were destroyed simply because of the elements: the filled bags breaking open and rain or mud covering the ballots. There’s no way to recount ballots during these types of instances.
The Ugly
Some question the Western world’s true allegiance to the people of the Congo. Because the Congo is rich with resources (it’s Africa’s second largest copper producer, holds a third of the world’s cobalt reserves, and is the continent’s largest producer of tin), some feel that the West doesn’t want the Congo to have a leader like Tshisekedi who is committed to the people.
In January, the electoral law for Congo was changed. In 2006 there were two rounds of voting; the first consisting of all candidates and the second round would be the top two candidates who also participated in a televised debate. Now there is only one round of voting and the debate was scrapped. Many believe the debate was done away with because Kabila can’t truly stand against Tshisekedi, who is loyal to the people.
You may ask why all of this is important to you. One reason is because African-Americans need to become better educated about Blacks in other parts of the world. Africa is our ancestral home and we should have an allegiance to its people. We have to do a better job of advocating for our people…in this country and beyond.
I have a dear friend who I consider a big brother and he is from the Congo. I asked him if he is confident about Congo’s future. His response may not be a surprise to you.
“I’m not confident at all. Kabila doesn’t have a vision for Congo. He didn’t do anything his first five years. Our women, children, grandmothers are still being raped – even at 6 months old, it still happens. Kabila says there is peace in the country. I ask him, ‘what peace, Kabila?'”
My friend’s statement is reason enough for African-Americans to not only be educated about other parts of the world, but to also get involved.
You can email comments to Shannon Williams at shannonw@indyrecorder.com.
