- By Piers Edwards
- Football writer
February 6, 2024, 1:16 p.m. GMT
Updated 38 minutes ago
image description,
DR Congo is in the semi-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations for only the second time this century
Members of DR Congo's Africa Cup of Nations squad have used the opportunity to be in the international spotlight to call for peace in their country's restive eastern region.
Dozens of armed groups – including the notorious M23 rebels – have long plagued the mineral-rich east of the Central African country, fighting for control of the country.
Conflict between the groups, which include pro-government militias, flared after a precarious six-month ceasefire ended in October. At least 60 civilians have reportedly been killed in attacks in North Kivu this month alone.
Today, fighting continues within 25 kilometers of the provincial capital Goma, in a region where the government in Kinshasa has failed to get a handle on security over the past three decades.
According to the United Nations, the intensified conflict has forced 6.9 million people to flee their homes. According to the organization, the Democratic Republic of Congo is facing one of the “largest humanitarian crises in the world.”
“Everyone sees the massacres in eastern Congo. But everyone is silent,” Democratic Republic of Congo striker Cedric Bakambu wrote on social media.
“Use the same energy with which you talk about the Nations Cup to highlight what is happening here. There are no small gestures.”
DR Congo plays Afcon hosts Ivory Coast in Abidjan on Wednesday (8pm GMT) for a place in Sunday's final.
The president of the country's football association said the team planned to wear black armbands against the Ivorians as a “sign of mourning” and “a sign of solidarity” for those recently affected by the conflict.
The former champions reached the semi-finals for only the second time this century and previously won the cup in 1968 and 1974.
Group message
Within 24 hours of posting his message on X, Bakambu's words had already been seen by 1.5 million readers.
Although their country – one of Africa's largest – may be divided, several DRC leaders have come together to call for peace in the east.
More than half of the team, including captain Chancel Mbemba, expressed support for the victims and a desire to “play for peace and humanity” in the DRC in a video released on Monday by a state-backed group.
“A great thought for all the victims of the atrocities in Goma and their families,” said the former Newcastle United defender, who now plays for Marseille in France.
“I pray with all my heart that my country regains its peace.”
North Kivu, where much of the recent fighting has taken place, is rich in minerals such as gold, diamonds and cobalt, a key ingredient in lithium-ion batteries used in cell phones, electric vehicles and many models of e-cigarettes (vapes).
“I am Goma. I am Congolese. We want peace,” wrote Gedeon Kalulu, a pillar of Congolese defense alongside Mbemba.
image description,
Attacks by armed groups in eastern DR Congo have forced millions of people from their homes
“The players' messages fall within an apparent online campaign by Fonarev, a state fund for victims of sexual violence related to the conflict and insecurity in the country,” said the `'s Samba Cyuzuzo, who has reported on the region for many years.
“Since Leopards arrived in Ivory Coast for Afcon, their players have been spreading the message of 'Plus Jamais Seuls'. [No Longer Alone] by Fonarev out of compassion for the victims of atrocities in the country.
“Some popular musicians like Fally Ipupa and GIMS have also shared similar messages.”
Founded just over a decade ago, the M23 – which a UN report said was founded by Rwanda, DR Congo's eastern neighbor – regrouped about two years ago after an earlier peace deal collapsed and has since taken over large parts of North Kivu taken over.
Rwanda has always denied supporting the M23, but has for many years criticized Congolese authorities for failing to disarm ethnic Hutu rebels – some of whom are linked to the 1994 Rwandan genocide.
The M23 itself argues that it is defending the interests of ethnic Tutsis against Hutu militias allegedly supported by the Congolese government, whose soldiers are also present in the region.
In recent years, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the United Nations and the United States have accused Rwanda of sending its soldiers to eastern Democratic Republic of Congo to fight alongside the M23 rebels, who are accused of war crimes against civilians . Rwanda denies this.
As the fight for minerals continues to the detriment of the innocent victims of the Democratic Republic of Congo, a campaign launched on TikTok late last year calling on young people to stop using e-cigarettes in order to get one of their keys, given the human rights violations being committed secure components – lithium.
“Let her smile a little”
image description,
The M23 rebels, made up of some deserters from the Congolese army, are well-equipped and claim they represent the country's Tutsi minority
The Congolese, who became African champions under the name Congo-Kinshasa and then Zaire, became the first sub-Saharan African team to compete in a World Cup in 1974.
However, the team was affected by decades of political instability and economic and infrastructural decline in a country that had suffered two devastating civil wars.
The latter war between 1998 and 2003 became known as the “African World War” due to its impact on neighboring countries.
After eliminating record seven-time champions Egypt in the round of 16, Yoane Wissa – the country's top scorer at the 2023 Nations Cup with two goals – hinted at some incentives for a team still unbeaten in Ivory Coast.
“It makes me proud to fight for my country because of what happened there,” the Brentford striker told ` Sport Africa.
“Hopefully they will enjoy it now and forget what happened in their lives. We did everything we could to just make her smile a little bit.”
Comments are closed.