Georgianne Nienaber: Author. Journalist.

Despite Aid, Violence and Displacement Plague Eastern Congo--MONUC Reports

Commentary

 

The United Nations’ mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUC) reported today that there has been a series of “low-level” assaults against humanitarian vehicles in eastern DRC. The latest incident on Monday had armed men in military uniforms stopping two vehicles belonging to a French relief agency called Solidarity International in Congo's North Kivu province. No one was injured, but the cars were looted and the agency decided to temporarily suspend operations in the area, MONUC said.

Eastern DRC is one of the most violent regions in the world, but this story has been grossly under-reported. Kemal Saiki, spokesman for the U.N. force in Congo reports that in the eastern town of Kisharu about 25,000 displaced civilians have been unable to receive assistance because of the risk of looting. Many have fled their homes towards the Ugandan border.

Kivu Province is located thousands of kilometers from the capitol city of Kinshasa and is a no-man’s land of rag-tag militias, rebel and government forces. It was unclear who was behind the attacks.

Despite over a hundred years of colonial intervention, and billions of dollars in foreign aid, DRC has few roads and virtually no electricity outside of the major cities and the infrastructure is tenuous at best in these areas, with frequent power outages. Put into perspective, DRC is about the size of Western Europe.

With vast reserves of diamonds, gold and coltan, the country has been unable to capitalize on its own resources due to a hundred years of colonial rule, followed by dictatorships and years of war that may have claimed over 6 million people. Multiparty elections held last year for the first time in 40 years have failed to provide any relief for the civilian population.

In North Kivu, clashes between predominantly Hutu Rwandan rebels and Tutsi-dominated Congolese army brigades have forced more than 130,000 people from their homes since January.

The newly elected government of Congolese President Joseph Kabila has criticized MONUC for the instability, but having traveled in this region, I can say that MONUC is doing the best it can with the resources at its disposal.

Force spokesman Kemal Saiki hit back on Wednesday saying its peacekeepers were ready to assist the army but Congolese authorities, elected in landmark polls last year, needed to fulfill their obligations to protect the people.

"Defense of the territorial integrity of a sovereign nation and that of its people is firstly, principally, primordially, crucially, and incontrovertibly the responsibility of the state and that brings us to the question of the 'raison d'etre' of the state and of its authority," Saiki told a weekly news briefing.

This writer found that the villagers respected and welcomed the protection of MONUC, but were skeptical of the aid organizations working in the areas we visited. Without the protection that the 17,000 MONUC forces provide, it would be absolutely impossible for journalists to undertake any travel in this region whatsoever.

Serge Maheshe, MONUC broadcaster for radio Okapi, was murdered in Kivu last week.

The situation begs the question as to the amount of foreign aid that has disappeared into DRC and the obvious lack of any results in terms of infrastructure and protection of law for the civilian population.

Congo Plane Crash "Embarrassment" for International Airline Industry-Bush Blocks Rulemaking

On June 21, a domestic passenger plane crashed in a swamp in south-east Democratic Republic of Congo, killing at least one person, and officials said nine more passengers were trapped in the wreckage. At least 12 people survived, but all were injured. The passenger confirmed dead was Mbuyu Mibanga, a deputy of DRC's National Assembly. 12 injured survivors were taken to a local hospital. They included two DRC doctors working for the World Health Organization and the ministry of health, UN officials said. This incident was not widely reported in the United States.

The accident was the latest in a series of air crashes in the past few years in the vast, former Belgian colony, which has few paved roads and is considered one of the most dangerous nations in the world for civilian air travel. Aging aircraft mostly made in the former Soviet bloc are widely used to carry passengers and cargo between provinces.

The Czech-made Let Kunovice L-410 twin-engine propeller aircraft operated by Karibu Airways came down shortly after taking off from Kamina, in Congo's mining province of Katanga, while on a flight to the provincial capital of Lubumbashi according to MONUC reports.

American Gail Dunham, President of the National Air Disaster Alliance/Foundation (www.planesafe.org/) responded by saying, “The aviation safety statistics in Africa are awful, just awful,” but pointed out that the United States can only force safety standards if airlines fly into the U.S.

Dunham’s organization is a member of the FAA Rulemaking Committee dealing with "harmonization" of international aviation safety standards. Dunham charges that the “Bush administration has worked to cancel all rulemaking committees.” 

“Bush wants NO NO NO (emphasis Dunham’s) oversight of any airlines -- just let business run itself," Dunham said.

“I have been in contact with disaster response companies for some of these African crashes, and hope to meet with them when they are in the U.S. Once again, our most corrupt administration is forcing their corporate greed policies, and Africa is only one of the many entities paying the price,” Dunham charged.

Echoing Dunham, The International Air Transport Association (IATA) called the air safety records of several African countries, including Congo, an "embarrassment" for the industry.

Last year, the European Union banned all but one of the 51 carriers operating in the DRC from flying in Europe.

NADA/F is the largest grassroots air safety organization in the U.S., representing survivors, those who have lost loved ones, aviation professionals, the traveling public, and those impacted by over 90 air disasters worldwide. 

NADA/F board members include Monica Gabrielle, Co-Chairperson of the Skyscraper Safety Campaign and a Widow of 9/11. Gabrielle is one of the “Jersey Girls” who helped force the 9/11 independent commission.

Watchdog Group SAEN Banned from National Primate Meeting

WINSTON-SALEM, NC—The executive director of a national non-profit watchdog organization—which is critical of government spending and research practices at primate research laboratories across the U.S—has been banned from the annual conference of the American Society of Primatologists meeting here this week.

A NEWS CONFERENCE will be held WEDNESDAY June 20, 2007 at 10:15 a.m. at the Hawthorne Inn & Conference Center (420 High St., Laurel Learning Center), sponsored by SAEN, the Ohio-based watchdog group that was banned from the conference.

Michael Budkie will release documents listing a growing number of federal law violations at 14 national primate laboratories - many of whom are at the ASP conference.

"No matter what they may say at the conference, the scientists here are among those violating federal law everyday at universities represented here. Everything is not OK in our nation's research labs. Primates are being mistreated and billions of tax dollars are being wasted," Budkie said.

Congo soldiers arrested for Radio Okapi journalist's murder

MONUC today posted a report from Reuters that police in the Democratic Republic of Congo have arrested two soldiers suspected of killing a journalist working for United Nations-sponsored Radio Okapi in the violent eastern Congo. MONUC is the UN sponsored peace-keeping mission in DRC. The report originated from Kinshahsa.

Serge Maheshe, a broadcaster for Radio Okapi since 2002, a nationwide radio network set up to aid the peace process in Congo after the 1998-2003 war, was shot on Wednesday in the South Kivu provincial capital of Bukavu. He has a wife and two children.

Maheshe, a respected journalist, had received death threats before, but U.N. officials said on Friday they still did not know if he was killed because of his work as a journalist.

"We have no evidence one way or the other. We know, at one time, he had a brush with the military but that seems to have been a personal dispute that escalated. We cannot yet say if it was politically motivated," Kemal Saiki, spokesman for the U.N. mission in Congo, said. He was the third journalist murdered in the former Belgian colony since 2005. Maheshe had in the past been involved in a dispute with members of the military, it was rumored.

"The police tracked down the group of assassins and seized the weapons used in the killing," General Gaston Luzembo, the police chief inspector for South Kivu, told Reuters. 

IFJ Condemns Shooting of Journalist in DRC; Killing Is Third in Two Years

This woman died and world press took no notice-- Copyright keith harmon snow

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) today condemned the killing of radio journalist Serge Maheshe, whose shooting yesterday evening in the eastern town of Bukavu made him the third journalist murdered in the country since November 2005.

Having recently returned from this area as a MONUC-accredited journalist, we can attest to the absolute lawlessness which exists in this region. This includes atrocities committed against the people of DRC by US, conservation and multi-national interests.

Journalists are trying mightily to get the message out about the absolute carnage in this part of the world and are paying the price.

“We are deeply disturbed by the killing of Serge Maheshe and the continuing danger journalists face in DRC,” said Gabriel Baglo, Director of the IFJ Africa Office. “We send our condolences to Serge’s family and we affirm our solidarity with his Radio Okapi colleagues as they continue their work despite the difficult environment.”

The IFJ also called on the  government to conduct a full and impartial investigation into Maheshe’s death. 

Maheshe, the local head of UN-backed Radio Okapi in the town of Bukavu was shot by two unidentified armed men in plainclothes in the street yesterday at around 9 PM local.

According to reports, Maheshe was coming from the home of a friend he had been visiting when he was killed. He was with two other friends who were not injured. Radio Okapi sources said they have no information on the reason for the killing.

Serge Maheshe is the first staff member of Radio Okapi killed since the radio station was set up in 2002 and the third journalist killed in DRC in two years.

On 3 November 2005 Franck Kangundu and his wife were killed just as they entered their home. Bapuwa Muamba was shot on 8 July 2006 by unidentified gunmen who broke into his home. In both of these cases suspects have been sentenced or are on trial but local sources say the real perpetrators are still on the loose.

The IFJ calls on the government to reopen both of these investigations so those who are truly responsible are brought to justice.

For further information contact the IFJ:  +221 842 01 43
The IFJ represents over 500,000 journalists in  more than 115 countries

See also reportage by keith harmon snow: www.allthingspass.com

Coleen Rowley for Congress...Er, Prophet

Stumbling to my computer on this hot, muggy June morning, I smiled as I saw an email from Coleen Rowley. She is the former 911 FBI whistleblower, Time Magazine Person of the Year, and I happily worked on her campaign for Congress last year. The email subject line said something about “rapture insurance” and I immediately thought Coleen was in one of her witty moods about policy, so I promptly clicked on the link she provided-- http://www.sovereigndeed.com/

I needed more than two sips of coffee as the ominous graphics rolled across the screen in Madison Avenue splendor. Security threat after security threat from bird flu to bombings to hurricanes seeped and morphed across the screen before segueing to the corporate logo of Sovereign Deed and how it would offer solutions to the harsh realities and down right scary things happening in the world. The symbolism was obvious, black and grey flash intro flowing into the white space and light of salvation.

Research Watchdog Demands Probation for Harvard and Vanderbilt

SAEN, a national research watchdog organization has demanded that the Association for the Assessment and Accreditation of Laboratory Animal Care (AAALAC) place Harvard Medical School and Vanderbilt University on probation for incidents of animal abuse and negligence.

At the heart of the controversy at Harvard are incidents where a monkey strangulated, a cat died due to inappropriate anesthesia, and a dog was neglected sufficiently to lose 20% of his/her body weight.

“A facility like the Harvard Medical School which has illustrated such a callously indifferent attitude to the well-being of animals should not be accredited by an organization that promotes the humane treatment of animals,” said Michael A. Budkie, A.H.T., Executive Director, SAEN.

According to government records these episodes, and others, have led to the Harvard Medical School piling up 46 violations of federal law in a three-year period, ending in 2006. The situation at Vanderbilt may be worse where 49 federal violations accrued within two years including incidents where an unauthorized surgery cut the eyes out of a bush baby’s head and another primate died of dehydration. Other abuses include depriving monkeys of water, paralyzing cats during experimentation, neglecting rabbits, and killing a ferret during an MRI procedure.

“Laboratories such as Harvard Medical School and Vanderbilt who abuse animals so severely clearly have no regard whatsoever for animal welfare, or proper scientific procedures,” added Budkie.

The government records and the AAALAC demand letter are available upon request.

Gorillas and the Myths

 

In January of 2007, OpEdNews was the only place in the world that printed rebel leader Laurent Nkunda’s denial of involvement in the slaughter of gorillas in Virunga National Park, Democratic Republic of Congo. Conservation organizations were falling all over themselves, pointing a collective finger at Nkunda, and we were criticized for allowing him to speak.

Several weeks later in Goma, DRC, we sat at a table with Robert Muir of the Frankfurt Zoological Society (FZS) and Robert Poppe, our logistics contact, as they clearly discussed that they “had Nkunda where they wanted him.” And where was that, exactly? What in the world are British “conservationists” doing meddling in regional politics?

Now, it is the local Mai Mai who are in the cross-hairs of conservation organizations’ press releases. Consider recent mis-information that is being propagated by the mainstream press with absolutely no vetting whatsoever. The following “facts” were gleaned from press releases supplied by WildLifeDirect, the Gorilla Organization (Formerly DFGF-E) and interviews with press offers from Conservation Groups.

From Reuters to the BBC to the Voice of America to obscure gorilla discussion forums, the lead paragraph from the latest gorilla story, datelined Kinshasa, May 21, 2007, read EXACTLY the same in every venue: “Congolese militia are threatening to slaughter rare mountain gorillas in Congo’s Virunga National Park after they raided the eastern reserve at the weekend, killing a wildlife officer, officials said.”

“The attackers have threatened to kill the gorillas if the rangers retaliate and once again this gorilla population’s future is threatened,” reads the report from the Gorilla Organization.”

The mis-information gets worse.

“About 200 of the Mayi-Mayi fighters who remain active after Congo's ruinous 1998-2002 civil war attacked three posts Sunday in Virunga National Park, Wildlife Direct said in a statement. One ranger died and three were injured in the attack, said the group, which is active in the area,” writes a stringer from Nigeria, whose story was picked up by the AP.

The truth is buried on an obscure blog supported by WildLifeDirect. It is purportedly written by a ranger from the Advance Ranger Force (a conservation militia funded by WildLifeDirect), but we were told while in DRC that these blogs are not written by the rangers at all, but by a press officer. If the press officers for these organizations know the truth of the matter, where are the corrections?