1. The Congo is a central storehouse of strategic
minerals for the functioning of modern society, particularly
as it relates to the mining and technology sectors. We
must demand that foreign countries and corporations implement
humane policies toward the Congo.
2. The Congo sits in the heart of Africa
and is bordered by NINE other countries,
therefore as the Congo goes so does the rest of Africa.We
must work with the Congolese and other Africans to make sure
that the Congolese and NOT external forces
determine the future direction of their country.
3. The Congo has a history of being pillaged
and the people being used as fodder in a rush for natural
resources. The Belgian king, Leopold II, ruled over a death
chamber from 1885 - 1908, when conservative estimates put
the number of Congolese dying as a result of Leopold's personal
rule at 10 million. During Leopold's
era the resources at the root of the suffering of the Congolese
were ivory and rubber, today it is coltan, tin, diamonds,
gold and copper to name a few. We must put a stop to
mass murders in the quest for riches. To profit at the expense
of the people is destructive to the human spirit.
4. Western nations under the auspices of
the cold war assassinated an elected nationalist leader (Patrice
Lumumba) and put in place a brutal dictator (Mobutu Sese Soko)
and propped him up for 37 years while he brutalized the Congolese
people and systematically stole the riches of the country.
Surely, these nations have an obligation to make sure
that international networks and actors refrain from undermining
genuine Congolese leadership aiming to create a decent way
of life for the average Congolese.
5. The rapes, slaughter and savagery being
committed in the Congo are affronts to the human conscience.
Every individual and leader in the global community should
be ashamed and outraged that we have allowed an estimated
6 million Congolese to die since
1996 as a result of a resource war. As human beings
in a so-called civilized world, we can and must do better.
