Humanitarian Crisis in Congo
Laura Vassalli 7118763
Professor Alison Brysk
Global Studies 111
12 December 2012
HUMANITARIAN CRISIS IN CONGO
The conflict in Congo is one of the worst of our contemporary history in terms of casualties and human rights violations. Since the beginning of the civil war in 1996 about 5.400.000 million people died. “The wars in that country have claimed nearly the same number of lives as having a 9/11 every single day for 360 days, the genocide that struck Rwanda in 1994, the ethnic cleansing that overwhelmed Bosnia in the mid-1990s, the genocide that took place in Darfur, the number of people killed in the great tsunami that struck Asia in 2004, and the number of people who died in Hiroshima and Nagasaky- all combined and then doubled” (Vava Tampa, “Why the world is ignoring Congo”, CNN, 27 November 2012.) Congolese people face a deep humanitarian crisis. The infant mortality rate is impressive and people who survive have to fight against terrible conditions of life and escape from human rights abuses that are committed by military forces. The humanitarian crisis has its roots in the war between the M23 rebel group and the National Congolese Army, a war that began as spillover from the Rwanda genocide in 1994. Both the M23 group and the National Congolese Army are supported by Rwanda 's political groups, Tutsi and Hutu, which use the conflict in Congo to reinforce their power. In addition, local militias fight in order to obtain control over the population and resources. Extreme poverty and economic underdevelopment characterize the country. “Living conditions in the country have become the worst in the world, according to the most recent Index of Human Development” (Severine Autesserre, “The Only Way to Help Congo”, New York Times, 22 June 2012) Because of the poverty and the tensions among society it is hard to envisage an end to the civil war. Military control over the territory, civil war, economic inequality and divided culture create the conditions for
Professor Alison Brysk
Global Studies 111
12 December 2012
HUMANITARIAN CRISIS IN CONGO
The conflict in Congo is one of the worst of our contemporary history in terms of casualties and human rights violations. Since the beginning of the civil war in 1996 about 5.400.000 million people died. “The wars in that country have claimed nearly the same number of lives as having a 9/11 every single day for 360 days, the genocide that struck Rwanda in 1994, the ethnic cleansing that overwhelmed Bosnia in the mid-1990s, the genocide that took place in Darfur, the number of people killed in the great tsunami that struck Asia in 2004, and the number of people who died in Hiroshima and Nagasaky- all combined and then doubled” (Vava Tampa, “Why the world is ignoring Congo”, CNN, 27 November 2012.) Congolese people face a deep humanitarian crisis. The infant mortality rate is impressive and people who survive have to fight against terrible conditions of life and escape from human rights abuses that are committed by military forces. The humanitarian crisis has its roots in the war between the M23 rebel group and the National Congolese Army, a war that began as spillover from the Rwanda genocide in 1994. Both the M23 group and the National Congolese Army are supported by Rwanda 's political groups, Tutsi and Hutu, which use the conflict in Congo to reinforce their power. In addition, local militias fight in order to obtain control over the population and resources. Extreme poverty and economic underdevelopment characterize the country. “Living conditions in the country have become the worst in the world, according to the most recent Index of Human Development” (Severine Autesserre, “The Only Way to Help Congo”, New York Times, 22 June 2012) Because of the poverty and the tensions among society it is hard to envisage an end to the civil war. Military control over the territory, civil war, economic inequality and divided culture create the conditions for
Bibliography: http://www.cnn.com/2012/11/27/opinion/congo-war-ignored-vava-tampa/index.html Chapters from Michael Goodhart, Human Rights- Politics and Practice.Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009.