The Congolese journalist and activist Caddy Adzuba, 2014 Princess of Asturias Award for Concord, denounced Tuesday that the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is plunged into a «catastrophic» situation caused by an «economic war with multinationals behind».
At an event held in Madrid and organized by the NGO Entreculturas, Adzuba warned that the Congolese population is being exploited, including women and children, to «extract all possible minerals, especially coltan», so that Europeans can manufacture cell phones and computers, among other products.
«I give the example of Belgium, a country that does not have especially many natural resources and does not produce much, but is considered a rich country. But why and at whose expense? The answer is clear: there are people who have decided to go to African countries to implement a strategy to destabilize the population and take advantage of it as much as possible,» he said, before pointing out that «coincidentally, wars occur in the African countries that are richest in natural resources».
In this sense, he pointed out that there are countries with fewer resources of this type and which «do not present major conflicts». For this reason, he stressed that these are «economic wars backed by multinationals» although these «are not directly in the front line».
«Multinationals finance those wars that are in their interest. For example, the country consists of 27 provinces and not all of them are at war. There are some that are, precisely the richest ones, and there are others where there is no conflict. But unfortunately, where I come from there is constant war. We have been living this situation since I was 14 years old», he lamented before pointing out that millions have died as a result of the conflict in the east of the country.
He also warned that nearly one million women have been raped, an approximate figure that could be higher. «It is a decimated country» despite the fact that it possesses «immeasurable natural resources», such as gold, coltan, uranium or diamonds.
«We sacrifice ourselves so that Europeans can live in opulence, so that they can have their telephones, their computers, so that they can build buildings,» he stressed while condemning the strong prejudices that exist with respect to the different countries of Africa and the continuous exploitation of their resources.
Adzuba rejected that it is really a war between Africans and clarified that it is «a war that Europe is carrying out in Africa». «There are many multinationals with their eye on mining and the eastern part of the country is richer than the west. In order to enter such a large country you have to ally with neighboring countries. Countries like France and Germany are also behind all this,» he explained.
In relation to the increase in clashes between the army and members of the March 23 Movement (M23) militia, which have intensified in recent months, he clarified that those seeking war in the country «have used the ethnic aspect». «They have taken an ethnic minority and formed an armed military group, the M23. That is the main group waging war in the east,» he added.
The activist, who recalled that some 100,000 people have had to be displaced due to the armed conflict, has pointed to the Rwandan Army as the main support of the rebels. «The Democratic Republic of Congo is a country that has been suffering from war for more than 20 years and that right now cannot buy weapons to defend itself, so its government is in a very fragile situation,» she said.
«The objective of the war is not in itself to conquer the country but to have control over these natural resources, such as oil and gas, and to control the eastern zone, which is precisely the area where these resources can be exploited. This is the objective of the armed group, but they are not going to be the ones in charge of exploiting these resources, but the multinationals that support them and countries like the United States or France, the usual ones», he asserted.
THE SITUATION OF WOMEN Adzuba also drew attention to the terrible situation of women in the country, where «the war is carried out in their bodies», as she said. «Many armed groups act with the sole objective of spreading terror among local communities,» she said.
Thus, he has urged to «put names to the victims of sexual violence and rape», given that «sometimes the figures are not sufficiently faithful to reality». «If we speak of mutilation, we speak of the atrocity experienced by the women who suffer it,» she said, before explaining that «we no longer speak of rape but of feminicide.
«They insert bottles, grenades and knives into the vulvas of these women. In the case of pregnant women it is worse, they open their wombs and take out the fetus. These are facts (…) and it is very hard to tell these kinds of stories», she assured, although she emphasized that these women «are no longer victims but survivors». «They have turned the feeling of hopelessness into just the opposite,» she added.
Regarding the migratory flow caused by the war, she pointed out that it is «totally legitimate that there are women who decide to leave their country in search of international protection to live free of violence, peacefully and in freedom». «There are many reasons that lead people to leave. In this case they are women who have been mutilated, raped, forced to marry…. There may be compelling reasons that lead them to leave (…), and these women move in search of protection», said Adzuba, who called on us to «consider how to welcome these people».
The M23 has been accused since November 2021 of carrying out attacks against Army positions in the province of North Kivu despite the fact that the Congolese authorities and the M23 signed in December 2013 a peace agreement after the fighting recorded since 2012 with the Army, which was supported by UN troops.
Relations between DRC and Rwanda have gone through moments of crisis since the massive arrival in eastern DRC of Rwandan Hutus accused of having massacred Tutsis during the 1994 Rwandan genocide. After a period of diplomatic relaxation, the conflict regained intensity in May, when the Congolese government summoned the Rwandan ambassador to denounce the country’s alleged support for the M23.
Rwanda, however, continues to deny that it is providing support to the M23, while the United Nations and the United States are convinced of the links between Rwanda and this organization, direct heir of successive rebel movements rooted in the 1994 Rwandan genocide.
