Bishop visit maternity in the Congo after being bombarded: it was a miracle who did not die more babies

The crisis in the northeast of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (RDC) continues to aggravate. M23 militiamen, the main armed organization among hundred active rebel groups in the region, move towards Bukavu, the capital of Kivu del Sur.

At the end of January, the M23 bombarded for three days the city of rubber, a city of 1,600,000 inhabitants on the border with Rwanda, currently under its domain. However, sources of resistance of Congolese soldiers and their allies still persist.

This conflict, enchanted in the African country for more than 30 years, has left a trail of death and devastation. The United Nations Mission in the RDC (Monusco) estimates that the last clashes have caused at least 3,000 dead, but according to the Bishop of rubber, Mons. Willy Ngumembi Nganggele, the real figure is even greater.

In an interview with ACI PRENDA, Mons. NGUMBI describes the serious humanitarian crisis unleashed by violence: “Many people have died. Dozens of buildings have been destroyed, including schools and hospitals. The situation is terrible: there is no food, no water, or electricity. People have no money, banks are still closed. It is a serious problem for parents to get food. ”

The Bishop of rubber was in Brussels when the capital of Kivu Norte fell into the hands of the M23, visiting the headquarters of the EU Episcopal Conference Commission (Eat).

He immediately returned to the country, landing in Kinshasa on January 28 and arriving by road to rubber on February 3, since the city airport remains closed, preventing the evacuation of injured and the arrival of humanitarian aid.

The bombings have reached several structures managed by the Catholic Church, such as the maternity of the Hospital of Rubber Charity, which was the first thing that Mons. Ngumebi visited after his return from Europe.

“One of the bombs fell into the Neonatology Unit. Mothers are traumatized. I told myself that it was a miracle that they have not died more newborns, ”he says.

A call to peace: the social pact

In the midst of violence, the prelate has sought paths for peace. Last Wednesday, along with representatives of other Christian churches, met with the M23 dome, three weeks after rubber occupation.

In that meeting with Corneille Nangaa, political coordinator of the Congo River Alliance (AFC)/m23, Mons. Ngume Pacific coexistence in the region of the great lakes.

“You have to get out of fratricidal logic and subordinate all interests to that of peace,” he says.

It also underlines the importance of dialogue to prevent conflict from extending to other countries, such as Burundi, which could trigger a regional crisis.

“If we propose this inclusive dialogue, it is precisely to avoid the globalization of the conflict,” he warns.

“The rebels are our brothers”

For Mons. Nugmbi, M23 militiamen should not be seen only as enemies, since they are part of the community.

“Even when we talk about M23, AFC or government, we are all brothers. The young people of the M23 are young people from our neighborhoods, ”he says.

Therefore, he insists on the need to find a form of harmonious coexistence: “We must find a way that people can live together in happiness, not in the conflict.”

It also highlights the deep interdependence between the peoples of the region: “We are all brothers in this region. It is enough to see the relations between Ruandes and Congoleños: marriages, economic exchanges … ”.

In this sense, the Bishop of rubber calls on political leaders to look for peaceful solutions:

“It is important that our rulers and authorities feel to negotiate and wonder what is not working. Why do we have to be at war all the time? It is urgent to restore peace in this region. ”

The economic background of the conflict

Mons. Ngugi does not ignore that behind Rwanda’s support for M23, economic interests are found, especially the exploitation of abundant mineral resources of the east of the Congo.

“We cannot forget that the root of the conflict is, in large part, the exploitation of the natural resources of the Congo,” he denounces.

In any case, he criticizes the paradox that the RDC, a country immensely rich in resources, has a population mired in poverty due to war: “It is a penalty that we have such a rich country and such a impoverished population, precisely because of of conflicts ”.

Displaced and humanitarian crisis

The M23 offensive has forced thousands of people to flee from their homes. The irruption of the rebels in rubber at the end of January also caused the exit of hundreds of humanitarian workers, since many NGOs have their bases in the city.

In improvised camps, displaced people live in inhuman conditions. “They have no food or water because they had to flee with what they save their lives,” denounces the bishop.

Therefore, he asks the international community not to leave the Congolese people: “It is not time to leave us alone. It is time to be present with us. To those who have gone, I ask them to return, hoping that the conflict is a thing of the past and that we move towards peace. ”