DRC COMMUNITY MARKS NATIONAL GENOCIDE DAY - nbc

The Ambassador of the Democratic Republic of Congo to Namibia, Christian Katoto, joined Congolese in Namibia to pray and commemorate the National Day of Genocide.

Thousands of Congolese were killed and buried in mass graves since 1996 in what is known as 30 years of bloodshed in Eastern Congo.

The events in DRC, then Zaire, in 1996 marked the start of the first Congo war, triggered by the spillover of the 1994 Rwandan genocide, refugee movements, and systematic attacks on Hutu refugee camps.

The Congolese called for Rwanda to face accountability for the killings in the DRC.

Ambassador Katoto says the government is making commitments for truth and justice and protection of its people.

“Our government is doing everything to protect every citizen; we must end the cycle of armed groups and secure our borders and resources for the Congolese people's benefit first. The dignity of Congolese people must be respected without hesitation, and the development of those who kill must be without negotiation. So today we light a candle, which is here behind us, for every life we have lost. And tomorrow we rise to build the Congo they died hoping to see.”

The day is called 'Genocost'—a genocide for economic gain—because of its deliberate target of civilians, burning of villages, massacres, rapes, and the recruitment of children.

For 30 years, the Ambassador stated, the people of Congo have paid with their lives so that others can profit from their minerals.

“Congo is not for sale. Congo is not to be shared. And our President, head of state, His Excellency Felix Tshisekedi. Is fighting tooth and nail to ensure that not even one centimeter of national territory is balkanised. Our military forces, the FRDC, are fighting to protect our motherland and people.”

The President of the Congolese community in Namibia, Jonas Kabasele, reiterated that the wealth of their soil must build schools, hospitals, and roads and not war.

“We demand peace for the eastern DRC; that peace that we are asking for will only be a reality. With the involvement of SACU, the African Union and the United Nations, we call upon all these to take the responsibility; we know it is possible.”

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