Breaking the Silence: International Action on the Congo

"As a Congolese living in the United States and hungry for news back home, I was thankful for the coverage," writes Kambale Musavuli of news last year of the slaying of four endangered gorillas in the DRC.

"But since my grandparents still live in East Congo, I would have also liked to have heard about some other recent breaking news items: women being raped, children being enslaved, men being killed, and many more horrors. I would like to hear about the nearly 6 million lives lost, half of them children under age 5 —that every month, 45,000 people continue to die in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC); that the scale of devastation in Darfur happens in the Congo every 5½ months."

Unsettled by the international silence on the atrocities in the DRC, Musavuli and his activist colleagues at Friends of the Congo (FOTC) organized "Breaking the Silence" (or "Congo Week") a global student-led initiative to highlight the horrific conflict in the DRC and call for international action to bring it to an end. Events run from October 19 - 25, spanning 20 countries on five continents.

Both the Congo Week websites have a wealth of information on events, as well as every resource you could possibly need to get involved yourself, from fact sheets and histories to curricula and suggested actions--a neatly-packaged, easy-to-use activist tool kit to set you well on your way.

Take action now: Commit to "Break the Silence" on the DRC. (Follow the link for additional resources.)

The blog-o-sphere is becoming increasingly vocal on the DRC. Of particular note:

• I can imagine some individuals of a seriously sensitive demeanor--or perhaps more likely, of a take-themselves-too-seriously demeanor--balking at the idea of a comedic take on atrocity. But if you can come to terms with laughing while reading about the most egregious human rights abuses imaginable--and you really should, because it takes serious skill to be this insightful and snarky at the same time--hilarity abounds at Wronging Rights. Kate Cronin-Furman put together the "WrongingRightsNotes™ - First and Second Congo Wars" to teach you "How to Become an Expert on the Congo in Just Five Minutes a Day." (All the better for sounding like it could be sold on QVC.)

• Feminist blog Mirabile Dictu points out the superficiality of international condemnations of the use of sexual violence as a tool of war in the DRC, and harps on UN's inability, and even unwillingness, to uphold its own commitments to protect women and punish perpetrators.

• Mark Christopher at Operation Broken Silence encourages support of the work of the International Rescue Committee in North Kivu Province. For another example of the response of aid groups  to the catastrophic humanitarian disaster in the DRC, check out Refugees International,