Congo
BY: BRANDON RUFFIN, DARIUS TOPPIN, AND LIAM BADIEE
Where it happened

Genocide killing as many as 4.5 million
people in the Democratic Republic of
Congo since 1996.

Today, much of the fighting is occurring in
North and South Kivu.

The Democratic Republic of Congo was
formally known as Zaire and is located in
central Africa.
Map of Democratic Republic of Congo
What happened
Picture of the horrible devastation

Two wars that resulted in a mass
genocide where more than five million
Congo civilians were massacred as a
result of multiple wars and conflicts.

A lot of civilians have also died from
preventable diseases due to lack of
food, clean water, and health care.

The collapse of infrastructure and
displacement of millions of villagers
have occurred as a result of these
wars.
Who it happened to

Villagers from Rwanda, Zimbabwe, Angola, Namibia, Chad, Libya,
Sudan and many other countries have been affected by the
genocide.

People fleeing Rwanda to escape the fighting (left below)

Congolese Tutsi warlord General Laurent Nkunda , who waged a
campaign to destroy Hutu rebels from the Democratic Forces for the
Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), accused the Congolese government
of backing the FDLR. (right below, picture of FDLR troops)

The war was between
the Tutsi and the Hutus.
Who initiated the genocide
FDLR Soldiers

The FDLR is made up of Rwandan Hutu
extremists who entered the Congo
following the 1994 Rwandan genocide
and has repeatedly attacked civilians
in South Kivu.

It has also been involved in the
recruitment of child soldiers as young
as seven years old.

Rwandan Tutsis are being killed by the
political elite, the Akazu.
Child Soldier
Why it happened

The first war in the Democratic Republic of
the Congo that started in 1996 happened
as a result of the genocide that took place
in Rwanda in 1994.

The second war occurred in 1998 and
involved multiple armed forces and militias.

The genocide started because of the wars,
over valuable resources such as water,
diamonds, coltan, uranium, tin, copper, and
timber.
Picture of Tutsi Rebels
Aftermath

In March 2006, rebel and militia soldiers from both
sides of the conflict were brought to trial on war
crimes.

On May 2008, Vice- President and former presidential
candidate Jean-Pierre Bemba, was arrested in Brussels
and sent to The Hague to face several counts of war
crimes and crimes against humanity.

The UN published a report in 2010 which outlined the
violations of human rights and the violations of the
laws against humanity.

The report also tried to implement a series of options
to deal with the aftermath of these crimes.

As soon as the villagers begin to feel safe, there is
another outbreak of violence somewhere in the
territory.
Picture of a refuge camp
Resolution





Map of DRC’s rich natural
resources
The Democratic Republic of Congo is a
country rich in resources such as tin, gold,
diamonds, uranium, copper, and oil.
The country will have to learn to manage
its natural resources and control its
internal turmoil if it is ever to turn its
situation around.
On 2006, President Joseph Kabila was reelected president.
Peace and Conflict Resolution (PCR)
wants to resolve the conflict at the
community level.
The DRC must gain control of minerals,
ethnic groups, and unpaid armies and
police. They must also combat the
spread of deadly diseases such as
dysentery. They need to protect women
and children against violence and rape.
Joseph Kabila, Reelected President
Congo in the present

Wars are still happening in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
While these wars occur more on the eastern side of the country, the
damage they cause is on a mass scale.

Since the beginning of the conflict, 5.4 million people have died.

The PCR has the following current and futures plans:
1. Conflict resolution skills training and seminars
2. Psychological support and counselling and as well as drama
workshops
3. Peer education
4. Drug abuse awareness and rehabilitation of those affected.
Flag of the Democratic
Republic of Congo
5. Entrepreneurial training and handcraft skills development to
help develop the country economically.
6. Increasing the awareness and advocacy in community
schools of children’s rights.
7. Sport activities & adult education programs
8. Both spiritual and traumatic healing.
What we can do to prevent
genocide

The U.N. Security Council and key government officials need an
Early Warning system to guard against and predict where ethnic
conflict and genocide are likely to occur, and to present policy
options on prevention and intervention.

The public must build a system to intervene non-violently before
genocide has a chance to start. Religious leaders should teach
peace-making, and should assemble councils to arbitrate religious
division.

The United Nations needs to be ready to act as soon as it
identifies wrong doing.

Although the world now has an International Criminal Court, those
guilty should not receive immunity for genocide, war crimes, and
crimes against humanity These criminals must be punished and
receive the maximum sentence for their wrong doing..
UN Symbol
Pledge Awareness

PLEDGEAGAINST GENOCIDE: (from the International Alliance to End Genocide website)

1. I pledge to do my part to end genocide: the intentional
destruction, in whole or in part, of a national, ethnical, racial, or
religious group.

2. I commit myself never to be a passive bystander to genocide
anywhere.

3. I promise to report any signs of the approach of a genocide to
government officials, to the press, and to organizations that can
take action to prevent it.
Pledge Awareness
PLEDGEAGAINST GENOCIDE: (continued)

4. I will protest the acts of planners and perpetrators of genocide. I will
not remain silent about their incitement of hate crimes, mass murders
and other acts of genocide.

5. I will assist the victims of genocide and will help them escape from
their killers. I will support the victims with humanitarian relief.

6. I will not stop my protests against a genocide until that genocide is
stopped.

7. I will support lawful measures to prevent, suppress and punish the
crime of genocide in accordance with the Genocide Convention.
Pledge Awareness

The person wanting to help pledges and writes his or her name,
address, telephone number, and signs the document.

He or she then sends the document to :
Genocide Watch
George Mason University, S-CAR
3351 N. Fairfax Dr. MS4D3
Arlington, VA 22201 USA

If we all do our part, we can stop genocide before it starts and
make sure that it does not happen again.
Works Cited

"Democratic Republic of the Congo « World Without Genocide Working to Create a World Without Genocide." Democratic
Republic of the Congo « World Without Genocide - Working to
Create a World Without Genocide. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Feb.
2016.http://www.ushmm.org/confront-genocide/cases/dr-congo

"Photos: Rwanda Genocide 20th Anniversary." Canadacom. N.p., 03
Apr. 2014. Web. 01 Feb. 2016.
http://worldwithoutgenocide.org/genocides-and-conflicts/congo

"D.R. Congo - United to End Genocide." United to End Genocide.
N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Feb. 2016.

"A Short History of the Rwandan Genocide." About.com Education.
N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Feb. 2016.
Works Cited

N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Feb. 2016.

"Yahoo." Yahoo Image Search. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Feb. 2016.
http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/spotlight/congoelections/2011/
11/20111123145031662172.html

N.p., n.d. Web.

"Democratic Republic of the Congo « World Without Genocide Working to Create a World Without Genocide." Democratic
Republic of the Congo « World Without Genocide - Working to
Create a World Without Genocide. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Feb. 2016.

"Yahoo." Yahoo Image Search. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Feb. 2016.
Works Cited

"Pictures+of+congo+villagers - Google Search."
Pictures+of+congo+villagers - Google Search. N.p., n.d. Web. 03
Feb. 2016.

"Image+of+international+alliance+to+end+genocide+logo - Google
Search." Image+of+international+alliance+to+end+genocide+logo Google Search. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Feb. 2016

"Picture+of+the+un+symbol - Google Search."
Picture+of+the+un+symbol - Google Search. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Feb.
2016.

"Democratic Republic of Congo." Democratic Republic of Congo.
N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Feb. 2016.