Fragile peace in Congo

Editor's note: The following text is a transcript of a podcast story. To listen to the story, click on the arrow beneath the headline above.

MYRNA BROWN, HOST: Today is Thursday, July 24th.

Thank you for turning to WORLD Radio to help start your day.

Good morning. I’m Myrna Brown.

MARY REICHARD, HOST: And I’m Mary Reichard.

Coming next on The World and Everything in It: Peace in Africa.

It’s been four weeks now since President Trump brokered a peace deal between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and its eastern neighbor, Rwanda.

The agreement promises U.S. access to critical minerals. But more than that, it’s meant to bring an end to decades of deadly conflict between the Congo and Rwanda.

BROWN: Is this a turning point, or just another promise that’ll fall flat? That’s the question I asked two Congolese natives who’ve been waiting and hoping for peace their entire lives.

TRUMP: So we’re here today to celebrate a glorious triumph and that’s what it is for the cause of peace…

Friday, June 27th. President Trump, in the Oval Office, surrounded by cabinet members, reporters and two African leaders. The Democratic Republic of the Congo’s Foreign minister, Therese Kayikwamba Wagner…

CONGOLESE LEADER: First of all, thank you and congratulations indeed for this remarkable milestone….…

and the Foreign minister of Rwanda, Olivier Nduhungirehe.

RWANDAN LEADER: This is indeed a historical day….

This deal promises both countries will pursue peace and refrain from acts of aggression. But the people who have lived through decades of war and bloodshed aren’t sure promises on paper will ultimately make a difference. 33-year old Joel Kapapa is watching and listening to the press conference from his office in Kinshasa, the capital of the DRC.

JOEL KAPAPA: I’m deeply grateful to President Trump and his administration. He’s not saying let’s fight again. But he said let’s make peace. That’s the word that I wanted to hear.

Thousands of miles away from Kapapa, a 26-year-old graduate student takes a break from her studies in Massachusetts. She also leans into her screen.

CONGOLESE WOMAN: I don’t know what to think about this, but to be honest. I cannot judge now. Maybe something good will result from it. You just have to give it time.

Both grew up in the DRC and earned scholarships to study in the United States. But the two African scholars have very different experiences. The young Congolese woman, who does not want to reveal her identity, almost whispers when she speaks.

CONGOLESE WOMAN: Growing up whispering became like a language because of the fear. I don’t know how fear can move from one person to another. But it became something that we grew up in.

Her family was forced to leave their home in the eastern part of the Congo and fled to the southernmost part of the nation. She’s too young to remember that journey, but can quickly recall the stories passed down by her parents. The cousin, for instance, who led them safely through the dense forest…

CONGOLESE WOMAN: …And accidentally moved and he went on to the street and that’s how the rockets got him and he died.

The extremely sheltered life they lived even when they finally reached their new home.

CONGOLESE WOMAN: When we arrived in the southern states, my mother was always closing all our doors. We were not allowed to play outside.

And the nightly rocket attacks.

CONGOLESE WOMAN: We were sitting in the house and there was a rocket which hit my neighbor’s door and that woman was sitting at the door of the house and there was a light which came to her face and divided her face into two. So we went to rescue her but all her face was gone. There was only a head, no nose, no eyes. No lips.

Joel Kapapa was also a child when the conflict began in the DRC. After his graduate studies in the United States, he returned to the Congo to start a leadership center. Originally a colony of Belgium, the DRC achieved its independence in 1960. It’s primarily a Christian nation, Africa’s second largest country, and it’s rich in mineral wealth.

JOEL KAPAPA: Congolese are like beggars sitting on the mountain of gold. One thing I know for sure is that it's one of the richest countries in terms of natural resources that can contribute to making the world a better place, if it’s peaceful.

But peace in the nation has been elusive. The first Congo War began in 1996, two years after the Rwandan Genocide. That’s when Hutu extremists killed tens of thousands of Tutsis [toot-seez] and moderate Hutus in Rwanda. Kapapa says those who survived crossed the Congolese border and settled in the eastern part of the DRC.

JOEL KAPAPA: So they stayed there, but at a point they felt like they were marginalized and not considered Congolese and some of them started revolting.

A small subset of those refugees organized militias within the nation. That led to the 2nd Congo War in 1998, widely considered the deadliest since WORLD War II.

One of the most prominent rebel groups to emerge was the March 23 Movement, also known as the M23. A militant group led by ethnic Tutsis and believed to be backed by Rwanda. The M23 takes its name from a peace agreement that was signed with a previous Tutsi-led rebel group on March 23, 2009.

In January of this year, M23 rebels seized the city of Goma,in the eastern region of the DRC. Kapapa says the violence left hundreds dead, thousands injured and even more displaced.

JOEL KAPAPA: And it’s not possible to see in this world that people are treating human beings this way. Yeah, it’s really so sad, you know. Congo is one of the countries where it’s sad to be a woman.

Back in her dorm room, the young Congolese graduate student agrees and has one more story to tell.

CONGOLESE WOMAN: I remember one night in 2020. I know that my neighbors were victims because you could hear your neighbor’s windows being cracked and people begging for their lives. We always prayed that God would spare us from that.

She says God did. She crouched low in a corner of their tiny home and whispered the Lord’s prayer in Swahili.

CONGOLESE WOMAN: [Praying Lord’s prayer in Swahili]

Both the young Congolese woman and Joel Kapapa say they believe God will continue to answer their prayers for peace.

CONGOLESE WOMAN: Faith is what keeps me going and believing and hoping that maybe things will change.

JOEL KAPAPA: But I’m hopeful because I’m a child of God and I believe whatever things are impossible for man, with God it’s possible. I think the problem with Congo and Rwanda is not a physical thing. It’s a spiritual thing. That’s why I’m so convinced God is going to intervene.

Just days ago, the Congo government signed yet another agreement—this one with the militant group, M23. Under the terms, the two parties resolved to establish a ceasefire and make peace a priority.

WORLD Radio transcripts are created on a rush deadline. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of WORLD Radio programming is the audio record.