World Tour: Flooding in Congo

MARY REICHARD, HOST: Coming up next on The World and Everything in It: WORLD Tour with our reporter in Africa, Onize Ohikere.

ONIZE OHIKERE, REPORTER: We begin today in the Democratic Republic of Congo where floods have killed at least 169 people.

AUDIO: [Women crying]

Floodwaters submerged major roads in the capital city of Kinshasa last week, and a landslide cut off a major supply route.

The country observed three days of national mourning.

AUDIO: [Speaking Lingala]

This affected resident said the rain destroyed her home and neighborhood, leaving families to sleep outdoors.

AUDIO: [Water rushing]

Kinshasa has seen a huge population influx in recent years. Some 12 million people now live in the city. Many residents have built shanty homes on flood-prone slopes. Kinshasa also lacks adequate drainage and sewage.

Peru protests — Next, to Peru, where political protests continue.

AUDIO: [Protesters chanting]

Protesters are still calling for the release of former president Pedro Castillo. Authorities detained him after his impeachment two weeks ago.

Recently appointed President Dina Boluarte pushed for earlier elections to quell the unrest, but Congress voted against it. Boluarte says she will not step down, and is asking lawmakers instead to reconsider.

The state human rights agency has reported at least 20 deaths and more than 560 injuries. Last week, soldiers protecting the terminal at the airport in Ayacucho opened fire on protesters.

AUDIO: [Speaking Spanish]

This 22-year-old said she came to downtown Lima to call for peace to return to her country.

Meanwhile, the simmering unrest halted transportation and stranded some 4,500 tourists in the country, including Americans. Many of them were in the ancient city of Machu Picchu.

Peter Cambler was among the stranded tourists.

CAMBLER: Then we got back to town, the news broke that the protests were causing trouble, our flights were canceled.

Authorities have coordinated evacuation plans for the tourists and insist the protests are diminishing in intensity.

Nicaragua bishop —— Next, to Nicaragua.

AUDIO: [Choir singing]

Christians there are praying for a Catholic bishop who is now facing charges of conspiracy and propagating false news.

Authorities detained Rolando Álvarez, the bishop of Matagalpa, back in August.

Álvarez heard the formal charges during an unannounced court date last week. The court statement also requested that Interpol issue an alert for the arrest of another priest facing similar accusations.

Leopoldo Brenes is the archbishop of Managua.

AUDIO: [Speaking Spanish]

He says here he has visited Alvarez, who told him about his tranquility and inner peace.

Tensions between President Daniel Ortega’s government and the Catholic Church have grown since 2018 when authorities clamped down on anti-government protests.

World Cup end — We wrap up today at the now concluded World Cup.

AUDIO: [Cheers and fireworks]

Cheers and fireworks rang through the night on Sunday after Argentina defeated France.

The tense game gripped audiences across the world before ending in a dramatic round of penalties.

As crowds of Argentines gathered back home in Buenos Aires to celebrate the victory…similar chants of joy rang out elsewhere.

AUDIO: [Cheering fans]

Venezuelan migrants along the U.S.-Mexico border crowded around a television to watch the final match. And in Shanghai, soccer fans gathered inside a bar to watch the game after authorities lifted COVID-19 restrictions in recent weeks.

This football fan said it was good to see a lot of people out.

AUDIO: There was a huge line outside so I was quite surprised to see that. We were standing in line for half an hour.

That’s it for this week’s World Tour. Reporting for WORLD, I’m Onize Ohikere in Abuja, Nigeria.

EICHER: I’d like to let you know about Onize’s World Tour newsletter, so you can keep up on international news right in your inbox. Just head over to WNG.org/newsletters and there you can sign up for the weekly World Tour newsletter, among our many others. WNG.org/newsletters, good stuff and it’s free.

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