A few people have written e-mails asking me if have i met Hutu`s and Tutsi`s in the Congo. So I just thought I would write a little piece to explain the complexity of the political situation in Eastern Congo and why I have not met any Hutu`s and Tutsi`s. It makes my head spin a little but I will give it a go.
Isiro, where I am based, is located in Haut Uele Province and there are many tribes in this area. All living peacefully alongside each other, it seems. Of course, this region is now suffering because of the LRA attacks. Especially as you head further North towards the town of Dungu
Medair`s main base in the Congo is in a town called Bunia, in the Ituri Province. The two main ethnic groups in this area are the Hema and Lendu people. The conflict in Rwanda between the Hutu and Tutsi people is now well known throught the world, after the genocide in 1994 and events since. People tend to know much less about the conflict between the Hema and Lendu tribes, which was at its height in North Eastern Congo between 1998 and 2007.
If you head further south to the Kivu provinces, North and South, this is where you will find the ethnic hutu and tutsi people living. The FDLR (Democratic Force for the Liberation of Rwanda) are now the prominent hutu force in this area. Some of the guys fighting for this militia fled Rwanda after committing the atrocities in the genocide, they are formerly known as the Interhamwe. Others have joined as well.
In recent times the CNDP (National Congress for the Defence of the People), have also been operating in the Kivu`s. They are Tutsi rebels, apparently protecting the tutsi population. Their infamous leader, Laurent Nkunda, is an ordained Christian minister! In a famous piece of political manoeuvering, he was arrested in Rwanda in January.
As you can see its pretty complex. There are many other abbreviations as well. FARDC are the Congolese army, UPDF is the Ugandan military. I could go on...and you also have to think about the abundant supply of natural resources in the DR Congo and who wants to control what...that discussion is for another day. I can`t think of many other parts of the world which need the transforming power of Jesus as much as this forgotten part of Central Africa.
I have added the map as well, so you can see how the geography fits.
Isiro, where I am based, is located in Haut Uele Province and there are many tribes in this area. All living peacefully alongside each other, it seems. Of course, this region is now suffering because of the LRA attacks. Especially as you head further North towards the town of Dungu
Medair`s main base in the Congo is in a town called Bunia, in the Ituri Province. The two main ethnic groups in this area are the Hema and Lendu people. The conflict in Rwanda between the Hutu and Tutsi people is now well known throught the world, after the genocide in 1994 and events since. People tend to know much less about the conflict between the Hema and Lendu tribes, which was at its height in North Eastern Congo between 1998 and 2007.
If you head further south to the Kivu provinces, North and South, this is where you will find the ethnic hutu and tutsi people living. The FDLR (Democratic Force for the Liberation of Rwanda) are now the prominent hutu force in this area. Some of the guys fighting for this militia fled Rwanda after committing the atrocities in the genocide, they are formerly known as the Interhamwe. Others have joined as well.
In recent times the CNDP (National Congress for the Defence of the People), have also been operating in the Kivu`s. They are Tutsi rebels, apparently protecting the tutsi population. Their infamous leader, Laurent Nkunda, is an ordained Christian minister! In a famous piece of political manoeuvering, he was arrested in Rwanda in January.
As you can see its pretty complex. There are many other abbreviations as well. FARDC are the Congolese army, UPDF is the Ugandan military. I could go on...and you also have to think about the abundant supply of natural resources in the DR Congo and who wants to control what...that discussion is for another day. I can`t think of many other parts of the world which need the transforming power of Jesus as much as this forgotten part of Central Africa.
I have added the map as well, so you can see how the geography fits.
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