Regional
DRC ambassador herds gorillas, chimpanzees into UNSC
In
an un-precedented diplomatic gaffe, the other day DRC Permananent
Representattive to the UN, Georges Nzongola Ntalaja accused Rwanda of fueling
un-rest by supporting a militia group and stealing gorillas and chimpanzees
from the DRC to Rwanda. And he said it all with a straight face. I could not
contain my amusement.
Speaking
to a friend in the diplomatic corps who attended the session and listened to the
presentation, he told me that ”it was so sad and embarrassing to watch.”
Ambassador
Ntalaja also vehemently accused Rwanda of plundering the DRC’s natural
resources, especially gold and cobalt. Attempting to support his ridiculous
accusations, he stated that there was a UN report — but a senior moment found
him tongue-tied — he could not remember the title of the report.
Time
and time again, the DRC leadership has blamed its weakness and corruption on
Rwanda, but the world knows better. For three decades there has not been peace
in the DRC, from one president to another. The economy is in shambles, and
millions of Congolese have died from famine and preventable diseases, not to
mention out of control armed conflicts that the government in Kinshasa has
failed to contain. Millions have died while more live in refugee camps under
deplorable conditions that the Tshisekedi administration has failed to address.
But,
let me address this monkey business of Rwanda stealing DRC’s gorillas and
chimpanzees. I am embarrassed to address this subject, but since it became a
subject of debate in the most august forum of diplomacy I must shed some light.
Monkey
is among delicacies on bushmeat menu in the DRC. When it comes to figuring out
what animals qualify as food in the DRC, most people there follow a simple,
un-spoken rule: IF IT CAN MOVE, IT CAN BE EATEN.
But
such carefree culinary spirits, though, make wildlife conservationists shudder
— particularly in the DRC, where a thriving bushmeat trade is threatening to
wipe out some species. At great risk are great apes found only in the DRC —
eastern lowland gorillas and bonobos, or pygmy chimpanzees.
It
is estimated that a few thousand commercial bushmeat hunters supported by the
timber industry infrastructure will illegally shoot and butcher more that $2
billion worth of wildlife this year, including as many as 8,000 endangered
great apes, according to the California-based Bushmeat Project.
No,
Mr Ambassador think again.
According
to the World Bank, per capita annual income in the DRC averages $100 a year. By
contrast, bush-meat hunters can earn up to $1,000 annually. Sad to say, in the
DRC profound poverty and years of conflict have deprived most of the option to
be picky.
The
good Ambassador accuses Rwanda of plundering the DRC’s mineral resources.
Bunkum.
The
culprit is China. Chinese state-owned and private companies have been
purchasing and processing minerals obtained from partisan sources in Katanga
and elsewhere since the 1990s. In 2008, a US$8 billion
resources-for-infrastructure deal was signed between a consortium of Chinese
State Construction companies and the DRC’s state-owned company Gecamines.
Not
long ago, a community of 300 families was forcibly evicted from Luisha when the
Chinese mining company CIMCO acquired rights to their land. The villagers were
never compensated.
Mr
Ambassador, you want to to know who is milking the DRC and plundering your
mineral resources look at European and Asian companies, including Bangkok-based
THAISARCO, a subsidiary of British metals group AMC. Look at UK-based AFRIMEX.
Look at Belgium-based TRADEMET. These are the companies that are funding armed
groups and fueling conflict. And none are paying a penny in taxes
For
your information, THAISARCO, the world’s fifth largest tin producing company,
their main supplier, Panju sells cassiterite and coltan from mines controlled
by the FDLR — the goons who planned and executed the genocide against Tutsi in
Rwanda in 1994.
Mr Ambassador: give me a break. Get off your high horse, do your homework and leave this childish talk accusing Rwanda for your government’s ineptitude where it belongs. In the trash bin.