Update from the Field: Democratic Republic of Congo, Refugees International

From DRC, Unfiltered: Notes from Kinshasa

Wed, 08/04/2010 - 11:59 I'm writing to you from our hotel lobby, running on three hours of sleep, with my second Nescafé of the afternoon in hand. So forgive me if I sound tired. Why only three hours of sleep, you ask? Well, my colleague, Erin, and I had to get to the airport by 5:00am this morning in order to attempt to board a UN flight to eastern Congo. Unfortunately, due to the limited number of outbound flights and the overwhelming demand for an extremely limited number of seats, we were unable to make it on board. However, we were lucky enough to get tickets for the flight out tomorrow. Although getting "lucky" means we'll have to endure another 4:00 am wakeup call. C'est la vie.

We've taken advantage of the extra time here in Kinshasa (we've now been here for five full days) to primarily meet with UN officials to discuss the latest changes to the UN's peacekeeping mandate here in DRC, and the impact of those changes on Congolese civilians. While I have enjoyed my time in Kinshasa, I have to admit, I am looking forward to heading east to carry out our meetings and field interviews with humanitarian organizations, displaced Congolese people, local NGOs, UN field staff, and other members of the so-called international community.

I should probably stop here and tell you that this is my first field mission with RI. In fact, it's my first time traveling to the African continent.

Now, I'm not going to sit here and promise that I'll be able to offer up any particularly astute observations during my time in DR Congo, but I can promise to share with you my unfiltered, un-spun experiences and impressions along the way. My expert colleague, RI's senior peacekeeping advocate, Erin Weir, is here to lead the mission, and to balance out our team's level of country-expertise (she has been to DRC several times.)

Like any other RI mission, the goal of our trip is to find ways to improve the situation on the ground for those Congolese civilians who have been displaced from their homes to due to conflict. We will return to Washington and New York in a few weeks, and compile our findings from our meetings and interviews here in DRC into a 4-page report, detailing key recommendations for policymakers in Washington, New York, and Kinshasa.

Given my congressional background, one of my priorities on this trip will be to examine and call attention to ongoing initiatives here in DR Congo - particularly in the areas of security and justice sector reform - that the U.S. should consider bolstering, alongside its support for the peacekeeping mission. Given the increasing likelihood that the roughly 20,000 strong peacekeeping force will be withdrawn in the next few years, it is critical that the U.S. start stepping up its commitment to the Congolese people now, working alongside the international community to ensure that Congolese security and judicial authorities and institutions are properly trained, equipped, and paid to best serve the population whom they are responsible for protecting.

Enough on our mission for now. I'll post from the east in the coming days.

For those interested, a few quick/fun (not necessarily mission-related) observations from our time in Kinshasa:

1) President Kabila is HUGE here. He may not have a political base in Kinshasa, but his presence in this city is literally enormous, in the form of 100-ft. posters and billboards, plastered all over the city.

2) 50 Cent, aka Curtis James Jackson, the NY rap artist, is playing a show in Kinshasa at the end of this month.

3) There is no doubt that China is investing heavily in roads here. The city's main transport artery, "Boulevard du 30 Juin," was recently renovated by the Chinese. It's now 8-lanes wide! See blogger Texas in Africa's recent post for more on this issue. Surprise, surprise, it's controversial.

4) When it comes to food, trust your well-traveled friends when they tell you to "Peel it, boil it, cook it, or forget it." It's for your own good.

RI's Congressional / Peacekeeping Associate Matt Pennington will be blogging regularly, when he has internet, as he embarks on his first Refugees International assessment in DR Congo with Senior Advocate for Peacekeeping Erin Weir. Follow Matt's posts and learn more about our work from the field.