By: Gerald Acho, HIPSIR
The Catholic Church has often spoken truth to the face of authoritarian rule worldwide. We have great examples such as the liberation theology of South America with notable church leaders including Óscar Arnulfo Romero Galdámez, the fourth Archbishop of San Salvador, who spoke against the injustices of the times. He was assassinated by the military while celebrating the Eucharist. On the African continent, the Catholic Church has also been involved social transformation, along with civil societies. In Zambia in the 1990s, for example, the Church was instrumental in demanding democratic reforms; Cardinal Maurice Michael Otunga and his successor Archbishop Ndingi Mwana Nzeki of Nairobi were outspoken during about the democratization process in Kenya. In Cameroon, Togo, Chad, Uganda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Catholic Church has remained one of the few voices speaking truth to power on behalf of the powerless and voiceless citizens. The ability of the church to stand for truth has, at times, put church leaders in difficult situations with governments.
A recent IRIN news article highlighted the key mediation role that the Catholic Church has played in the Democratic Republic of Congo’s complex history. In the example highlighted in this IRIN article, the Democratic Republic of Congo was slated to hold elections in 2016, after Kabila’s two constitutional terms of office. Unfortunately for the Congolese people, the dream of getting a new president ended when Kabila delayed the election on the claim that there were challenges with registering voters. Kabila’s position was contested by opposition parties whose leaders warned that the population would be forced to take matters into their own hands if the government failed to take care of the electoral quandary. On December 31, 2017, many Congolese lost their lives during political protests against Kabila’s failure to organize elections. Local and international observers believe that Kabila is delaying the elections to buy himself time and manipulate the constitution by removing the term limit.
The Catholic Church is a strong institution in DRC with an estimated 32 million followers out of 80 million Congolese population. It has been at the forefront of this political crisis, trying to mediate between Kabila and the opposition. Given the lack of goodwill between the conflicting parties, and the increasingly clear fact that Kabila does not want to leave power, the Church’s mediation efforts have thus far proved to be in vain. Therefore, the Lay Committee for Coordination [Comite Laic de Coordination] organized nonviolent protests in December, January, and February that have been brutally repressed by the police and the military. Cardinal Laurent Monsengwo Pasinya reacted to police brutality affirming that such actions by the government were illegitimate. He added that “it is time that truth win out over systematic lies, that mediocre leaders stand down, and that peace and justice reign.”
The fear amongst Congolese today is that Kabila wants to seek to remain in office indefinitely since he has not publicly stated his intention to step down. With the security forces on his side, the situation worsens, with people disappearing without a trace and others being killed because of their political positions. President Kabila has also responded to the church leaders to focus on their job of evangelization while allowing politics to politicians as he stated: “We must not mix the two [religion and politics], because the results will be negative.”
Kabila has never demonstrated sympathy for those killed during the protests since 2016 nor has he condemned the actions of the police. His ability to control the police force and the army, the intelligence services, the justice system, and even the opposition through bribery has weakened the institutions, making it difficult for opposition to present a united front. The government of Kabila has no regard for the international community and has continuously violated human rights even after condemnations from the international community. The United Nations Secretary General has called on the government of Kabila to investigate the killings of protesters, but the government has been adamant to the call. As the elections continue to delay, so will the misery of the people. Unless elections are organized as soon as possible, the crisis in DRC appears like it will only get worse.
Original article published by IRIN and available to read in full here: https://www.irinnews.org/analysis/2018/02/01/praying-change-congo-catholic-church-takes-kabila?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=irinsocial&utm_campaign=irinupdates
Featured Image: Vanaga DRC church by Ken Wiegand via Wikimedia
