Victor NZUZI from Congolese Social Forum
Photograph of the demonstration in the streets of Lubumbashi on June 26, 2009 to say no
to the plundering of the resources of Congo. The demonstration took place on the occasion of the Second Congolese Social Forum, which was held from June 26 to June 29 in Lubumbashi, in the province of Katanga (towards Zambia). The first edition of the forum was held in Kinshasa in 2007.
The topics of the forum were: our natural resources, our rights, our dignity, let us liberate the word and build the Democratic Republic of Congo with our natural resources.
We organized the forum in this city and this area, because there are many mineral resources
-mainly copper, cobalt, uranium and coltan- which are currently being exploited by more than 200 enterprises. But the population remains very poor.
Large trucks are coming to get the raw minerals, to bring them to South Africa and from there to Asia (China, India), Europe and the USA.
ECOLOGICAL AND MEDICAL CONSEQUENCES
One finds in this area persons suffering from radioactivity and lung diseases. Because of the radioactivity children are born with deformations (two heads, three legs... monsters) and the children are in the mines with all the risks involved. Especially the women are getting raped.
MIGRATION
Because of poverty, the young people of this city go to South Africa, where they are hunted in an atrocious way. Some go to Europe, China, India; there is a lot of migration. In this city there are many young people who have been expelled from South Africa and Angola. You should know that this area is the richest of Congo, but there is incredible poverty. Many multinationals come to exploit the minerals here.
That is the reason why I had the paintings with the boat of Frontex and that with the map of Congo and on the map, a computer, a camera, a telephone and a soldier who shoots a man to rape his wife or his sister.
This means that the war in Congo -with 5 million deceased- is conducted because of the mineral resources that are used to manufacture telephones, cameras and because of this violence and poverty, the young people leave the country, migrate.
THEY ALSO WANT TO GO SEE THE COUNTRIES WHERE THE COPPER AND COBALT ARE GOING AND TO ENJOY A GOOD LIFE.
that was it
victorPO
