WORLD ADVANCES ON THE BACK OF CONGO’S PAIN

In this clip, Frace-Elvie Banda (@tothelefttothelef7), an activist and organiser from The Future of Congo, rails against the world’s silence over the Western greed-fuelled, Rwanda-enabled gen*cide of the Congolese people. Her powerful speech was filmed at the 'Rwanda out of Congo' protest outside Kigali’s embassy in Washington DC (1 February).

As she notes, much of the modern world would be impossible without the resources of the Congo. The DRC provides over 60% of the world's cobalt - used in everything from smartphones and laptops to electric vehicles - much of it, illegally mined and exported through Rwanda to global markets. Yet as the West advances technologically, the DRC and its people spiral deeper into misery and horror.

Silence is unjustifiable.

Video credit: @thefutureofcongo (Instagram)

Sources:

https://www.globalwitness.org/en/campaigns/democratic-republic-congo/faced-gun-what-can-you-do

https://cd.usembassy.gov/statement-of-concern-related-to-certain-minerals-supply-chains-from-rwanda-and-eastern-democratic-republic-of-the-congo-contributing-to-the-ongoing-co

https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2024/5/2/blood-minerals-what-are-the-hidden-costs-of-the-eu-rwanda-supply-deal

http://cdn-globalwitness-production-2.s3-website-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/archive/files/import/drc_release_uk_final.pdf

https://africanarguments.org/2024/11/children-and-the-coltan-wars-in-eastern-congo

https://issafrica.org/iss-today/could-fdi-be-rwandas-lifeline-as-donors-pull-the-plug

https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/un-says-congo-rebels-generating-300000-monthly-seized-mining-area-2024-09-30

https://www.caritas.org/2010/02/six-million-dead-in-congos-war

https://drcongo.iom.int/en/news/internal-displacement-overview-2024-published

https://www.dw.com/en/dr-congo-people-flee-homes-2025/a-71440536