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Pope begins trip to DR Congo and South Sudan
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Francis to meet victims of war in Congo
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Trip postponed from July due to pope's knee ailment
(Adds quotes from Congo President Tshisekedi)
By Philip Pullella and Paul Lorgerie
KINSHASA, Jan 31 (Reuters) - Pope Francis denounced the
"poison of greed" for mineral resources driving conflict in
Democratic Republic of Congo as he began a visit there on
Tuesday, saying the rich world could no longer ignore the tragic
plight of many African nations.
The 86-year-old Francis is the first pontiff to visit Congo
since John Paul II in 1985, when it was still known as Zaire.
About half of Congo's population of 90 million are Roman
Catholics.
Tens of thousands of people cheered as he travelled from the
airport into the capital Kinshasa in his popemobile, with some
breaking away to chase his convoy while others chanted and waved
flags in one of the most vibrant welcomes of his foreign trips.
But the mood changed when the pope gave a speech to
dignitaries at the presidential palace, condemning "terrible
forms of exploitation, unworthy of humanity" in Congo, where
vast mineral wealth has fuelled war, displacement and hunger.
"It is a tragedy that these lands, and more generally the
whole African continent, continue to endure various forms of
exploitation," he said. "The poison of greed has smeared its
diamonds with blood," he said, referring to Congo specifically.
"Hands off the Democratic Republic of the Congo! Hands off
Africa! Stop choking Africa: it is not a mine to be stripped or
a terrain to be plundered," he said.
Congo has some of the world's richest deposits of diamonds,
gold, copper, cobalt, tin, tantalum and lithium, but those have
stoked conflict between militias, government troops and foreign
invaders. Mining has also been linked to inhumane exploitation
of workers, including children, and environmental degradation.
Compounding these problems, eastern Congo has been plagued
by violence connected to the long and complex fallout from the
1994 genocide in neighbouring Rwanda.
Congo accuses Rwanda of backing the M23 rebel group fighting
government troops in the east. Rwanda denies this.
"As well as armed militias, foreign powers hungry for the
minerals in our soil commit, with the direct and cowardly
support of our neighbour Rwanda, cruel atrocities," said
Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi, speaking just before the
pope and sharing a stage with him.
The pope did not name Rwanda in his address or take sides in
the dispute.
A spokesperson for the Rwandan government was not
immediately available for comment.
'PILGRIMAGE OF PEACE'
An estimated 5.7 million people are internally displaced in
Congo and 26 million face severe hunger, largely because of the
impact of armed conflict, according to the United Nations.
The Catholic Church plays a crucial role in running schools
and health facilities in Congo, as well as promoting democracy.
The pope criticised rich countries for ignoring the
tragedies unfolding in Congo and elsewhere in Africa.
"One has the impression that the international community has
practically resigned itself to the violence devouring it
(Congo). We cannot grow accustomed to the bloodshed that has
marked this country for decades, causing millions of deaths," he
said.
Tshisekedi made a similar point in his own speech: "While
the international community has remained passive and silent,
more than 10 million people have been horribly killed," he said.
First scheduled for last July, the pope's trip was postponed
because he was suffering a flare-up of a chronic knee ailment.
He had originally planned to travel to Goma, in eastern Congo,
but that stop was scrapped because of a resurgence in fighting
between M23 rebels and government troops.
In an apparent reference to the M23 and other militias
active in Congo's eastern regions, the pope said the Congolese
people were fighting to preserve their territorial integrity
"against deplorable attempts to fragment the country".
On Wednesday, Francis will celebrate Mass at a Kinshasa
airport and meet victims of violence from the east, further
highlighting the issues he raised in his speech.
Francis will stay in Kinshasa until Friday morning, when he
will fly to South Sudan, another country grappling with conflict
and poverty.
In a first, he will be accompanied for that leg of his
journey by the Archbishop of Canterbury, leader of the global
Anglican Communion, and by the Church of Scotland Moderator. The
religious leaders have described their joint visit as a
"pilgrimage of peace".
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FACTBOX-Pope Francis heads to Democratic Republic of Congo and
South Sudan UPDATE 1-Pope Francis to visit two fragile African nations: DR
Congo and South Sudan Part of stage built for pope collapses in Democratic Republic of
Congo EXPLAINER-What is driving the violence in eastern Congo? ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^>
(Additional reporting by Justin Makangara, Benoit Nyemba, Sonia
Rolley and Stanis Bujakera; Writing by Estelle Shirbon; Editing
by Alexandra Hudson)
