One day

Here are a few incidents to provide a flavour of life here.

(source for most of the stories, staff reports)

·  In Goma, where all the fighting is taking place: teachers are challenging the M23 rebels to pay them, as the M23 won’t allow government staff to enter the city. Meanwhile a band of ten policemen, not impressed by the fact that the 10,000 strong Congolese Army, already mobilized in the region, cannot retake the city, enters Goma secretly by boat from Lake Kivu to re-establish the power of the government in the city.

·  In Bukavu, a non-government organisation has decided to go into pastures new by founding a University. For their campus they have chose a large house that used to be their office. They promise to deliver bachelor’s degrees in three years (as opposed to four years at the state universities) in subjects as unusual as choreography and music as well as conventional ones such as law and education. This accelerated and novel curriculum has excited the attention of many students. But their joy may be short-lived: the Minister of Education has pointed out that they have neither requested nor received accreditation and might be closed down.

·  In Bandundu, a newly elected Governor of the Province decides to make his mark by ordering that all schools within the town of Bandundu must be cleaned. He gives the staff and children three days in which to complete the job. It is not clear when they will next be cleaned, or why it takes an order from on high to get someone to clean them.

·  In Katanga, teachers from one of the rural parts of the province have not been paid since 2010. They “are considering” going on strike.

·  In another part of Katanga, efforts by the UN Peace Keepers to disarm some well-establish bandits failed when the UN contingent from Benin, who were supposed to be leading the action, decided it was too dangerous and left in haste.

·  In Kinshasa, an unusual disaster struck. The high profile politician, Kengo wa Dondo, (who is President of the Senate, and is best known for being hospitalised for a week after being attacked at the Gare du Nord in Paris by Congolese dissidents shortly after the DRC Elections in November), was taking his usual evening constitutional along the river. To compensate for his somewhat effeminate bearing, and his unpopularity, he surrounds himself with five bodyguards with whom he has nothing in common except proximity.

But today was to be different. Their walk was interrupted by a deafening crash: his bodyguards went into close formation and his normal dour expression was replaced by sheer fright.

Fortunately the crash was nothing more than a massive branch breaking off a tree. Much to his relief the car underneath was not his. (see picture)

(Note: the owner of the car returned about 15 minutes after the event. He organised the many bystanders to lift up the branches to allow him to drive out, and within minutes he and his somewhat dented car were gone – he laughing at life’s absurdities.)