· May, 2007

Stories about D.R. of Congo from May, 2007

D.R. of Congo: Should Christian Revivalist Churches Be Encouraging Political Activism?

Continuing an age-old debate--is religion the "opium of the people" or can it be a catalyst for social change?--Congolese blogger Blaise Mantoto at UDPS Liege says the Congo’s Christian revivalist churches, which he cynically refers to as "for-profit spiritual shops," encourage political disengagement. He argues these churches should inspire their followers to improve their social conditions through political activism, but not everyone agrees that religion and politics ought to be mixed.

24 May 2007

D. R. Congo: Park Rangers Attacked, Flying over Katanga, Music meets Social Activism, and Ants 2 – Brian 0

Access to the Internet in the Democratic Republic of Congo is gradually improving (World Bank figures suggest there are already over 6 million users), but will remain prohibitively expensive as long as service providers are dependent on satellite connections. In such a context, it should come as no surprise that there are only a handful of Congolese bloggers. Chatrooms and instant messaging are very popular, however, and with the influence of the Diaspora, it’s easy to imagine that many more young Congolese people will soon be following the footsteps of pioneers like Cedric, perhaps blogging in Lingala, Luba, Kikongo and Swahili as well as French.

22 May 2007

Conservation 2.0: Congo Park Rangers Bring Global Attention To Endangered African Wildlife

Conservation, like many other areas of our professional, political and social life, is currently adapting to new trends in information and communication technologies. Despite the colossal digital divide that exists in the Democratic Republic of Congo, blogs are becoming an important information and communication weapon in the hands of Congo park rangers. Since last year, Congo park rangers have been using blogs to tell their stories and voices from the deepest part of Africa for a global audience. Armed with blogs and cameras, the elite park rangers highlight stories, which have hitherto been mostly ignored by the mainstream media.

16 May 2007

D.R. of Congo: Congo's forgotten women

A post about Congo's forgotten women in the Sub-Saharan Africa Roundtable: “In 2001, after a disastrous misadventure in the Congo, Ugandan troops trekked back home with a cargo of hundreds...

12 May 2007

DRC: UDPS’ Early Report Card for Kabila

UDPS Liège posts an interview with Rachel Kabua Atwele, a Belgium-based UDPS sympathizer. She says [Fr]: “Let's not kid ourselves, dictatorship is alive and well. Those who believed in the...

4 May 2007