Mega March Rally For The Congo And The Congolese People Held In Washington, DC On January 21, 2012

Yesterday I attended and participated in a Demonstration for the People of The Congo called the Mega March in Washington, D.C. It was really, really amazing, incredible and extraordinary. It was unlike any Rally or Demonstration I had ever attended. The Participants were very enthusiastic as they marched, chanted, sang, danced and played musical instruments. Despite the jubilant, party-like atmosphere, the situation in The Congo is absolutely dire and atrocious. For years, women and children of both genders have been subjected to incessant and systematic rapes and the nation's resources have been plundered and exploited. Adding to these unfortunate circumstances is the reelection of the incumbent President of the Democratic Republic Of The Congo, Joseph Kabila. The Presidential election that took place late last year has been widely viewed as fraudulent. It appeared as if most, if not all, of the Protesters in attendance at the DC Rally were supporting the opposition candidate Etienne Tshisekedi.

The Congo is rich with natural resources such as gold, coltan, tin, niobium, diamonds, copper, cobalt and uranium, but the Congolese People themselves do not benefit from these minerals. Only a very select few reap the financial benefits on the backs of those, including children, who work in muddy rivers to harvest these minerals. I take exception to that. The natural resources of The Congo belong to the Congolese People. It is their property and they have the only legitimate right to those resources. Cell phones, computers, printers, cameras and other items are made with these minerals. Big business indeed ... and the People of The Congo see very little to none of the financial rewards. This is without question a form of corporate exploitation and a form of corporate rape. The United States Of America, Great Britain and Belgium among other countries must reevaluate their presence in The Congo. More "humane" policies MUST be enacted by all of the "civilized" nations that have their hands in The Congo at the expense of the Congolese People. Atonement for their years of pillaging and wrongdoing in The Congo is necessary and overdue.

There is also the issue of sexual rape. Regardless of age or gender, no one seems safe from the epidemic of rape in The Congo. It has become an unfortunate fixture in the country. It is rampant and widely practiced. To some it has become a way of life ... a very horrifying norm that permeates throughout the land seemingly with no end in sight. We know it is happening and we must put an end to it. These rapes MUST cease. The international community cannot just stand by and ignore the problem.

Here are photographs from the Rally (you will initially see a small crowd - more Protesters were demonstrating elsewhere in the city and arrived once the sun went down) ...

Do you see the banner? 48 rapes per minute. That should alarm ALL OF US!!












Here I am IN FRONT OF THE WHITE HOUSE holding up a couple of signs that I made!!
















At this point in the evening, the Rally took on a life of its own. I just followed along ...















Since I was in the area, I figured I would take some shots of the Washington Monument and the United States Capitol Building after the Rally was over ...









I drove all the way from New Jersey for the event. It was not a problem at all - I had to be present and show my support. I simply could not stay home while all of these violations, some of which the United States Of America is directly responsible for, were taking place.

Here is a video from the event. The majority of the footage was filmed in front of the White House. Toward the end I was given an opportunity to share a few words and let everyone know why I drove all the way to D.C. for the Demonstration (At 13:24, I lost my thought, haha. I did my best. It was the first time I ever gave a speech at a Demonstration):


If the video does not embed properly, here is the video's url: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C7VAhRGnnFM

I met and spoke with a number of people from an organization called the Congolese Tsunami For Justice. The organization's website is http://justice4congo.com.

Other websites that have exhaustive information about the situation are as follows ...
http://friendsofthecongo.org
http://congoweek.org
http://congojustice.com
http://www.ingeta.com
http://www.enoughproject.org
http://www.raisehopeforcongo.org
http://www.enoughmoment.org

The matter is outrageous, disgusting and disgraceful. All of us as human beings should raise our voices and be supportive of the People of The Congo. None of us should sit back and be silent while these atrocities take place. I hope the Movement will gain more and more supporters until the crisis is finally resolved and The Congo is completely transformed into a land of peace, stability and economic opportunity. The Congolese People deserve that.

I will continue to monitor the situation in The Congo, and strive for an appropriate resolution to the multifaceted crisis.

UPDATE (January 24, 2012): Someone sent another video of the Rally to me yesterday. It is excellent and 49:04 minutes in length. The company that made the video has some kind of intro and outro before and after the footage of the Rally. I found myself on two different occasions from 9:33 to 10:15 and from 43:32 to 45:38. The entire videotaped footage is more than worthwhile.

MEGA MARCHE DES CONGOLAIS DES USA DANS LES RUES DE WASHINGTON DC, CAPITOL, MAISON BLANCHE, CNN from Garry Iwele on Vimeo.

If the video does not embed properly, here is the video's url: http://vimeo.com/35511259