DR Congo moves toward elections

Common parlance in North America is that politics and religion don’t mix.

But in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) where local and national multi-party elections will be held (expected between March and June) for the first time in 45 years, religious groups, including the country’s Mennonite and Mennonite Brethren churches, are hoping their involvement will assure peaceful elections.

The DRC is one of the world’s most troubled countries, devastated by decades of corrupt leadership and a civil war from 1998 to 2002. Hunger, disease and violence are widespread.

Mennonite churches, along with support from the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC), are teaching their communities to participate peacefully in the elections. Protestant and Catholic organizations are distributing booklets and posters describing the voting process.

Both hope and dread accompany the current election season, which is the first experience with democracy for most Congolese people. Although there is hope a democratically elected government will lead the DRC into a better era, many also fear the election process will divide the nation and cause violent conflicts.

“(Political) parties are somewhat agitated here against each other, and they could potentially stir things up,” says MCC worker Dennis Rempel, a former missionary to Burkina Faso who holds a master’s degree in dispute resolution.

Working with Congolese colleagues, Rempel teaches religious and community leaders to serve as election observers and conflict mediators. They have held training seminars in the capital city, Kinshasa, and in several eastern cities where conflicts have been more frequent and often more violent.

MCC is contributing $107,000 Cdn. to train conflict mediators, organize election observers and provide funding for civic education seminars that help prepare people for elections.

—MCC News