Congo: Security concerns over elections
Militiamen register at a disarmament site in Bunia, Ituri District. © Richard Pituwa/IRIN
The first round of national elections were carried out peacefully on 30 July 2006, as citizens of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) voted in the first fully democratic vote since 1960. With the first round of presidential and parliamentary elections completed, there are still four more sets of election before the end of January 2007.
Widespread availability of small arms remain a serious threat in the DRC, according to MONUC, the UN peacekeeping force. Due to concerns about security, MONUC peacekeepers have been supported by a special European detachment during the election period.
Despite possessing some of the world's greatest mineral wealth, the DRC is one of the world's poorest countries, torn apart by years of armed conflict that have destroyed the infrastructure and health facilities, as reported by the International Rescue Committee (IRC). The IRC reports 3.9 million deaths between 1998 and 2004, of which most were preventable, eg from cholera, measles, polio, plague and meningitis. Researchers estimate that between January 2003 and April 2004, almost 600,000 deaths occurred as an indirect result of the instability and conflict in the DRC.
Members of RECAAL, the Congolese disarmament network, are working to prevent armed violence from disrupting the election. Click here to view some of the members of this large national network.
Resources
Enjeux sécuritaires et échéances électorales de juillet 2006
Note d’analyse, Charles Nasibu Bilali, Juillet 2006
IRIN
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