Does this mean the troops (DR Congolese?) being shot dead by the roadsides and
captured in newscasts, their assailants could be any of the forces including UN
forces - if even the UN is involved in depleting DR Congo forests? Quite
disturbing indeed!
Insiders please tell us what we don't know!
Ocii
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
How we deepen Congo poverty and anarchy
Joachim Buwembo
The leaders of 26 states met in Kampala last week to harmonise trade in the
region, under the existing trading blocs of EAC, COMESA and SADC. While the
presidents were holding their meeting in the ultra modern environment of
Munyonyo Commonwealth Resort, another group was meeting in the less glorious
environs of Kasese in western Uganda. Kasese district borders DR Congo, and
billions of dollars worth of goods have over the last decade passed through
here, leaving very little benefits to the residents on either side of the
border.
The week-long Kasese meeting, organised by the COMESA Secretariat and the
British Department for International Development with the collaboration of
USAID and others, was attended by traders from both sides of the border,
immigration, trade, revenue, forestry and customs officials from both
countries. They were discussing the promotion of peace and fighting poverty
through trade.
Findings researchers presented in Kasese were simply depressing. For instance,
there is disturbing evidence of impending depletion of the North Kivu forests,
contrary to conventional ‘wisdom’ that Congo forests can last longer than
today’s generation. The unapologetic plunder of Congo’s resources was best
illustrated by Forest Monitor of UK, who had been on the ground monitoring
timber trade, and witnessed UN trucks involved in ferrying Congo timber.
However the COMESA Secretariat and their development partners are still
convinced that trade in the region involving Congo resources can help promote
peace and add some meaning to the lives of people in border districts by
simplifying it. The proposed simplified trade regime aims at reducing the
multiplicity of taxes charged in cross border trade, which incite traders to
engage in smuggling. In this, the Congo system – or lack of - is a big culprit.
Many taxes are unofficial but the armed authorities levying them have the
capacity to paralyse your business, so you pay, and either way unreasonably
lose money.
Otherwise Congo’s neighbours are playing a major role in perpetuating the
general hopelessness in that vast, resource-rich country. It was found, for
instance, that nearly 50 per cent of the timber used and traded in Uganda is
from Congo. But we get this timber in its rawest form and even the most basic
primary processing takes place outside Congo. So, there is simply no employment
or skills transfer for the owners of the wealth. A bag of rice or a bottle of
booze to a local chief can entitle you to felling all the mahogany in a hectare
of land.
In many ways, the colonialists treated us more respectfully than Congo’s
neighbours regard the Congolese. At least they set up processing industries,
trained people and developed infrastructure to facilitate the exploitation. But
a glimpse into the Congo leaves you wondering on what planet these people live.
What we know as ordinary roads end abruptly at the Uganda border.
Once in Congo, you travel over rough open spaces, guaranteed to shorten the
life of any vehicle and multiply the duration a journey takes many times-fold.
Health facilities are virtually non-existent, though somehow someone ensures
that skin bleaching chemicals are available for all women and men to apply with
abandon. You need to go to Congo to appreciate how developed Uganda is.
We also owe it ourselves as Africans to end the Congo shame and prove that
organisation on this continent does not come by accident.
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
__________________________________________________________________
Be smarter than spam. See how smart SpamGuard is at giving junk email the boot
with the All-new Yahoo! Mail. Click on Options in Mail and switch to New Mail
today or register for free at http://mail.yahoo.ca_______________________________________________
Ugandanet mailing list
[email protected]
http://kym.net/mailman/listinfo/ugandanet
% UGANDANET is generously hosted by INFOCOM http://www.infocom.co.ug/
The above comments and data are owned by whoever posted them (including
attachments if any). The List's Host is not responsible for them in any way.
---------------------------------------
