A few facts about the conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC): Numerous individual conflicts since 1996, involving up to 7 nations and 25 armed groups. Estimates of between 3.5 and 7.8 million deaths since 1998. Hundreds of thousands of refugees. Over 200,000 UN reported rapes in the last decade. Women in the east under a self-enforced curfew, refusing to go outside after 6pm, and forced to travel in groups during the day, for fear of sexual assault. A drastic upswing in the incidence of sexual violence against men in recent months.
And so, when US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton travelled to Goma, the scene of much of the violence, in order to highlight the issue of combatting sexual and gender based violence as a crime against humanity and a weapon of war, did the American press jump on the horrific and sensational facts of what is the most deadly conflict since WWII?
Of course not.
Apparently, of far more interest and import to the American public was Clinton’s ‘outburst’ on answering a (mistranslated) question about what her husband thought about Chinese contracts in the DRC.
With the exception of recent pieces in the Washington Post, the New York Times, PBS, and a few others that only mention the incident following detailed descriptions of what Clinton was actually doing in the region, the vast majority of US media focus has been on a ‘Bill/Hillary’ popularity contest.
Barely a mention that the number of dead is greater than the population of Montana, the Dakotas, Delaware, Alaska, Vermont and Wyoming, combined.
Or that the number of reported rape victims is greater than the population of Spokane.
No mention of the International Criminal Court’s ongoing trial against Thomas Lubanga Dyilo, alleged leader of the UPC and FDLR militia and party, for using children as young as 7 as soldiers and sexual slaves.
And certainly no mention or even a brief explanation, as many African commentators are wont to complain, of the exceedingly complex domestic political reality of the conflict. A brief mention of ‘clashes’ between ‘rebel’ and ‘government’ forces generally seems sufficient.
And so, while the Secretary’s visit was done in an effort to raise awareness of the horrific issue of mass war crimes in eastern Congo – the American public is instead enlightened with video of Clinton saying she ‘will not be channeling her husband.’
Ah, priorities.