There is a silent genocide going on right now, and we aren’t stopping it. This concept confuses me. The act of violence against one another confuses me. Now, you might think a genocide is when millions or more people are murdered, which it is, but the concept is officially defined by certain rules. These rules are in the Nations Genocide Convention created by the United Nations. They say a genocide is defined by “acts committed with the intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group.” Examples of this could be causing harm to the group, deliberately creating conditions that lead to physical destruction, imposing measures to prevent births, forcibly transferring children from one group to a different one and, finally, displacement.
A silent genocide isn’t fully different than a genocide, but it is defined as “where a group of people is systematically marginalized, oppressed, or targeted for harm, but it may not receive widespread attention or recognition.” Some examples can be cultural assimilation, economic exploitation or denial of basic rights and resources. The “silent” in this term is used because many people don’t know when the event occurs.
West Darfur is going through a genocide.
Democratic Republic of the Congo is going through a silent genocide.
Currently, West Darfur, a region located in western Sudan, has been experiencing conflicts and humanitarian crises for several years now. The genocide has been going on since 2003. A group called the RSF, which is run by the dictator in Darfur. They have been ethnically targeting and killing civilians.
Right now, the Democratic Republic of Congo is going through severe violence, lack of human rights, and mass oppression. Nearly 7 million people have been displaced due to ongoing conflict and violence. The land in Democratic Republic of Congo is the most prominent place where cobalt can be found. Cobalt is a critical mineral in the technology industry.
This industrial desire for cobalt has caused much conflict in the region as people, corporations and countries all jockey for power. Ever since the Democratic Republic of the Congo gained their independence, they have faced colonial influence due to Western governments intervening and creating instability in their country so they can continue taking advantage of Congo’s resources. An example of this is in 1961, when Belgium and the USA were both involved in the assassination of Democratic Republic of the Congo’s anti-colonial leader, Patrice Lumumba. After the murder, Mobutu Sese Seko ended up taking charge and has become the dictator of Democratic Republic of the Congo.
The demand for cobalt in this very important industry has caused western nations like the U.S., the UK and France to develop a vested interest in the region. These nations have been providing money to neighboring Uganda in order to shore up their military and lend stability to the region. Western powers have only recently conceded that some of that money was being used by the Ugandan government to support the M23 Rebels. For this reason several of the Western powers have recently cut funding to the Ugandan government, but still the rebels are funded.
The Congolese people are being massacred by Rwandan-backed M23 Rebels. This group has been murdering, raping and abusing the rights of the Congolese people. The M23 Rebels rose to power through various sociological factors, such as political tensions, competition for resources, and regional power dynamics. The rebels kill, enslave or force Congolese people to mine cobalt.This is the main reason why the silent genocide is happening.
All of this shows that the Democratic Republic of the Congo is going through a silent genocide, and it seems that we are doing nothing to stop it. This subject has been on my mind confusing me in all sorts of ways. One way is because of the fact genocide is a ¨never-again¨ event, but it keeps happening. In class, we learn about past genocides, writing down what we see so we know how awful the past is and how not to repeat it, with Congress and the United Nations promising to protect the people. But, still, multiple genocides are still going on in the year 2023. I’ve also been thinking about why people treat each other in these awful ways. We are all humans experiencing life for the first time together and we should love one another like we love our moms, dads and our significant others. When will this stop?
