Blog 10; Crimes in the Congo

Summary: In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, there has been issues with spillover of massacres and genocide acts committed in Rwanda, as they are bordering countries. The M23 is a collection of guerrilla soldiers that are of the Hutu side of the Hutu vs Tutsi conflicts that plagued Rwanda in the early and mid 1990's. Congolese government officials and high ranking members of the M23 have been working on an agreement between one another and they agreement has been postponed. Congolese forces have managed to push the M23 out of the eastern region of the Congo recently,  and of last week, the M23 announced the end of their rebellion. The deal between the two sides was to be a deal of peace that would benefit both sides of the conflict, but has sense been put on old. The deal was set to be passed and signed in Uganda, but as the time drew closer and went by, it was discovered that the deal would be postponed. Uganda is currently holding the top commander of the M23 rebellion, as he surrendered last week. Amnesty is the main reason behind the agreement being made, as accusations of rape, murder, and use of child soldiers are the main cases against the M23.

Analysis: Although this is not a smaller crime, there are still small crimes committed throughout this mass rebellion. Raping of women in a Guerrilla style ambush is what is causing just some of the problems. The kidnapping of child soldiers is another one of the main concerns being presented towards the amnesty agreement between the two sides. The rebellion of the M23 could be linked to poverty as most of the people of this region are living in a state of poverty and are looking for a drastic change. As well as in sociology, I am discussing this case with one of my professors for another class. Upon viewing some of the M23 soldiers, it is apparent that these people are desperate for any sort of change to their region. The act of terrorism used would be through the raping and attacks on civilians living in the region. Peace, however, is still the main goal behind this particular agreement.

Posted at 4:43 on 11-15-13

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/africa/congos-m23-rebels-expected-to-sign-peace-deal-with-government-on-monday/2013/11/11/5fe8b974-4ac3-11e3-bf60-c1ca136ae14a_story.html