DRCongo: The First Step - Ctrl.Alt.Shift

Just three months after my graduation (thank you Lancashire Uni for my journo honours), I was recruited by Ctrl.Alt.Shift and asked to join 21 other inspirational volunteers on a research trip to the Democratic Republic of Congo (talk about bungee-jumping it into the deep end). But before even stepping onto the plane to the DRC, headlines were rushing in from every news source I could find in the UK. Words like 'rape', 'war' and 'violence' were not uncommon - so not exactly the most comforting research for this 14-day reporting trip I was about to embark on.



Still, as a journalist, it only added to the rush, and reasoning (despite mumsie's outspoken concerns) to go out and explore this beautiful country that has been tragically ravaged by war and corruption. Being passionate and determined for first-hand experience of global and social injustice news, together with working over-time to be thoroughly clued-up with the DRC's fascinating history - any sense of hesitation soon grew to great anticipation; all that was left to do was survive the 14-hour flights and bring the story home. Here's my first DRC focus article for Ctrl.Alt.Shift, written before I even got to Kinshasa. Even joy it, it was only of my many DRC blogs:

Feature: Congo With Me
“Rape and violence rife in Congo again”.

Last week the Metro headline did slightly mar my upcoming trip to the Democratic Republic of Congo. I fly out on October 25 with a team of volunteers to provide aid and gather reports in the war-torn country, and if it wasn’t enough that constant supervision and hostage training was acquired to enter such a world, this article pokes it head up at the most inconvenient of times just to remind me that nothing can prepare me for the Congo. It is a way of life so intangible… at least for now.

The reported stats came thick and fast:

The estimated number of street children in the DRC fluctuates between 25,000 and 40,000. Civil war within the borders of the DRC has killed over 5 million people since 1998. Over 40,000 cases of sexual violence have been logged in the DRC (just a fraction of the real total, as the rest are silenced in fear of worse consequences if they snitch)...



As I was being bombarded with this research of countless numbers and facts, at times boredom did shamefully set in with their irrelevance to my London hustle-bustle life. But study one story from the terrorised masses, and you might hit a nerve – take the Metro piece for example, which documented the recent torture of Congolese mother Constance, who spoke of how she and her baby, along with 50 other women, were seized by militiamen in the eastern province of the DRC:

“The commander chose me as his woman and raped me every day. My baby was beside me when this took place.”

Put your mum, sister, daughter or wifey in that scene and it’s a whole new affair...

Read the full article here

Note: I made it the DRC and back in one piece, more of less... Check up my full Congo diary in my blog archive for more!