Morning Annoucements

Monday 10th of June : Friday June 7th around 11pm a group of armed bandits entered a house in Quartier Bokoko, Bunia. The authorities were notified. A few gun shots were exchanged and one bandit was captured as he was shot in the leg and is now in prison.

Wednesday June 12th : The evening of Tuesday, June 11th, a small village 40kilometers from Mamabasa was attacked by the MaiMai militia group. Three were killed and a 7yr girl was kidnapped. She was returned the next day but had been sexually violated.

Friday June 14th : Early this morning there were clashes around Boga between the FARDC (Congolese Army) and FRPI (militia). Two military soldiers were killed, four militia men, and three women raped. The local community has fled the region and is now hiding in the forest. 

Good morning ! Welcome to my week ! 

Morning announcements are given every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 8:30am. If there is a major incident, as the ones listed above are normal and routine, we will receive intentional notification outside of the official announcement hour. This is how I start my morning : no cup of coffee and definitely no Good-Morning Congo displaying this summers latest fashions and BBQ recipes.

When you come into this line of work you make a promise that people will never become statistics like the academic journals or CNN portray them. And you promise you will never become jaded to human suffering like that missionary kid you went to graduate school with who disgusted you so much with his ability to recount horrific stories as if it was found in a normal children’s book. 

It is interesting because as I actually write this blog post, I realize more how horrific this all is. When I sit in the meeting three times a week, it is a part of my normal work day. I do sometimes cringe, especially when I hear of 7yr old girls getting raped, which was a real announcement a few weeks ago; and probably every week before for the last 20years here in Congo. Often times you know it is quite severe and disgusting when you see the local population shake their heads and wince during tri-weekly announcement period. 

All of this hit a lot closer to home this week. One of our chauffeurs left on Tuesday to pick up one of our medical supervisors 4hrs away. Before mid-day and about one and a half hours into the trip, our vehicle got shot at. He was driving on one of the most dangerous axes in this region, also the same route I travelled in February with this very same driver. Two bullets were fired. According to the driver, one was shot in front of him and the second shot out the window behind the passenger seat. Our organization is very well known and highly respected, which getting shot at came as quite a surprise but also burst our bubble we had been living in in regards to vehicle security. Needless to say, Wednesday morning announcement the following day felt a lot more real. 

I have frequently heard of the many people who pray for me on a daily basis. I wasn’t in that vehicle but someone I care about was. Since my time in Congo, I have come to believe more and more in angels and their work in my life. When I see our lands cruiser with a shattered back window and the trajectory of the bullet diagonal to our driver’s seat, you can’t deny he was protected. 

After being shot at not that long ago myself, this incident has brought much of my own memories back. The chauffeur is psychologically not doing well. He is experiencing PTSD and all for due cause. It is like looking in a mirror but it is quite interesting looking in that mirror a few months after and asking myself the question "is this really what I looked like?"

Please continue to pray for protection. Continue to pray for peace in Congo. And please pray for our driver – that he may heal from this trauma.