25.02.2025

Congo: For Peace in terms of Ubuntu

Talking to all conflict parties: Church leaders of the two big denominations in the DR Congo. Photo by: CD

On 13 February 2025, representatives of a UEM member church, protestant ECC*, and the catholic national bishops' conference in Congo (CENCO) travelled to Goma to initiate talks with the leaders of M23 militia. The meeting took place as part of a roadmap entitled ‘Social Pact for Peace and Good Living Together in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Great Lakes Region’. This is a peace initiative of the two main churches, which goes back to the Christmas message 2024 of the President of the ECC, Pastor André Bokunduabo-Likabe. Under the motto ‘My priority is peace and good relations’ (Matthew 5:9 and Psalm 133), both churches invited Christians and peace advocates to make 2025 the year of peace in the DR Congo and the Great Lakes region. The peace plan is based on the Ubuntu philosophy (Bumuntu in Congo) and thus on a traditional African conflict resolution strategy.

The initiative, in its first phase, provides for consultations with the heads of state of the countries in the subregion, which includes Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda, Tanzania and Kenya. The aim is to achieve lasting peace and to establish regional cooperation, for political stability and economically successful development in the region. Another concern of the churches is to ensure that the natural resources in the Congo are no longer illegally exploited.

Ideas for solutions, based on tradition

The meetings that have already taken place with the heads of government of Congo, Félix Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo, and Rwanda, Paul Kagame, focused on reconciliation, territorial integrity and intergovernmental dialogue. Both countries accuse each other of fuelling the conflict in eastern Congo, which has been going on for 30 years and flared up again at the beginning of the year with the capture of the provincial capital Goma and the second largest city in the south of the country, Bukavu, by the M23. According to estimates, around six million people have been killed in the last three decades and many millions more have been forced to flee.

Pastor Maurice Mondengo, ECC's head of communications, media and public relations, asks: ‘Why are we no longer able to solve our problems under the palaver tree, as our ancestors wisely did? Why is it not possible to cultivate a culture of good neighbourhood without shedding the blood of thousands of innocents?’

The peace plan also contains an appeal to the international community to support Congo in building better living and environmental conditions in order to offer future generations a positive future and to prevent war in the subregion.

*ECC = Eglise du Christ au Congo (Church of Christ in Congo)