Election Day in Congo - November 28

With the election in the Democratic Republic of the Congo just a week away, it's a good time to reflect on what the Congolese people have been through, where they are, and what they have yet to deal with.

Years as a Belgian colony; more years as a pawn in the Cold War shenanigans between super powers, and now the wealth of the nation pillaged for the gain of the powerful and the violent, and the electronic needs of the developed world. This article from the BBC is a great overview. 

A week before the elections, they are dealing with an outbreak of Cholera, and conditions like those outlined here.  I hope it is, but I don't know if it is possible for democracy to take root in conditions like this.  

Here at One Million Bones, we are often asked, "Why now?  Why are you working to raise awareness about genocide and humanitarian crises now?"  The answer is that there is no other time than now.  When will the people of Congo need us?  After the election?  Next year?  No, they need us now.  They need the world to put pressure on the leaders in their country to do the right thing, and they need us to be standing by, if they don't.