This morning at a Press Conference chaired by Archbishop Thabo of Cape Town, we launched the Goma Call For Peace. A call from churches, youth and women’s groups and business for African governments and the international community to act immediately and decisively for peace in Goma and in eastern DRC.
The Goma Call For Peace centers around an end to the fighting and a lasting ceasefire, an urgent humanitarian response and the withdrawal of occupying troops. It urges dialogue as the only path to lasting peace in the region, and calls on the international community to move beyond fine-sounding statements to act decisively for peace.
Some semblance of calm has returned to Goma. The Red Cross has removed over 900 bodies from the streets. Shops are beginning to open. Motorbikes and taxis are beginning to circulate. Some food is getting into the city, although prices remain high. The border is open.
However there has been widespread looting. Government property and vehicles have been seized, as have NGO vehicles. The banks and schools remain closed. The hospitals are overwhelmed. The airport is not yet open for humanitarian assistance. People are dying of hunger.
Those who live in Goma live in fear. They do not know what is next. They ask why the international community has looked the other way. For them we have issued the GomaCallForPeace calling for immediate and decisive action from the international community.
