Don't Break My Chukudu - M23 Conflict and DRC Army
Every night, Evaristo's children asked their father to tell the stories of the wars and conflicts involving his country, the Democratic Republic of Congo, especially the city where they live, Goma.
It is noteworthy that Evaristo's large family consisted of three brothers and a sister, composed of children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren, residing and united in the same village in the city of Goma. Evaristo says to the children and other listeners, that his father called Sergeant Irineu, was summoned to enlist in KAR - King's African Rifles in the year 1900, and Winston Churchill did not accept the entry of blacks in the United Kingdom army, but with various reputations, Churchill was silent, accepting the direction of troops by British officership.
One of Evaristo's daughters asked?
- Father, and who was Churchill to deny the color of the African?
Evaristo replied:
-He was several things, political writer, statesman of Great – Betanha, well known and talked about, was soldier, deputy and prime minister. Despite not liking Africans and the color black, he had views on racist remarks. Churchill had to accept African inclusion in order to defeat the Japanese. In this case, fascism had installed itself in Africa, and Nazism was growing without dimensions. My daughter, you have to observe that Africans were the great winners of this war. And the battlefield had bad terrain for the English, in addition to mosquitoes and many insects at night. With the victory of the war by the Africans, my father never received a decoration and died without receiving anything.
His daughter says;
-All this is sad, my father.
A few years later, in 1990, Evaristo asks the brothers and the whole family to avoid contact with strangers who come to their homes, since the Rwandan Civil War was in full swing.
As is known, Goma is a city in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, on the north shore of Lake Quivu, connected with the Rwandan city of Guissehi. Thus, the lake and the two cities are located at the western end of Rifle Valley. Goma is about 15 km south of the crater of Niaragongo Volcano, a still active volcano.
Goma's more recent history is marked by the volcano and the 1994 Rwandan Genocide, which in turn spurred the First and Second Congo Wars.
The capital of Goma province is Northern Quivu, ethnically and geographically similar to Southern Quivu (with capital in Bucavu); Hence, the two provinces are known as Quivu.
During the events in Rwanda, the whole family knew about the events. Noting that one of the daughters asked:
-Daddy! And the Rwandan genocide?
Evaristo was silent and voiceless. And his daughter asked:
- Aren't you going to tell us the truth? Speak father! We need to know.
Nervous, Evaristo replies:
-You want to know. Let me tell you: The Rwandan genocide was the saddest of all events. Since 1990, things have not been going well, but the worst was the killing of the entire population of the Tutsi ethnic group in a few days and hours. The provisional government killed more than 1,000,000 (one million) innocent people of this ethnic group.
-One of the children asks:
-Father, and the other ethnicity, who were they? What they did, Speak.
Evaristo replied:
- They were from the Hutus ethnic group, and after the great slaughter of these innocent people it was barbaric. They entered houses at night, and shot children while they were still sleeping. Old people and other couples were not spared. The bloody month of July 1994 is the month of many pains. It is known that the Rwandans all came to our city Goma and Bucavu, former Zaire. More than 15,000,000 (fifteen thousand) people fled death. The whole problem is that these people were waiting for President Juvénal Habyarimana or Kinani, his nickname, at Kigale International Airport to kill. And that April 6th was a terrible day for the crew and the president who had their deaths. You see, the president only helped people of his ethnicity. They say that the president liked to help the Hutus to take over the governments led by the Tutsi ethnic group. In power alone he spent more than 20 years.
The son asks:
-And what did the UN do to intervene?
Evaristo said:
-Anything. Did nothing. He lay motionless with nothing to do. It didn't issue anything. Nobody did anything for Rwanda and Goma. Only three camp sites were granted to refugees Kibumba, Katale and Mugumga. What I saw passing by on the highway was Red Cross and Doctors Without Borders. The situation was difficult, thousands and thousands of refugees died, due to disease and extreme poverty, with nothing to eat. In August 1994, more than 15,000 (fifteen thousand) dead could be counted in Goma, from hunger, cholera, dysentery and other diseases. In the same situation it was the Tutsis who were fleeing death, and now it is the Hutus. Thousands upon thousands of people were fleeing the rise of the Tutsi-majority Rwandan Patriotic Front (FPR) towards the Congolese city of Goma, west of Rwanda. 450,000 refugees arrived in those days in the city and Goma.
The son of Evaristo says:
-Dad, I get depressed about the situation of the UN to intervene in Africa. It hurts me all inside to know this.
On a Sunday day, Evaristo and his brothers got together to build three wooden bicycles, known in Goma as Chukudu. After the construction of the two-wheeled vehicles, the tests were carried out and were duly approved by the family members.
To the detriment of the economic crisis that plagues the entire planet, Evaristo's family found it difficult to make purchase decisions because they had no money. And the assembly of wooden bicycles was without a doubt, the right communion of this event.
The news spread throughout Goma's commerce at great speed, requiring one of Evaristo's daughters to take delivery orders. In such a way that the bicycles carried everything, saving cost, oil and other expenses, which facilitates in value and time. Incredibly, the bicycles started working at 4:00 in the morning, carrying the various items of sale from the vendors of the street market in Goma, in addition to supplying materials such as cement at the works.
On February 10, 2022, at 5:00 am, a Toyota van parked in the small town of Goma, and 08 (eight) men got out, 02 (two) entered the first residence and the others imposed the same hunt. With kicks, they broke the doors of the houses, and without any question, they called the names of the 03 (three) brothers among them the name of Mr. Evaristo.
As reported by Evaristo's children, they declared themselves to be from the March 23 Movement, the M23 rebel group that has been fighting with the troops of the Democratic Republic of Congo - DRC, for several months.
A rebel ordered Evaristo to go into the woods beside the side road.
Evaristo crying, still said:
-Please! Don't do anything to me. I am innocent.
The angry rebel said:
- We know everything. You and your brothers are informants for the DRC, and for that you must die. This way, you will stop making flying bikes in Goma. Kneel to die!
A crowd of children, wives, grandchildren and great-grandchildren screamed in terror at the evil actions of the M23. With an artillery gun shot to the back of Evaristo's head, the silence broke out in tears and more tears. Another M23 rebel said;
-Never again will Evaristo ride a bike to earn money and help the DRC.
One of Evaristo's sons spoke:
-Don't cry mom! God is faithful and knows everything. Don't break my chukudu! Don't break! It's my only way to make money.
The bodies of the three brothers thrown on the side of the road symbolized the resistance of the Congolese, who could do nothing with the tears on each face.
Newspapers touting the withdrawal a day after a UN peacekeeper was killed and seven others were wounded in fighting between the M23 and UN-assisted Congolese forces did nothing.
However, that fight was one of the fiercest of the week since the newly created UN intervention brigade went on the offensive. It is noted that a Tanzanian peacekeeper was killed after rebels aimed artillery fire at his position, the UN said in a statement.
In real truth, the UN said on Thursday that it had also established that there were "consistent and credible reports" of Rwandan troops entering the Democratic Republic of Congo to support the M23 rebels.
However, the UN says its mandate is only to protect civilians and maintain peace with the cease-fire, and that lately it has been fighting alongside the Congolese army.