Congo, Democratic Republic of (formerly Zaire):
After Laurent Kabila took power and changed the name of Zaire back to Congo, things did bit not settle down much.
Kabila was partly helped to power by ethnic Tutsis. In August 1998, a rebellion broke out, supported by Uganda and Rwanda, who accuse Kabila of killing Tutsis. Kabila has been battling these rebels since then. At the beginning of 1999, ethnic Tutsi Congolese rebels massacred at least 500 civilians, including women and children. The commander of these rebels denied responsibility. Word is that the massacre was revenge for an attack the previous day by local Mai Mai traditional warriors who support Kabila. In May 1999, the United Nations Human Rights body called for an international inquiry into "all massacres" that have taken place in Congo. In August, 1999, all parties agreed to sign a peace treaty. But fighting took place afterwards.
In June, 2000, the International Rescue Committee reported that 1.7 million people had died as a direct result of the fighting, through actually being killed in the war to dying from various causes after fleeing into the jungle.
Then, in January, 2001, Kabila was killed, and his son Joseph, a career soldier, took over the presidency.
Zaire has a history as one of the most corrupt countries in the world. It's a dangerous country to travel through. Kinshasa, the capital, is particularly dangerous and anarchic. Hospitals have run out of medicine and equipment, schools are barely functioning, and the infrastructure is collapsing.
The Congo River flows through the northwest of the country, and big, overcrowded ferries travel up the river into the interior. This used to be a prime adventure for hardy travellers, but in the last few years, very few tourists have risked the trip. The rainforest is still mostly intact, but now full of who knows how many contingents of armed soldiers or guerrillas? Small bands of pygmies, the original inhabitants of this area, still live a traditional lifestyle in the forests, but are increasingly under threat. The Democratic Republic of Congo, is therefore, mostly a travel write-off.
This page last updated January 20, 2001.