Mbuji Mayi, Congo

First a visit to the Minister of Social Affaires of the province, Mr. Nomami Shodo. He spoke a lot of his needs and what the NGOs and other organisations like UNICEF can or should do and very little about what the government can do. But to his credit, he seemed knowledgeable about the problem and probably receives very little money from Kinshasa to run his Ministry. 

Next we go to the mines and the small villages in and around the mines. Diamonds are everywhere. Or at least you would think so by looking at all the publicity and bill boards advertizing the buying of diamonds. Even on television I can see ads showing guys in fancy suits, stacks of dollars and diamonds, inticing people to sell their diamonds in one bureau or the other.

We went to the village of Bakua Tshimuna where Save the Children UK has a program supported by UNICEF . It is a pilot program to get kids out of the mines and give them some education and professional training.

Tonnerre has just a bike to transport water to sell.

Tonnerre Dimanga is father of 8 children, 3 have died. He is from Kasai Oriental, but was working as a carpenter in Lumumbashi. The war came and ethnic difficulties forced him back to his homeland. But there was no work there as the diamond mine was out of business and other refugees crowded in. Tonnerre didn’t have much choice but to send his 15 year old daughter Ntoumba to the mines. She transported water to the miners to feed the family. Tonnerre is educated and ashamed of what he had become… living in a small shack with hungry children. He speaks perfect French and it is heartbreaking to see such a man in such a dire predicament. When Tonnerre heard about someone offering some education to children in the mine, he went right away to find out more and got his daughter in the program. At 18, Ntoumba now has completed the training and works in a small sewing shop.

Ntoumba is now working in a small shop.

We have to hurry up because the drivers are nervous about «suiciders». These are soldiers, off duty or deserters, with kalashnikovs who in the evening after drinking try to rob those with diamonds walking to sell their find. The drivers want to be out of the area by 4 in the afternoon. So we head out. In the village, men with guns are not rare. One young man with a bandana around his head and a feather sticking out, hanging down the side of his face is drunk and dances around with his kalashinkov swinging. He gets the kids to sing. You don’t know whether to smile or cry at the sight.