Journalists urged to support and report on Congo

One of the criticisms of modern journalism is that it often ignores the stories that should be getting its attention and ones that need the desperate oxygen of publicity.

One area of the world that is underwhelmingly covered is Africa and one country that must be top of the list is the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Georgianne Nienaber writes in the Huffington Post that

A photographer working in the region was quoted as saying that ANY journalist, publisher, or news organization that turns their back on this crisis is as guilty of pulling the trigger as any warlord in the region.

And reveals that Human rights watch issued a press release last week which said

The killing and rape of civilians in the eastern province of North Kivu in the Democratic Republic of Congo continues at a horrifying rate despite the signing of a peace accord six months ago, Human Rights Watch said today. The agreement was supposed to stop such attacks.

Did it get picked up the media,well no is the answer.

Now there are many reasons why this is not deemed newsworthy but the question remains that if this was given the oxygen of publicity could lives be changed?

This is one account from the area

Pierre is a 17-year-old youth from Kinyatembe village. When CNDP combatants arrived on June 28, he ran into the hill overlooking the village and saw the CNDP shoot and kill his aunt, her baby she was carrying on her back, and her 14-year-old daughter. “She was running behind the house when the CNDP came,” Pierre told Human Rights Watch researchers. “She wasn’t that fast, so they stopped her and killed her and the kids. Another person was chopped to death by machete.” After looting and burning 20 houses in Kinyamatembe, the CNDP left and PARECO came back. Many of the villagers fled; those who stayed were too scared to sleep in their village and now spend their nights hiding in the nearby forest

In an attempt to rectify this Friends of Congo have set up the following

The objective of this proposal is to secure the necessary resources for a delegation of independent journalists to travel to the Congo to bring attention and perspective to the conflict that causes 45,000 deaths per month.

As one comment on the blog says imagine the reaction that this would get in the media if it were happening in a White and Western country