By their silence over the profound misgivings of the election, the 'friends of the Congo' have become accomplices to the eventual fraude.

"They call themselves 'friends of the Congo' but none of these countries has so far protested against the overwhelming inequality in the electoral race in favor of the outgoing president. Or against the inaction by the electoral Commission (CENI) in stopping the illegal abuses during the campaign by the guy who wants to succeed himself after ten years in power, for instance, in his use of the means of the state which, according to the electoral law, should have been sanctioned by invalidading his candidacy. They call themselves 'friends of the Congo' but none of these countries has publicly worried about the method being used by CENI to announce the results of the presidential elections of November 28: without citing the particular voting districts, which prevents the verification of the announced official results. A method that would give comfort to the millions who voted against the outgoing head of State and who have the opinion that this was a fraudulent election.

"By their silence over the profound misgivings of the election, the 'friends of the Congo' have become accomplices to the eventual fraude. The 'friends of the Congo' believe that they will, thereby, preserve the stability of this country, when actually they are stoking desperation in millions of Congolese. In fact what can one think of friends who just stand by and watch while you are being robbed and they tell you to just remain calm?

"Tomorrow, the 'friends of the Congo' will come back to give them nicely thought-out speeches on democracy, which they did not help to defend today. Based on the sarcasms that would greet them, would they conclude then that the Congolese are not ready for it? Lord, preserve me from my friends, I will personally deal with my enemies!"

"Where Are Congo's Friends"?
an Editorial by Marie-France Cros
in La Libre Belgique - December 9, 2011
http://www.lalibre.be/actu/international/article/705460/edito-ou-sont-les-amis-du-congo.html

SUBMITTED BY:
Justice and Democracy in the Congo/Zaire