Seize the moment to help end Congo's suffering

By Jan Egeland and Louis Michel
The Democratic Republic of the Congo's long night may finally be coming to an end. The more than 25 million registered voters gave a massive "yes" to the new Constitution, showing the hope and will of the population to put a definitive end to the war and the conflict, and to build a new Congo.

In June, Africa's third largest country will hold its first multi-party elections since independence in 1960. The hope created by these elections deserves to be backed by tangible help. Each and every day, more than 1,200 people in the DRC die from the lingering effects of civil war, a tsunami death toll every six months, through malnutrition, disease, and displacement. With free elections on the horizon, we now have our best-ever opportunity to help alleviate the suffering of millions of Congolese.

Next week in Brussels, the USD 682 million (EUR 571) Humanitarian Action Plan for the DRC will be launched. Admittedly, this is not a small amount. But it represents what is needed to stanch the hemorrhage of human life and help the people of Congo to address their most basic and urgent needs.

To begin, Congo is a gigantic country -- larger that Germany, France, Poland, Ukraine and Belarus combined -- with few paved roads and little infrastructure. Thousands of miles of impenetrable tropical forest separate the capital, Kinshasa, from the eastern provinces where humanitarian needs are most acute. Ongoing violence often restricts access to suffering communities and jeopardizes operations.

But Congo also has an enormous potential that can be developed and boosted. There are few places on Earth where the gap between humanitarian needs and available resources is as large as in Congo, but there are also few places in the world where peace and stability can so dramatically reverse this situation.

In just six years (1998-2004), an estimated 3.9 million people in the DRC have died from the effects of war. This death toll makes it the deadliest conflict anywhere on the planet since WWII. According to the International Rescue Committee, thousands of children have died from preventable and treatable diseases like diarrhea and malaria, which spread during the upheaval of war. Six years of fighting have left the country's public health infrastructure in shambles, destroyed livelihoods, and led to widespread malnutrition.

In 2002 a fragile peace was forged. A transitional government, supported by the international community and the presence of UN peacekeepers, has helped to keep the progress on track and progressively increase the control on military groups in the eastern provinces. But the drama has not ended. Virtually every family has been affected in some way. In the east, tens of thousands of people are forced to flee their homes each month. Violence has mortgaged the future of millions of Congolese children who lack basic healthcare, the chance to go to school, or the ability to drink clean water.

Women have also suffered grievously. Sexual violence as a weapon of war is committed by all sides of the conflict, and continues in Eastern Congo. Perpetrators commit rape, sexual mutilation, torture and other atrocities in a climate of impunity. Female victims are frequently ostracized by their families and left with deep emotional scars to compound their physical wounds. Approximately one in five victims has HIV.

Unlike the tsunami victims, however, Congo's suffering remains virtually unnoticed by the outside world. In America, for example, only 6 minutes of television network news last year was devoted to the Congo, according to a news analyst recently cited by an international NGO.

Today, finally, the situation is at a turning point. We can and we must do more to alleviate the suffering of the Congolese people. Now is the time to act. Congo may never have a better chance to turn toward a more peaceful, stable future. And we will rarely - if ever - have a better chance to help Congo help its people escape from such extreme destitution and despair.

Now we need a massive ramp-up in humanitarian assistance, one commensurate with the country's huge scale of needs and the opportunities this aid could unleash. We call on all donor nations to dramatically increase their investment and fully fund the UN's humanitarian appeal. Lives can and will be saved if we respond generously and quickly.

The humanitarian appeal enables donor funds to go further by drawing together UN agencies, international, national and local NGOs under one strategic framework. This unified approach ensures there is a clear, comprehensive picture of needs, with no gaps in assistance and no costly duplication of effort. Wherever possible, programmes in the Appeal are designed to fortify local structures and build community self-reliance.

Over the years, the Congolese people have demonstrated remarkable courage and resilience in the face of unspeakable suffering. They can now save their country-- they deserve our help.

Jan Egeland is the UN Under-Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator. Louis Michel is the European Commissioner for Development and Humanitarian Aid.