Episode 89: Congo crisis explained - Maurice Carney, Friends of the Congo

The Democratic Republic of Congo and its citizens should, by rights, be among the richest in the world. Congo is a country with vast and rich natural resources, abundant  potential energy and a strategic place in the heart of Africa. And yet, Congo is currently home to one fo the worst humanitarian crises on earth, and its history is littered with genocides and wars that rival the scale of Europe's World Wars. The vast majority of Congo's people are not rich -- and many face brutality we cannot imagine.  Since 1998, more than six million people have been killed in Congo, and the killing continues. And yet most of us have never seen a headline about it.  In this episode, we talk to Maurice Carney, head and co-founder of Friends of the Congo, which seeks to raise awareness not only of the crisis in Congo, but of Congo's many great contributions to global life and the inspiring people who are doing amazing work there.  Maurice talks to us about Congo's history, from the brutal period under Belgium's King Leopold II to the moment Western powers destroyed Congo's democracy and the current crisis, where Congo's neighbours continue to destabilise the East of DRC.  We also talk about the connections between the Congolese situation and other crises around the world - like Palestine. And about the solidarity being shown between activists for all these causes.  Covering topics like Reparations, Chinese involvement in Africa and how our own Governments might be facilitating violence in Congo, this is a fascinating episode. We learned a lot! We hope you doo, too.  You can find out more about Friends of the Congo here and connect with their socials here: FotC Facebook,  @CongoFriends on Twitter and their presence on Insta. You can find more about this episode at beerchristianity.co.uk New to Beer Christianity? Welcome! Beer Christianity is an anti-capitalist, pro-BLM, pro-LGBTQ+, anti-imperialist, post-post-post-evangelical (and apparently republican) podcast where we drink a bit and talk a lot. Our aim is to be real, to be helpful and entertaining. Follow Beer Christianity on Twitter: @beerxianity and find us on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube and Stitcher.  If you leave us a voicenote at speakpipe.com/beerchristianity we might air your question on an episode. Beer Christianity also has a newsletter in which Jonty and guest authors comment on the news, theological issues and stuff that matters.  Sign up to the Beer Christianity newsletter on Substack.  There's a connected Show With Music on Spotify called New Old Music. Check it out if you like eclectic music and weird chat. It's not terribly serious.  Jonty's novel, Incredulous Moshoeshoe and the Lightning Bird, is not available in all good bookshops, but if you bought it and left a review that would probably make that more likely.  We don't really want to preach at you, but some people like to know what we believe. It's this: Jesus Christ is the Son of God and came to teach us a better way to be while reconciling us to God and each other in a way we could never do without Him. He also changed water into wine. Nice.