Pope Francis criticized the “poison of greed” that he said was fueling conflicts in Africa and urged the wealthy world to see that people were more valuable than the resources found in the land underneath them.
Tens of thousands of people rejoiced as Francis rode in his popemobile from the airport to the capital Kinshasa; some split off to chase it while others screamed and waved flags.
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But as the 86-year-old pope addressed dignitaries at the presidential palace, the joyful atmosphere—one of the most exuberant welcomes of his international trips—turned solemn. In the Congo, where abundant mineral riches have fueled violence, displacement, and starvation, he denounced “terrible forms of exploitation, unworthy of humanity.”
“Hands off the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Hands off Africa. Stop choking Africa: it is not a mine to be stripped or a terrain to be plundered,” Francis noted.
Diamond, gold, copper, cobalt, tin, tantalum, and lithium reserves in the Congo are among the wealthiest in the world, but they have also fueled warfare between local militias, occupying forces, and foreign invaders. Environmental damage and cruel treatment of employees, especially children, have also been connected to mining.
The pope read his address while seated in Italian, saying, “It is a tragedy that these lands, and more generally the whole African continent, continue to endure various forms of exploitation.” People who were listening to a French version frequently cheered.
He especially mentioned Congo and warned, “The poison of greed has smeared its diamonds with blood.”
As a result of the protracted and intricate repercussions of the 1994 genocide in neighboring Rwanda, violence has been rife in eastern Congo, aggravating the nation’s issues.
Rwanda is charged by Congo with supporting the M23 rebel group that is battling government forces in the east. This is denied by Rwanda.
Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi remarked, shortly before the pope, on the same podium, “As well as armed militias, foreign powers hungry for the minerals in our soil commit, with the direct and cowardly support of our neighbor Rwanda, cruel atrocities.”
In his talk, the pope avoided specifically mentioning Rwanda or taking a position on the issue.
Tshisekedi’s remarks were rejected by Yolande Makolo, a spokesman for the Rwandan government. She told Reuters: “It’s obvious that this ridiculous obsession with scapegoating Rwanda is President Tshisekedi’s electoral strategy – a distraction from the poor performance of his government, and failure to deliver to their citizens.”
