Voices From Congo: The Road Ahead

Floribert Chebeya posthumously awarded Democracy Service Medal :: MORE

Congo’s elections – both a threat and an opportunity? :: VISIT

Congo’s ‘voice of the voiceless’ still resonates :: VISIT

Remarks of Senator Richard Durbin :: MORE

Remarks of NED President Carl Gershman :: MORE

This event was co-sponsored by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, the National Endowment for Democracy, and the Eastern Congo Initiative.

The stakes for the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the coming months are very high, not only for the country but also for the region. Preparations for elections scheduled for November are inadequate, political intimidation and violence are increasing, and human rights violations continue.

This unique conference brought to Washington a Congolese perspective on the current political and human rights situation and help inform U.S. policy on Congo with constructive ideas and recommendations.

Agenda

Welcome
Michael Chertoff, U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum

Remarks
Ben Affleck, Eastern Congo Initiative, (via video)
Cindy McCain, ECI, recently returned from IRI elections assessment mission

Panel I: Assessing the Human Rights Situation
Moderator, Gwen Ifill, PBS NewsHour
Scott Campbell, UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
Catherine Kathungu, Ass. des Femmes Juristes pour les Droits de la Femme
Anneke Van Woudenberg, Human Rights Watch

Panel II: Elections: Challenges and Opportunities
Moderator, Colum Lynch, Washington Post
Donat M’Baya, Journaliste en Danger
Chouchou Namegabe Dubuisson, Association des Femmes Médias du Sud-Kivu
Barrie Freeman, National Democratic Institute

Remarks
Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL)

Closing
Carl Gershman, National Endowment for Democracy
Annie Chebeya, Widow of Floribert Chebeya
(Mrs. Chebeya accepted the National Endowment for Democracy’s Democracy Service Medal on behalf of her late husband.)