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THE MAI-MAI WRITE TO THE GUARDIAN OF LONDON
Mr
Allan Rusbridger
Chief Editor,
The Guardian Newspaper
119 Farringdon Road,
London EC1R 3ER
United Kingdom
11 October 2002
OPEN LETTER TO ALLAN RUSBRIDGER, CHIEF EDITOR OF THE BRITISH
DAILY, THE GUARDIAN CONCERNING A FANTASIST ACCUSATION OF URANIUM
TRAFFICKING AGAINST THE MAI-MAI
Dear Mr Rusbridger,
I have just read an article published by your newspaper on the
25 September 2002, entitled "African bandits offer Iraq access
to uranium". In the article, you say that The Guardian is
in possession of a document that "surely proves that the
Maï- Maï leaders, a brutal militia which is involved
in the war in the Democratic Republic of Congo, twice visited
Bagdad and offered gold and diamonds to the Iraqis". Then
he adds: "The uranium was not mentioned but a western intelligence
agent said that the Maï-Maï were able to obtain such
a material in the zones under their control."
We notice that the words of a western Intelligence agent suffice
for your paper to run up stories that are completely fantasist
and in contradiction with reality.
First of all, it is notoriously and publicly clear and internationally
known that the Kivu does not, within its territorial configuration,
boast any uranium ore under its soil. Moreover, even if that was
conceivable, we Maï-Maï, do not have any technology
at our disposal capable of extracting extremely dangerous fossil
materials such as uranium.
The only known uranium mine which exploited in a very distant
past is found in Shinkolobwe, in Katanga province, a territory
under the control of the government of Kinshasa. Shinkolobwe is
1,900km away from the mountainous Kivu entity under the control
of the Maï-Maï. And the mine has not been exploited
for many, many years now. (in fact since 1955 …)
Let me tell you that the document that your reporter has read
was fabricated, because our Maï-Maï leaders are resisting
occupation on the ground and really have neither the time nor
the means "to go and offer gold and diamonds to the Iraqis".
In order to render your gratuitous accusations more credible,
you have described us a "brutal militia".
But Sir, do you really know that our country, the Democratic
Republic of Congo, has been aggressed since the 2 August 1998
by the Rwandan, Ugandan and Burundian armies? And that this war
which has now lasted four years have already cost several millions
of Congolese their lives?
We, the Maï-Maï, are the sons of our people who do
not accept this aggression and this terror. Did European people
not defend themselves against the Nazi aggression? Did you then
at the time also describe the anti-Nazi resistance as a "brutal
militia"?
Since 1993, our region has been tormented by massacres and one
genocide after another. In March 1993, Rwandan immigrants launched
surprising and sudden attacks meant to exterminate the Tembo,
Hunde and Nyanga natives and occupy their lands. It was at that
time when the Maï-Maï spontaneously formed a self-defense
movement in order to defend their lands.
Our action has nothing to do with gratuitous violence. The Maï-Maï
are young people of military age who express their desire to be
glorious combatants, proud to carry out the sacred duty to defend
their fatherland, a patriotic action which cannot, in any way,
be equated with "terrorism", least of all with dangerous
activities such uranium trafficking which is unheard of in Kivu.
There have never been such an unprecedented brutal and immoral
violation of human principles before in history such as when dishonest
conquerors can willfully break peace in the Great Lakes region
and then take upon themselves to accuse without any proof whatsoever,
those sons of the peasants from mountainous Kivu of trafficking
uranium with Iraq, a far away country and unknown to them.
We are very much disgusted to see that the international community
and newspapers which claim to be "serious" have allowed
themselves to be caught up in the trap of the conspirators and
enemies of our people, by echoing or lending credit to their arbitrary,
fantasist and untrue statements. And we often ask ourselves: which
agent of which western intelligence service is able to fabricate
such lies and why?
By way of conclusion, we state that:
Because today the all powerful United States of America has decided
to combat international terrorism, starting with Iraq accused
of developing weapons of mass destruction; it is therefore easy
and quick to accuse also the Maï-Maï of having delivered
the uranium to Iraq. But we want to ask you: who has the means
and the possibilities to go all over the world and who has the
necessary technology to handle fossil materials? Is it we, sons
of simple peasants who are fighting for our own survival, or is
the westerners and their friends, the Mobutuists as well as members
of Kagame's Akazu?
Don't forget that the Rwandan Patriotic Army (RPA) was on the
front line in Katanga in 1997 and stayed there until 2 August
1998. Go and inquire about what happened in Shinkolobwe during
the Rwandan occupation, which lasted for more than a year.
Finally, we would like to remind you, Mr Rusbridger, that the
enemies of our people are not only brutal and do not only hesitate
to use violence and terror against unarmed civilians, but they
are also genius in the art of lying and enjoy a too easy hearing
from the audiences of certain western media with which they are
in "good terms".
Yours sincerely,
Constantin
MUHONDOSI,
The Maï-Maï General David Padiri Bulenda's Kinshasa-based
Representative.
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