Drive to Goma

Well today, our assignment began.

After meeting up with Kim (CNEC’s fearless and friendly leader) and the other ladies joining our HEAL Africa visit, we took off. Heading towards Lake Kivu, the watery border with DR Congo, we seemed to be part of a driving experiment. Our minibus hurtled round hairpin bends, rising and falling with the mountain roads. The bold driver – oblivious to any restrictions set by the laws of gravity, or any recognised rules of the road – was fearless in his pursuit of speed. Blind corners, large trucks, oncoming traffic; nothing was beyond his driving prowess!

The scenery blurring past us was utterly stunning. An explosive storm broke overhead, rivers swelled with muddied rainwaters. Waterfalls flowed… And the roads got wetter.

At this time, many of you (like me) would slow your descents, take precautions even. But not our taxi man. With renewed vigour we shot through several villages. The soil got darker as did the skies. Volcanic soils in this region are black, fertile and can grow multiple crops. But this region’s most well-known feature is another black natural wonder: the mountain gorilla.

Tourist hotels and a variety of gorilla-themed restaurants and souvenir shops line the road. But as we approach the Congolese border, we are filled with a sense of anticipation – not least because we had several near-misses from our driver’s abandon of tried and testing driving principles!

Eventually, we arrived at the DR Congo border crossing. Miraculously we made it in one piece!!

The lovely HEAL Africa staff were at the crossing to meet us. With our passports duly stamped, we left Rwanda and walked over ‘no man’s land’ into DR Congo. The visa process was much easier than we’d expected and we soon were headed for HEAL Africa.

Black rock dominates Goma’s roadsides. Potholes inside potholes dominate the road. There is a distinct sense of ‘darkness’ to the place. Such a contrast to the scrubbed up Rwanda, DRC looks sick. How appropriate that we’re headed to see HEAL Africa’s wonderful work – in this, one of the hardest areas to operate in the world.

Now, after dinner, we are in a local restaurant. Sharing stories with a bunch of Christian US doctors. The volunteers here are so dedicated – these guys have been seven times.

With much to see, hear and experience. Tomorrow our story of HEAL Africa will start for real…

During our trip we will be writing a daily blog to keep you up-to-date with our travels. Be sure to sign up and check the blog for the latest news.

Thank you to everyone who is supporting us in prayer. We had a wonderful response this week at both The Way (Jim’s church) and Grace Church (Stu’s church). It was such a blessing to pray with our Congolese brothers and sisters (in Christ). We are all looking forward with great expectation to see what God is going to do with us and how the story will unfold as we learn and make new acquaintances in Goma.

Lastly, here is a photograph that was taken of Jim and I with some Congolese friends living in Hobart that was taken during the service at The Way this Sunday.

Twenty-three-year-old Judith Wanga grew up in London and is proud to be British. But Judith was born thousands of miles away in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Twenty years ago, with the country in turmoil and fearing for their daughter’s safety, her parents sent her to live with relatives in Britain.

Now Judith is going back to Congo for the first time. She wants to understand the childhood she missed and find the missing piece in the jigsaw puzzle of her life.

Judith quickly discovers two things: despite the fact the civil war in Congo has officially ended, in the east of the country a bitter conflict between Congolese troops and rebels continues. She also discovers that women across Congo have a very different status to women in Western countries.

After the reunion with her parents, Judith visits eastern Congo, an area that has been devastated by conflict. There she learns that rape is an epidemic. Judith meets a radio journalist who conducts a one person campaign to expose the extent of the violence directed at women. She hears the stories of those who have been attacked and meets the children who are born as a result of the rapes.

As well as meeting the victims of this conflict, Judith also talks to some of the perpetrators. She meets a young woman who was forced to join the military to survive. The woman reveals how she was forced to kill and how she fled the armed forces only to find herself without money to support her child. Now she supports herself by working as a prostitute.

Amidst all the horror, Judith also glimpses a few signs of hope. She visits a centre that has been built to provide a sanctuary for women who have been assaulted, called ‘City of Joy’. In another part of Congo she meets the young men and women who carry out dramatic performances exposing the brutality they have seen and experienced.

On discovering the harsh realities of her homeland, Judith begins to understand why her parents sent her away as a child. Her experience also makes her determined to return home to Britain and encourage awareness of the plight of her country, and the women forced to endure unimaginable suffering.

If you live in Australia you can watch it now on iView following this link.

If you want to support change in the Congo may I recommend following this link and reading about the work of HEAL Africa.