A life of service and leadership in the face of adversity: Michel Dzaringa

Long time Congolese opposition leader Etienne Tshisekedi Wa Mulumba passed away on Wednesday, February 1st at the age of 84. The congolive team produced a show to help our listener know who he was. Our guest, Dr. Nzongola Ntalaja, a professor of African, African-American, and diaspora studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a professor emeritus of African studies at Howard university, served as a diplomatic advisor to Tshisekedi when he was a prime minister in the 90s. He shared with us what impact Tshisekedi had on Congolese politics over the decades. Tshisekedi was born on December 14, 1932 in Kananga, formerly Kasai-Occidental. He obtained a doctorate in Law in 1961 from the Lovanium University in Kinshasa. He was the first Congolese to receive such a degree. When Mobutu took over in a coup in 1965, Etienne Tshisekedi joined his government as Minister of Interior. It was shortly after this period on June 2, 1966 where the four Pentecost martyrs were publicly hung by the state for plotting to overthrow the regime. Tshisekedi later played a key role in drafting the original documents of Mobutu's single party state enshrined in the Popular Movement for the Revolution - MPR in French. He served Mobutu and the MPR faithfully until 1980 when he and 12 others spoke out openly about the ravages of the dictatorial Mobutu regime. This initial outspokenness would presage the founding of the Union for Democracy and Social Progress, UDPS in French in 1982. Thus began his non-violent struggle for democracy and the rule of law. He courageously confronted Mobutu and paid a deer price with jailing, beatings, house arrests and internal exile. By the early 1990s, Etienne Tshisekedi firmly ensconced as leader of the opposition to Mobutu, served a brief stint as Prime Minister, which came about as a result of pressure on the Mobutu regime by the non-violent, pro-democracy forces. Just as he resisted Mobutu, Etienne Tshisekedi would later resist both Laurent Desire Kabila and his son Joseph Kabila. Although he boycotted the 2006 elections, he ran for President in 2011. Joseph Kabila claimed victory in the fraudulent elections. Tshisekedi refused to recognize Kabila as president and swore himself in, unfortunately to little effect. Following the 2011 elections, Tshisekedi was subject to extended illness that saw him spending most of the time in Belgium. In July 2016, he returned to Kinshasa after having unified opposition forces to resist Kabila's efforts to remain in power in contravention to the Constitution that required him to step down. His final major contribution as leader of the loyal opposition was to join with the Catholic Church to broker a deal between the Kabila regime and the opposition on December 31, 2016 that called for elections to be organized in 2017 and Kabila to step down upon the election of a new President. His overriding legacy will be a fight for democracy and rule of law through non-violent means.

On this episode of Congo Live, US Special Envoy Tom Perriello joined us to discuss his work as an envoy for the past 18 months and some anecdotal stories on his experience in central Africa. We will also discuss U.S. policy in the region, respect for constitutions, and opening of political space in the Great Lakes region in Africa and beyond. With the new US administration, his term is coming to an end. Bio Tom Perriello is the Special Envoy for the Great Lakes Region of Africa, appointed by Secretary of State John Kerry on July 6, 2015. Prior to this role, he served as Special Representative for the Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review for the U.S. Department of State. Mr. Perriello previously served as a Congressman from Virginia, Special Advisor to the Prosecutor of the Special Court for Sierra Leone, a conflict analyst, and CEO of Center for American Progress Action. He has worked and conducted research in a dozen countries and taught courses on transitional justice at the University of Virginia School of Law and University of Sierra Leone. Mr. Perriello was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from Virginia’s Fifth District in 2008. He served on the Veterans Affairs Committee and received distinguished marks from the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans Association. He was a founding member of Leader Hoyer’s National Security Working Group, and received the Truman National Security Project’s annual award for wise leadership on foreign policy. He also advocated strongly for a national energy and climate strategy. Outside of government, Mr. Perriello has co-founded and managed justice entrepreneurship platforms and faith-based organizations advancing human rights, poverty reduction and sustainability. He supported the peace processes in Sierra Leone and Darfur and has conducted periodic research in Afghanistan on justice and security. Since early 2011, he has conducted field research and analysis on reformist movements and leaders in Egypt and the Middle East independently and as Counselor for Policy to the Center for American Progress. He is from Charlottesville, VA, and is a graduate of Yale University and Yale Law School.

Our #CongoLive guest for this episode is Samuel Yagase, a community leader in Isangi, a town northeast of Congo. He shared with us how his community is organized for self-sufficiency right in the heart of Africa. This show aired on December 10, 2016. Bio Samuel Yagase is a key player in mobilizing rural communities for local development mainly in Tolaw, Isangi Territory, Orientale Province in the Democratic Republic of Congo. He is the founder of the the organization GOVA (Group of Village Organizations for Self- development ) that works on promoting local initiatives and leadership. He is very committed to improving matters related to local governance in the DRC. He is interested in fighting against injustice (especially traditional customs that discriminate against women) and fighting for the promotion of human rights. He works on promoting dialogue and collaboration between the two medicines (Traditional and Modern ). He is the initiator of the Solidarity Fund for the fight against sleeping sickness in Isangi. For Samuel, development aid has virtually failed. It is in the process of reviewing, with his group, the perception of aid by paying more attention to local assets, helping the population to be the masters of its situation by mastering its agenda that Samuel sees lasting solutions for change in the DRC.

This episode had as a guest Ms. Ndona Nkembi Nyomo, the President and Founder of Festival Congo, Inc. She shared with #CongoLive hosts and listeners her career in the financial sector, her passion for the arts, her perspective on the role of women in the transformation of Congo and also the work she is doing for the Congo Festival which takes place in Atlanta this Summer. This show aired on June 4, 2016 Bio Ndona is a surrealist artist, and writer with a background in finance, investment translation, and sales. A licensed stock broker, who holds both the FINRA Series 7, and Series 63 brokers licenses, Ndona has worked in the investment industry for 10 years in New York, NY, and Toronto, Ontario Canada, prior to relocating to Georgia in the summer of 2015. With clients in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, France, Belgium, and Luxembourg, she had the opportunity to use her diverse background, and language skills as leverage when educating clients on foreign, and domestic capital, and commodities markets. Ndona has worked with such industry giants as Barclays, Black Rock, Citigroup, and most recently E*Trade. In addition, she has experience in mergers, and acquisitions, as well as financial proxy, where while employed at Computershare, she translated investment, and research documents for dissemination to the public. With years of experience in sales and management, she has taken her knowledge of the investment markets, and love of education, and applied it to her passion for connecting individuals through what brings so many together, the arts. The daughter of a jazz musician, and professor from Congo-Kinshasa, and an American mother who was a model, and dancer, Ndona grew up surrounded by what she refers to as the United Nations. Surrounded by artists, and professionals who spoke a multitude of languages, from diverse cultures, her view on the world was formed at an early age.

REMEMBRANCE is a special program in which CongoLive pays tribute to departed pioneers of Congolese culture, arts and music. This Saturday the tribute is for those who have influenced Congo from the third generation of music to 2016. We'll be playing their legendary hits, From Shaba Kahamba, Bimi Ombale, Likinga Redo to Emeneya Kester. The significance of REMEMBRANCE is to pay tribute not only to pioneers of our great popular music heritage but also for the younger generation to learn about the valuable contributions our musicians who paved the way for the current form of music that we hear today throughout the world. This show aired live on May 21, 2016.

Congo Live interviews Michel Dzaringa, a member of the US military, a father and a Congolese American leader striving to inspire Congolese youth to take control of their country’s destiny. Mr. Michel Dzaringa is currently serving as a reservist in the Maryland National Guard 244th Engineering Company and pursuing his education in Public Safety Administration at the University of Maryland. He has over 4 years of experience as a chemical biological, radiological nuclear and explosive specialist. He is the founder and Executive Director of Africa United/Congo United, exploring better ways to promote African Leadership Development and build value. Mr. Dzaringa frequently speaks at and attends leadership events, sharing his passion for all things related to African Leadership development. His passion for leadership development stems from living in his war-torn native country the Democratic Republic of Congo and experiencing the negative consequences of what poor leadership can do to a nation.

Dr. Tongele N.Tongele, a native of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and a reknown scientist. He holds a doctorate in mechanical engineering. And teaches mechanical engineering at Southern Illinois University Edwarsville and The Catholic University of America. In his recent book, “Rise and Shine: Resilient People and Immense Resources in the Shadow of Death”, Dr. Tongele lays out a vision that includes concrete ideas, proposals and steps the DRC can take immediately for a transformational renaissance that utilizes the enormous natural and human resources of the country to bring lasting peace and eradicate poverty in the DRC, and become producer and exporter of goods, services, clean energy and green technologies.

PAPA WEMBA! Congo Live pays tribute to a Congolese icon and the "King of Rumba", musical pioneer Papa Wemba. Learn about the impact of his music world wide, his innovative rhythms and sounds that set the stage for a new era in the time of Zaire to what we know now as The Democratic Republic of Congo. May your soul rest in peace.

Claude Gatebuke is a Rwandan genocide survivor, a Civil War survivor, and Human Rights advocate. He is the Executive Director and Co-Founder of the African Great Lakes Action Network (AGLAN); an organization focused on justice, peace and prosperity in the Great Lakes Region of Africa, based in Nashville, TN. He is also a member of the African Great Lakes Advocacy Coalition (AGLAC). The AGLAC unites over a dozen advocacy organizations with a common vision for a peaceful Great Lakes Region of Africa, found throughout the United States His advocacy work focuses on genocide and mass atrocities prevention and includes lobbying on Capitol Hill in D.C. and across the US. Mr. Gatebuke is a regular presenter at colleges, universities, churches, community organizations and conferences Nationwide and Globally. He has appeared on local, national and international radio and television programs. He has also been a guest at the White House for a briefing of leaders in the community. His media repertoire includes appearances on Al Jazeera, NPR, Straight Talk Africa, Arise TV, NPT, WKRN-NBC in Nashville, WZTV-CBS, Voice of America TV, WTAE, radio interviews and contributions on America Tonight, Bess FM, Heart of Africa, Black Agenda Report, Pacifica KPFA, WSKY, WFSK, WBAI, Transafrica Forum Radio, Afrobeat Radio, BlockReport Radio and Voice of America, and newspaper interviews on the San Francisco Bayview, Afrobeat.net, The East African, Blackstar News, Triblive, JamboNews, Pittsburg Tribune Review, Pittsburg City Paper, the Block Report and Christian Chronicle among others.

Our Congo Live guest, Nii Akuetteh who has spent decades monitoring, analyzing and teaching international relations, with special emphases on African affairs and how global issues and actors--especially the US--impact Africa. His ultimate goal: to produce significant positive change in these Africa-impacting policies and processes. To this end, Nii also works as a democracy activist & NGO executive. In particular he is an organizer helping to transform the African-born community into a potent force & voice. Currently he serves as the founding Executive Director of AIC, the African Immigrants Caucus. A DC-based analyst and public speaker who occasionally testifies in & briefs the US Congress, Nii is a respected analyst and essayist. His essays, TV and radio analyses and comments have been carried on global media, including: MSNBC; The PBS Newshour; Democracy Now; Al Jazeera; BBC; CCTV; Press-TV; CBC; RT; Vatican Radio; Pacifica; RFI; The New York Times; The Washington Post; and Pambazuka News, among others.