24/06/2004
stampa
invia
A 500 kilometer race to revive a train line sleeping in the overgrowth. And to
restore hope to a people that has known only war and hunger in recent years. They
call it “Peace Train”. It was born from the initiative of different humanitarian
associations which united their forces to re-establish the link between two cities
that seemed destined never to meet again: Lubumbashi, in the southwest of Katanga
state, and Kindu, in the northern province of Maniema.
stampainvia
After six years, the train line that links Katanga with Maniema comes back to life
A 500 kilometer race to revive a train line sleeping in the overgrowth. And to
restore hope to a people that has known only war and hunger in recent years. They
call it “Peace Train”. It was born from the initiative of different humanitarian
associations which united their forces to re-establish the link between two cities
that seemed destined never to meet again: Lubumbashi, in the southwest of Katanga
state, and Kindu, in the northern province of Maniema.For six years, the tracks that linked these two cities and their people have
subsisted in a forced lethargy caused by lack of funds and abandonment. The principal
cause of the shutting-down of the line was the conflict that killed five million
people in five years and devastated the infrastructure, bringing the Democratic
Republic of the Congo to its knees. The lack of train connections, beyond representing
a significant economic blow to the country, created difficulties for those whose
livelihood depended on the service. Now it is hoped that reopening the artery
will provide vital blood to the long-suffering eastern regions, where the nightmare
of war still dominates the population.
In the last few weeks tension has exploded again in Bukavu, capital of the Kivu
region, where a group of national army soldiers deserted to demand greater protection
and rights for the Banyamulenge people, who live primarily on the border between
the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda. The revolt caused dozens of deaths
and tens of thousands of refugees who fled toward Rwanda and Burundi, which led
to a diplomatic crisis between Kinshasa and Kigali. Each government accused the
other in an exchange that demonstrates the fragility of the peace process and
the status of the people in the border areas.
But the Peace Train is very good news. It departed on the evening of the 28th from Lubumbashi, the capital of Katanga state, and arrived on June 29th in Kindu, stopping at five major stations and pausing in a number of smaller
crossings, where food aid and construction material were distributed; salt and
sugar as well as cement to begin the reconstruction of what the war has destroyed.
Tamara Dutch, a member of the American organization, Food for the Hungry, is
one of the promoters of the project, which she coordinates from Phoenix, Arizona.
“We have been working on this since last November,” she says, “and collaborating
with other international organizations, OCHA, USAID, Care, and Concern Worldwide.
We thought a train that linked these two cities could help the nation’s economy.
As time passed we started calling it Peace Train, and the name stuck. It has allowed
many farmers to start work again and bring their products to markets they had
lost the ability to reach. There will be a domino effect that will benefit 15
million people. Beyond the train itself, we have also partially or fully restored
some stations, which are now useable once again. People’s enthusiasm was a great
help, but we ran into a lot of problems. The tracks were overrun with vegetation,
and we found an unexploded mine at one point. But now it’s all running again,
and the people really need it. After years of war and horror, now they have an
open channel to the rest of the country, and they can start making a living again.”
Pablo Trincia
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