2024-02-11 05:52:42
During the semi-final of the African Cup of Nations this Wednesday February 7 between DR Congo and Ivory Coast, Congolese players and their supporters protested against the deadly violence in the east of the country. Explanations.
Yesterday evening, the Leopards of the DRC faced the Elephants of Côte d’Ivoire in the semi-final of CAN 2023. If the Congolese lost 1-0, they wanted to mark the spirits with a strong symbolic gesture during their National anthem.
Fingers shaped like guns
Unusual images at the Ebimpé stadium yesterday. As the notes of the Congolese national anthem resonate, the DRC players and the public in the stands adopt an eloquent pose: two fingers pointed at the temples in the shape of ” guns« .
A gesture to denounce the killings and gun violence suffered by the civilian population in the east of the DRC, ravaged for decades by insecurity.
The other hand on the mouth
But that’s not all. In parallel with the “ gun » formed with one hand, the Leopards and their supporters ostentatiously place their other hand over their mouths.
A way of symbolizing the deafening silence of the international community in the face of the massacres which continue unabated in eastern Congo. A strong message to alert public opinion.
In tribute to the victims of the rebels
Through this much-commented pose, the Congolese selection wanted to pay tribute to the civilians killed in recent attacks attributed to rebel groups. Notably the massacre of February 6, which left around twenty dead in the unstable province of Ituri.
Proof that despite the sporting challenge, the Leopards do not forget the drama experienced by their compatriots in the East. Their symbolic gesture had the value of a message to the whole world.
The CAN, a forum for humanitarian causes
This is not the first time that African teams or athletes have used the media coverage of a major competition to highlight humanitarian struggles.
We particularly remember the CAN 2012 final won by Zambia, some 19 years after the plane accident which decimated its entire team in 1993. Or the mobilization for the English-speaking crisis during the CAN 2021 organized in Cameroon.
The DRC is following in the footsteps of these militant initiatives, hoping that its message for the east of the country will be heard. Even if the march still promises to be long to bring peace to this ravaged region…