Steinmeier seeks to open doors in DRC
February 20, 2015
The diplomatic trip to a neighboring continent might very nearly have begun with embarrassment. In with their folders, members of the entourage - politicians, entrepreneurs, artists and journalists - discovered smart lapel pins featuring German and Congolese flags.
No sooner had the first few been pinned to jackets, than there was the need for a discrete intervention - the pins had the colors of the wrong Congo. Green, yellow and diagonal red stripes instead of a red and yellow bar and a star on a blue background.
Their pins were for the Republic of Congo, or Congo-Brazzaville, as it is also known. Steinmeier, however, was touring the Democratic Republic of Congo, Congo-Kinshasa. Replacement pins could not be procured, so the plane took off - without the pins, but at least heading to the right Congo.
The German Foreign Ministry's world tour organizers can make things taxing. One day in Lima or Brasilia, another day in Kinshasa, Goma, or Kigali. And in between, as ever, Ukraine.
'Attention to our neighbor'
In the sweltering heat of Kinshasa, the German foreign minister participated by telephone in the Normandy format discussions concerning Ukraine. His message afterwards - the Minsk talks were not dead.
Happy news, but it was not something that would draw away the importance of Steinmeier's visit. Even with all the important crisis management in Europe, it was vital "to give the necessary attention to our neighboring continent," he said.
During the visit, Steinmeier was scheduled to meet the prime minister, the foreign minister and President Joseph Kabila. Amid it all, a new Goethe liaison office is to be built in Kinshasa after 23 years. Meanwhile, 22 entrepreneurs were present in the tour party and they would, Steinmeier said, "fly back to Berlin with favorable impressions of the investment conditions."
'Lots to be done'
Steinmeier said he sees the trip as a way to open up economic doors between Germany and the DRC. Germany managed only 129 million euros ($147 million) in exports in 2012 to the DRC, a resource-rich country seven times the size of Germany, which ranks 109th among its trading partners. After the meeting with his DRC counterpart Raymund N'Tungamulongo, Steinmeier summed it up. While both countries had shared interests, they had not exhausted their potential for development. "A lot remains to be done," he said.
The younger generation in Congo watched Steinmeier's appearance with their political elite very closely. They said they see Germany not only as an economic power but also a bulwark of democracy. The fact that he also met with civil rights activists, church leaders and opposition members was well-received as a result.
Distrust of Kabila rife
Many young people distrust their president, since Kabila's party said it wanted to impose a change to election law. Before the election, a census is to be carried out - in a giant country with 70 million to 80 million people and some barely accessible regions. It is a mammoth task that could take years. Critics saw in this a clumsy attempt to cling to office.
Activists opposed to the change took to the streets and the state responded brutally. In the end, human rights organizations put the death toll at 42. Kabila blocked internet providers and social media.
Even to date, services are still not fully functioning. For IT entrepreneur Willy Manzambi, a former student of production technology in the western German town of Mönchengladbach, it was a low point.
"I really don't agree that he should stay longer," said Manzambi. "He has already been in power for 15 years and I would say that's enough."
Some stay optimistic
Manzambi's business in DRC is dong well and he said he would like to work with German investors. He is basically an optimist. After all, the second chamber of parliament, the Senate, has halted the election law change after the bloody protests. The election commission CENI has published an election calendar, according to which there will indeed be new presidential elections in November 2016.
For Steinmeier, this was the good news he was taking back from DRC. He welcomed the election calendar and made an appeal for free and fair elections in a peaceful environment.
"We are hoping there will be an equal treatment of all candidates and parties," he said. Yet, this is by no means certain. Many Congolese fear that some politically tense months lie ahead of them.