Those who worry about political, military, economic and social stability around the world tend to overlook what occurs in much of Africa. Primary attention goes to the economic uncertainty that haunts the United States, Europe and much of the developed world. Next is concern over political and military uncertainty in the Mideast, the Far East and elsewhere around the globe. Events in Africa are usually at the bottom of the list. That does not mean what is happening on the continent is unimportant. The recent election in Congo is a potent case in point.
Congo, a nation of about 70 million people with a checkered history of civil wars and a few forays into democratic government, is an important player on the world's stage. Its abundance of natural resources guarantees prominence. It is especially rich in copper, diamonds, cobalt, petroleum, gold, silver and zinc. More notable currently are its reserves of coltan, a mineral essential in the manufacture of cellphones, laptops, pagers and other electronic devices. Thus domestic events in Congo now have a direct effect on global affairs.
That explains why rumblings of discontent about the results of the Nov. 28 election are drawing increasing attention abroad. The presidential election pitted the incumbent, Joseph Kabila, against Etienne Tshisekedi, a populist with a wide following among the poor. Kabila was declared the winner, but reports of violence and irregularities at the polls were widespread. Outside observers generally agree that the election results are not "credible."
There's good reason to believe so. According to neutral observers, in some places 100 percent of registered voters allegedly cast ballots. That's highly unlikely in any election anywhere in the world. It's unlikely, too, that just about every vote cast in some districts was for Kabila, but that's what was reported. That gives credence to charges that election results were "mismanaged."
Criticism of the election took a while to come. That's because Kabila's government took so long to make the results public. Now that they are available, the United States, the United Nations, the Carter Center and the Catholic Church in the Congo, likely that nation's most respected institution, publicly question the results. Those concerns should be addressed.
Kabila, of course, denies voter fraud, but that's not satisfactory. A fair and impartial accounting is needed. Until there is one, the possibility that election-fueled unrest could erupt into violence remains. For the moment, an uneasy calm prevails. How long that will last is anyone's guess. In the Congo, where millions died in a civil war between 1997 and 2002, a renewal of broad internecine conflict - now restricted mainly to the eastern side of Congo - is always a possibility.
That latter should be avoided at all costs. Dialogue is the best way to resolve the growing crisis in Congo. If that fails, violence will continue to mar the future both for the Congolese, and for those who rightly worry that political conflict there quickly could escalate into a global crisis.