KINSHASA, DR Congo
Before dawn, sanitary police armed with crowbars and a bulldozer set about demolishing makeshift trader stalls crowding downtown streets in the capital of Democratic Republic of Congo ahead of a four-day visit by Pope Francis starting Jan. 31.
Officials say Kinshasa, a vast
impoverished city of 17 million people, is getting a facelift not just to
honour the pope but to make its streets and pavements tidier and more orderly
even after he's gone home. But evicted small traders protest that their
livelihoods are being destroyed in the process.
"The clean-up we are
doing just now is not only because the Pope is coming," George Ya Lala,
Kinshasa city coordinator for the campaign said, adding the operation would
continue even after the Pope went home.
Asked for comment on the
evictions of traders, the Apostolic Nunciature, Vatican's diplomatic
representation in Kinshasa, told Reuters in a text message that it was not
aware of the clean-up operations and had no part in them.
It said the Vatican had only
requested that preparations for Francis's visit be done "in the most sober
way. We obviously want the reception sites to be able to accommodate the
greatest number of faithful in a secure way and for roads to be secure."
Standing to one side with a
swollen face after he fell while scuffling with police in an unsuccessful
effort to save his wares, telephone accessories seller David Mbemba, 19, said
he had lost around 100,500 Congolese francs ($50) worth of goods.
Other sellers like Jean Mbuyu
said they had lost everything because they had no prior warning of the
clean-up.
Ya Lala disputed this, saying
traders had been warned several times to relocate before the police moved in,
leaving a chaotic trail of wreckage as they smashed stall after stall, with
crowds of traders, family and friends watching in dismay.
The livelihoods of many
families in Congo depend on the so-called informal sector of the economy -
street stalls, kiosks and hawkers selling a cornucopia of items including food
and other basic household goods.
"I am a widow. I have to
pay my rent, school fees of my children...I will now starve to death,"
said Marth Kayunga, a vendor in the informal market on one of the side streets
off Lumumba Boulevard targeted by the sanitary police brigade.
"We knew this operation
was to clean up Lumumba Boulevard ahead of the Pope's visit that we are all
waiting for," said Jesus, a hardware shop owner who gave only his first
name.
"We are surprised the
police are coming into the smaller streets because they told us they were just
going to remove debris from the main avenue. It's not fair," he said,
adding that his shop was also torn down.
A spokesperson for the police
said only that they were working under the directives of Kinshasa's regional
governor and city authorities such as Ya Lala, who was with the police on the
ground directing the operation.
Lumumba Boulevard is the main
thoroughfare leading to the airport, where a gala welcome will be staged for
Pope Francis. Authorities had warned that development works would be carried
out on sites where the Pope will be received.
But Catholic Church priest
Father Victor Ntambwe said authorities could have planned better and longer for
the occasion.
"Did we have to wait for
the Pope's visit to do something like this? I'm not sure that we needed to wait
for the Pope's arrival to start clearing the avenues and chase away street
sellers," Ntambwe said.
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