ONCE UPON A TIME IN THE CONGO - IL ÉTAIT UNE FOIS AU CONGO

MY CONGO WAR EXPERIENCE 
AVOIR VECU LA GUERRE AU CONGO

After gaining a certain amount of 'ground' and experience on the African terrain, I began working for CELTEL and they came to considered me to be their man for Africa *wink* they saw me as one who landed on his feet running as soon as I 'dropped' into Africa, anywhere, anytime, any country and under any circumstances, from war in the Congo to the, and harshness of desert life of Niger... the Sahel. As soon as I landed I got the job done and I got out.

In 2001 I boarded an Air France flight which was destined for Kinshasa DRC, no sooner than we had landed the captain announced "we are just refueling and getting the hell out of here" (war had broken out in Kinshasa so we had to leave fast). I told the flight crew that I wanted to get down, but they refused to open the doors. Lucky for me, two government officials boarded the plane so the doors were opened, they explained how war had broke out and that we had to get back to France immediately and no passengers would be allowed to exit the plane. As the doors were open I saw a window of opportunity, so I grabbed my bag and got off the plane, no air France staff bothered to come after me, only the Congolese airport staff did... and you know how that works.... a little pay-off (pot-de-vin) and soon after that I was well on my way to go get my job done. By the way the lit'l pay off went on my expense account.

However we didn't get very far fast, before the shooting started. Upon exiting the airport premises shots were being fired. I never made it to my hotel that night, only about half way to a placed called Limite... -well didn't matter anyways, I was informed that the hotel was all shot up and occupied by rebel soldiers, 2 French nationals were dead in the lobby and the rebels refused to allow the authorities to claim them... *moving on*... It was the middle of the night "pitch black" and we were driving with no lights so as not to be detected.

The CELTEL protocol team declared that it was too dangerous to continue any further. So they put me up with a family there. They'd called ahead to the family and asked if I could stay the night and they kindly agreed to accommodate me. The first night was calm and everything seemed fine. But the next morning... I remember while sitting in the sofa... watching their 2 little boys play... that familiar sound I knew so well started. AK47's pah pah pah pah pah... the bullets started striking the facade of the house as well as passing through the house.

Being prior service military, (Big Red One RDF) I recognized that familiar sound and my first thought was to get as much concrete as possible between these kids and those AK's. I told them we're going to low crawl (low crawl meaning like to slide on your belly as a snake) I had to make it seem like a kind of game to get them going, so I low crawled them to the centre of the house... I was called out to the mother whom they i will refer to in this case as 'mamy' to open a door which was obtucted I knew I had to get them to protection, she struggled with the door I yelled at her (probably even swore) the door had been obstructed... but we managed. I took the mom as well placed them all in the centre of the house with as many concrete walls as possible between them and those doing the shooting. I remember Mami leaned back against a wooden door... I remember. I said Mami!!!... Mami please lean against the cement wall for me please... bullets will go right through that door and she just looked at me with a look I will never forget like "Who is this man" she smiled a little and slide over behind the cement wall... I breathed a sigh of relief.

 It was difficult to find enough to find games to keep the boys lying flat down on the ground. Mami's husband... we only saw him for an instant when the shooting started and he was gone. I've seen fear before so I knew we wouldn't see him back soon. We were up against the cement walls and laying flat out on the floor for 3 days. I believe I am the only one who took food during those 3 days. I made several attempts to get my hands on an AK, but unfortunately to no avail, all I had was a kitchen knife to protect this family if rebels finally got inside the parcel... and they were attempting to... as Kabila's soldiers were getting the upper hand. The rebels were going into houses killing the occupants in some cases ... taking civilian cloths and tried to mingle in with other civilians, but they never got in (all this while Mami was praying none-stop) I was the only one who managed to eat something, every other person was too scared to eat and we remained that way for 3 days. There was a point during those 3 days that I thought we would or could all die today... when Bimba's soldiers started firing RPGs as opposed to using small arms... AKs. "No concrete can save us now I was thinking to myself"... while at the same time reassuring them everything was going to be alright. At one moment during the fiercest fighting I was on the phone with my colleagues back in Belgium, I had never heard a Belgian 'pray' before until that day

When it was all over, Mami's husband reappeared. Mami gave him "HELL" screaming and yelling and telling him it was a stranger who had saved the lives of their children. I calmed her and tried to explain to her that he was frightened and that I had been trained for this kind of event in the military. (I don't know if she ever forgave him, but when I speak to her now it appears that all is forgotten, in fact we never speak of those 3 days)

That Sunday morning when it calmed a little i told her I was going out Mammy told her sister to go with me... I said no way I'm going alone, Mami said you're right ... thank you and she said something to me that I have never repeated to anyone to this day... and probably never will repeat to anyone.

Well... I made it out... all the way to the hotel, sent assistance back for them an armored vehicle... checked into a room that the windows had all been shot out... bullet traced walls, and that was that. However never understood why, and was quiet annoyed they'd shot up the VSAT internet access satellite dish which was installed just outside my window. 

The next day I was working on the network problem... fixed the problem... revisited the family and got the hell out...

I remained in close contact with Mami and became very close to her family, to later have a beautiful daughter (Sammi) with her younger sister.

JUST ANOTHER DAY IN PARADISE!!! "PHIL COLLINS"