News | European Union
| Congo Faces Challenges in Holding First Democratic Poll in 40 Years | |
VOA News - June 29, 2006 | |
 | The Democratic Republic of Congo is beginning campaigning for the first democratic elections in over 40 years. The difficulties the nation faces in staging such an election are evident in the fact that the date has been pushed back several times over the past year. VOA's Catherine Maddux examines how prepared the vast, war-scarred nation is to hold the ballot on July 30. |
| EU troops arriving in Congo, can use force if need be - force commander | |
IRIN - June 26, 2006 | |
 | Advance teams of the European Union's Force for the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), known as EUFOR DRCongo, have begun arriving in the capital, Kinshasa. The force was established at the request of the United Nations to support the UN Mission in the DRC (MONUC), during the country's first democratic general elections in 45 years, scheduled for 30 July. |
| Conservation Efforts in Congo Basin Appear Effective | |
VOA News - June 24, 2006 | |
 | A new assessment of Africa's massive Congo Basin rain forest finds that it is less degraded than environmentalists feared. The findings were announced in Paris, where African and Western officials ended a two-day conference Friday on an international initiative to conserve this rare, tropical forest. |
| EU force commander details mission's mandate | |
IRIN - June 14, 2006 | |
 | At least 800 European Union soldiers, mainly French, will be on the ground in Kinshasa, capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), during the country's general elections, according to the commander of an EU force. |
| Interview with Apollinaire Malumalu, president of Independent Electoral Commission | |
IRIN - June 14, 2006 | |
 | The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is set to hold its first series of elections in 45 years on 30 July. There have been many obstacles and delays: The country is huge, with few roads, and is in the process of emerging from a decade of civil conflict |
| Interview with Valentin Mubake, representative of the opposition UDPS | |
IRIN - June 14, 2006 | |
 | The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is preparing to hold its first democratic elections in 45 years on 30 July, but the main political opposition party is not participating. |
| Interview with William Swing, UN Secretary-General's Special Representative | |
IRIN - June 13, 2006 | |
 | The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is to hold its first elections in 45 years on 30 July. Donors are providing almost half a billion dollars to fund the polls, and the United Nations peacekeeping mission there, known as MONUC, is responsible for transporting the electoral personnel and voting material to 53,000 polling sites around the country. |
| EU military communications advance team arrives | |
IRIN - June 8, 2006 | |
| A 20-member advance team of the European Union (EU) force charged with safeguarding the first general elections in 45 years in the Congo has arrived in the capital, Kinshasa, a spokesman for the force said on Thursday |
| German parliament approves contingent for Congo's EU force | |
IRIN - June 4, 2006 | |
 | The German parliament, the Bundestag, voted 135-5 on Thursday to send a maximum of 780 soldiers to a United Nations-mandated European Union force, due to be deployed in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), to support the UN mission there during general elections set for 30 July. |
| U.S. citizens released without charges | |
Middleton Coudriet Media Group - May 27, 2006 | |
Orlando-based AQMI Strategy Corporation has confirmed the release of three U.S. Citizens who had been illegally detained since Friday, May 19 by the government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). | |
