text: GOMA - While the Congolese government was keeping the public in the dark about the fall of Goma to the M23 rebels in mid-November, here the news had already gone viral on Facebook.
  Soon after the rest of Congo was checking in on a variety of social networks to follow news updates and the latest photos coming out of Goma, the capital of the war-torn North Kivu region. On the other side of the country, a young man sitting in a cyber café in the city of Matadi, could shout out "Goma has fallen!" And if no one believed him, he could say: "Come see the photos..."
  Over the past four years, the number of Congolese active on social networks – particularly Facebook – has multiplied many times over, thanks both to Internet cafés and the arrival of smartphones. On these networks, they can share photographs, information, meet their friends’ friends and build new networks.
  For less than $1, cellphone companies now offer 24-hour Internet deals. The country is going through a real "information rush."
  Everyone wants to be the first to post breaking news on his or her Facebook wall. "Every time that something happens near me, using my cellphone I rush to be the first to publish something about it on my wall to inform people," says Bruno Ndombe from Matadi.
  Students are totally addicted. "I can’t spend more than two hours without checking my page. This allows me to instantly answer my friends' messages," explains Feza, an economics students at the Free University of the Great Lakes Countries (UFPGL) in Goma.
  "With globalization, not having a Facebook account would be crazy," says Pierre Busime from the same university.
  Citizen reporters
  Many Congolese are joining the ranks of citizen reporters around the world. Thanks to their smartphones, they take photos; record video or sound; write texts and share them on social networks. They are the first to inform others about what is happening around them. It allows some to make money as well.
  “Because they were at the right place at the right time, many are able to sell their videos or photos to media outlets, who do not have the images yet,” explains Cedric Kalonji, a journalist specialized in new media. But this information is sometimes unreliable, or even unethical.
  A Facebook user from Goma posted false information on Nov. 16 when he wrote “M23 rebels are already in Goma and the North Kivu governor has left for Bukavu.” The rebels only entered the city two days later.
  On other Facebook accounts, there are horrifying photos. One photo shows a close-up of a pregnant woman, naked, gagged, on a makeshift operating table. There are also many photoshopped images, defamatory posts, insults, and threats.
  Difficult to regulate
  The Congolese government has begun to try to monitor activity online. "If the country had a fiber optic connection, it would be easier to control the use of social networks, especially Facebook," says a communication specialist from Goma.
  Dieudonné Byaombe, a lawyer, disagrees. "This would go against the constitution, which advocates freedom of speech for all. This implies the freedom of expressing one’s opinion and beliefs, written, oral or through images, on condition that it respects the law and public order."
  Safari Muhonde, a sociologist from the University of Bakuvu, urges Internet users "to be responsible and avoid publishing content that could threaten the nation."
  Journalists also need to use social networks to make the most of globalization, says Cédric Kalonji. "Otherwise, they will be replaced by young people who have already mastered new information technologies."
  View the article in original language
  Simon Benoit-Guyod
  SYFIA INTERNATIONAL
  Syfia International is an association of six independent African press agencies, covering 30 African countries.
  View article in original language
  English edition • Worldcrunch
  Simon Benoit-Guyod
  SYFIA INTERNATIONAL
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  In The News
  Omicron Restrictions, Iran Nuclear Talks Resume, Thai Monkey Festival
  First Advent in the Ahr Valley
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  Anne-Sophie Goninet, Hannah Steinkopf-Frank, Jane Herbelin and Bertrand Hauger
  November 29, 2021
  In The News featured-post Sources WORLDCRUNCH
  👋 Kaixo!*
  Welcome to Monday, where the Omicron variant prompts new restrictions and border closures, talks on Iran’s nuclear deal resume in Vienna and Thailand’s monkey festival is back. We also take you on an international journey into the wonderfully weird world of microstates.
  [*Kie-sho, Basque]
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  🌎 7 THINGS TO KNOW RIGHT NOW
  • COVID-19 update: Israel and Japan have both closed their borders to non-citizens to curb the spread of the new Omicron variant. Meanwhile, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said he was "deeply disappointed" by the travel bans targeting his country over the variant. G7 health ministers are holding an emergency meeting today to discuss Omicron, after several European countries have reported their first cases, which the WHO warns poses “very high” global risk.
  • Iran nuclear talks restart today: Iran will recommence negotiations in Vienna with the United States and other parties. American allies are not optimistic about a resolution, given the steps Tehran’s new government has recently taken toward potential nuclear armament, including announcing more advances in uranium enrichment.
  • Ethiopia denies attack near Sudan border: Ethiopia has said it’s not responsible for a weekend attack on an army post that resulted in the deaths of six Sudanese soldiers. Authorities instead placed blame on unrest by rebels in the contested Tigray region.
  • Honduras woman claims election win: Leftist opposition candidate Xiomara Castro of the Liberty and Refundation Party (LIBRE) has declared victory in Sunday’s elections, which would make her Honduras's first female president. Preliminary results show Castro is in the lead with more than 53% support, but the incumbent National Party, led by Nasry Asfura, is also claiming victory.
  • Ghislaine Maxwell trial to begin today: The high-profile trial of UK socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, who is facing charges including sex trafficking for her role in aiding deceased financier Jeffrey Epstein in abusing underage girls, opens today in New York. It is expected to last six weeks.
  • Virgil Abloh dies: American fashion designer Virgil Abloh died on Sunday at the age of 41 of a rare cancer. A pioneer in bringing streetwear into high fashion through his luxury brand Off-White, Abloh made history in 2018 when he was named Louis Vuitton’s menswear designer, becoming the first African-American to head a major European fashion house.
  • Thai monkey festival returns: With tourism back in Thailand, monkey business is also returning after a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic, with thousands of macaques gathering in Lopburi to feast on fruit and vegetables. The annual “Monkey Buffet Festival” was originally created to thank the monkeys for bringing in visitors to the town, northeast of Bangkok.
  🗞️ FRONT PAGE
  “The world shields itself from Omicron,” Spanish daily ABC titles, as the discovery of the new fast-spreading COVID-19 variant prompts several countries like Israel, Japan and Morocco to close their borders for foreign travelers.
  💬 LEXICON
  Großer Zapfenstreich
  German Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose successor will be sworn in next week, will be given a customary farewell military ceremony known as Großer Zapfenstreich (“Grand Tattoo”) this Thursday. In keeping with tradition, the outgoing leader has been allowed to choose three songs to be played during the ceremony — and one in particular was unexpected: Punk rocker Nina Hagen’s “Du hast den Farbfilm vergessen” (“You Forgot the Color Film”), a 1974 hit in East Germany, where Merkel grew up, which was understood at the time as a veiled criticism of the socialist German Democratic Republic (GDR).
  📰 STORY OF THE DAY
  Micronations, a world tour of 8 bizzaro spots barely on the map
  Micronations have sprung up over the decades as a solution for everything — from protesting your government to wanting to issue your own banknotes to even simply being able to sing your very own self-acclaiming national anthem. Worldcrunch takes you on a tour around some of the world's most peculiar mini-states.
  🎣 Republic of Parva Domus, fishing for pleasure: The self-proclaimed micronation is easy to miss: with a territory of just 0.2 km² nestled in a Punta Carretas neighborhood of the Uruguayan capital of Montevideo. The Republic of Parva Domus was established 140 years ago by amateur Uruguayan fishermen who wanted to have their own, handy storage unit for their fishing rods. The nation's mission is "pleasure and happiness," as proclaimed in their national anthem.
  😆 La République du Saugeais, born from a joke: In the département of Doubs, in eastern France, the Republic of 128 km² extends for 11 municipalities. In 1947, the prefect of the department of Doubs came to Montbenoît and had lunch in the Hôtel de l'Abbaye, owned by Georges Pourchet. Jokingly, Pourchet asked the prefect if he had a permit to enter the Republic of Saugeais. After inventing details about the fantasy republic, the prefect responded by naming Pourchet president of the Free Republic of Saugeais.
  🏳️🌈 Gay & Lesbian Kingdom of the Coral Sea Islands: In 2004, a group of gay rights activists from Australia established the micronation as a symbolic political protest, after the government of Australia's refusal to recognize same-sex marriages. On June 14, 2004, the activists arrived at Cato island on the Gayflower ship, raised the rainbow pride flag and declared the Coral Sea Islands an independent gay and lesbian state. The Kingdom was dissolved in November 2017 after Australia legalized gay marriage.
  ➡️ Read more on Worldcrunch.com
  📣 VERBATIM
  "She wanted a better life but she ended up in the sea."
  — Nuri Hama Amin, father of Maryam Nuri Hama Amin, said just days after his daughter died with 26 other migrants in the English Channel while attempting to make the journey from France to England. The 24-year-old Kurdish woman from northern Iraq, who was the first victim to be identified, was reportedly trying to join her fiancee who had settled in the UK.
  ✍️Newsletter Anne-Sophie Goninet, Hannah Steinkopf-Frank, Jane Herbelin and Bertrand Hauger
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