Curzon at Coming Anarchy points to an Economist article on the Democratic Republic of the Congo. I disagree with the article's assertion that stability or the lack thereof in the DRC will make or break Africa (it seems too close to the pre-war claims that a liberated Iraq would bring liberal democratic revolution to its Middle Eastern neighbors), but it is still interesting, just like every Economist article I have ever read. The only reason I do not subscribe is the high cost - over $100 a year.
Either way, the article suggests that the world pay close attention to the region at the end of this month, when elections are supposed to be held, as per the Sun City Agreement that ended the strife that had engulfed the country (except in Ituri, of course). Due to the current government's lack of preparation, they will not be held. Understandably, this makes some people angry:
The leader of the main opposition party, Etienne Tshisekedi, says the government will cease to be legitimate on June 30th, and is calling for its members to stand down then. Probably most people in Kinshasa agree with him. Incendiary leaflets are circulating, and there are rumours of the mass distribution of machetes. In May, a general strike paralysed the town of Kananga and riots gripped the diamond city of Mbuji-Mayi. On June 5th, when one of the country's four vice-presidents attended a football match in Kinshasa, the 90,000-strong crowd chanted "Kill him".