UN troops bring a taste of India to a lawless DR Congo
In Africa's most lawless country, the Democratic Republic of Congo, UN troops face both appalling violence and also intense criticism for their failures, but for the Indian peacekeepers there is still time to enjoy a few of life's simple pleasures.
The officer was genuinely upset.
It was the senseless waste that seemed to distress him.
He was Punjabi, a military man from a military family, and he had served in conflicts from Kashmir to the Chinese border.
Now he was a UN peacekeeper in Congo.
But even with this extensive experience of human behaviour, he had seen something here that defied all understanding.
"It's the mangoes," he said. "They grow everywhere. They are good ones too. And you know what?"
He sighed deeply, almost unable to articulate this outrage against all reason.
"The local Congolese people here - they do not even know how to make mango chutney."
I could have laughed. Or I could, perhaps, have been annoyed at his odd sense of priority.
Here in North Kivu Province, you cannot count the number of war casualties - you cannot even count the number of wars.
They range from a major confrontation with international dimensions, right down to little micro-battles, and with all sizes and shapes of conflict on the spectrum in between.
As one Congolese journalist said to me - almost proudly - here, every hillside has its army.
Culinary delights
It is into this maelstrom that the troops from India have been sent, as part of the United Nations peacekeeping mission.
But their mandate here is not just about preventing war.
We want to set up social projects to develop the area," another Indian officer told me. "If people have jobs, they are less likely to fight."
He showed me the village hall they are helping to build near the town of Kiwanja. And there are plans also for a school to teach car maintenance.
But then, yes, he was an Indian, and his thoughts had turned to culinary possibilities. And that meant showing the villagers how to make mango chutney - they could sell the chutney or at least learn how preserving fruit makes it keep, a useful skill where refrigeration is scarce.
But in the temporary absence of this crucial condiment, the troops were not going short of decent food.
Much to my amazement, at their base they had built an impressive officers' mess and rustled up a dazzling selection of curries, side-dishes and fried rotis.
Once upon a time, British officers serving in the Raj would go to great lengths to recreate familiar home comforts.
Now these soldiers were echoing their former colonial masters - making sure there was a corner of an African field that was forever India.
They had even had India's Kingfisher beer flown in and served it up in rather elegant pint glasses with spicy snacks on the side.
.
.
.
BBC News - UN troops bring a taste of India to a lawless DR Congo
In Africa's most lawless country, the Democratic Republic of Congo, UN troops face both appalling violence and also intense criticism for their failures, but for the Indian peacekeepers there is still time to enjoy a few of life's simple pleasures.
The officer was genuinely upset.
It was the senseless waste that seemed to distress him.
He was Punjabi, a military man from a military family, and he had served in conflicts from Kashmir to the Chinese border.
Now he was a UN peacekeeper in Congo.
But even with this extensive experience of human behaviour, he had seen something here that defied all understanding.
"It's the mangoes," he said. "They grow everywhere. They are good ones too. And you know what?"
He sighed deeply, almost unable to articulate this outrage against all reason.
"The local Congolese people here - they do not even know how to make mango chutney."
I could have laughed. Or I could, perhaps, have been annoyed at his odd sense of priority.
Here in North Kivu Province, you cannot count the number of war casualties - you cannot even count the number of wars.
They range from a major confrontation with international dimensions, right down to little micro-battles, and with all sizes and shapes of conflict on the spectrum in between.
As one Congolese journalist said to me - almost proudly - here, every hillside has its army.
Culinary delights
It is into this maelstrom that the troops from India have been sent, as part of the United Nations peacekeeping mission.
But their mandate here is not just about preventing war.
We want to set up social projects to develop the area," another Indian officer told me. "If people have jobs, they are less likely to fight."
He showed me the village hall they are helping to build near the town of Kiwanja. And there are plans also for a school to teach car maintenance.
But then, yes, he was an Indian, and his thoughts had turned to culinary possibilities. And that meant showing the villagers how to make mango chutney - they could sell the chutney or at least learn how preserving fruit makes it keep, a useful skill where refrigeration is scarce.
But in the temporary absence of this crucial condiment, the troops were not going short of decent food.
Much to my amazement, at their base they had built an impressive officers' mess and rustled up a dazzling selection of curries, side-dishes and fried rotis.
Once upon a time, British officers serving in the Raj would go to great lengths to recreate familiar home comforts.
Now these soldiers were echoing their former colonial masters - making sure there was a corner of an African field that was forever India.
They had even had India's Kingfisher beer flown in and served it up in rather elegant pint glasses with spicy snacks on the side.
.
.
.
BBC News - UN troops bring a taste of India to a lawless DR Congo



). On the positive side, I think Indian troops are doing a fantastic job by encouraging people-to-people/cultural/social contract with the locals in Congo.

