Congo Nobel laureate Denis Mukwege kicks off presidential campaign with a promise to end violence, corruption
- The renowned doctor also told supporters he would tackle famine in the richly endowed but impoverished country battling high rates of poverty and hunger
- The joint winner of the 2018 Nobel Peace Prize is seeking to run against Congolese President Félix Tshisekedi and several other popular opposition figures
Congolese Nobel Peace Prize laureate Denis Mukwege kicked off his campaign for president in next month’s election on Saturday, promising to tackle corruption and the violent conflict ravaging communities in the country’s east.
The 68-year-old renowned medical doctor told a crowd of supporters in Bukavu city in the eastern South Kivu province that he would also end famine in Congo, a richly endowed but impoverished country battling high rates of poverty and hunger.
“This is the pillar of the work we are going to do to give back to the Congolese people their dignity and their value,” Mukwege told at least 2,000 people gathered in Bukavu, his hometown.
Mukwege was named the joint winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 2018 for his work in supporting victims of sexual violence in the fighting in Congo through the Panzi Hospital he founded.
He is known for his years-long activism in the country, surviving an assassination attempt in 2012 and facing death threats.