Gallery: Candy-Colored Congo Sees Waking Dreams Verge Into Nightmares
01Platon
__Platon*, 2012:*__ Farm near Bihambwe, Masisi Territory, North Kivu. This rich pastureland is fiercely fought over in an escalating territorial conflict.
Richard Mosse02Suspicious Minds
__Suspicious Minds*, 2012:*__ Three M23 rebels under Colonel Innocent Kaina (aka “India Queen”) standing at the deserted Kanyaruchinya IDP (Internally Displaced Persons) camp, which they had recently seized from FARDC control. The next day these rebels -- a force of less than fifteen hundred -- pushed onward for Goma, where they were victorious against FARDC troops and their UN support, which included Indian helicopter gunships. Witnesses say that Rwandan army troops came across the border to assist the M23, which is widely viewed as a Rwandan proxy force operating in Congo.
Richard Mosse03Tombstone Blues
__Tombstone Blues*, 2012 :*__ Kanyaruchinya IDP camp, some ten miles north of Goma, was home to at least 60,000 refugees, displaced by the M23 from their homes further north, in Rutshuru Territory. When M23 forces pushed south to take control of Goma, this camp was abruptly abandoned. Fleeing inhabitants stripped the makeshift huts of all their belongings, including the tarpaulin roofs. Many headed for Mugunga IDP camp, just west of Goma. Tragically, the front line quickly followed them only a few days later, and they were forced to flee once again.
Richard Mosse04Safe From Harm
__Safe from Harm*, 2012:*__ Member of Mai Mai Yakutumba posing in a camouflage headdress made from foliage, near Fizi on Lake Tanganyika, South Kivu.
Richard Mosse05Of Lillies and Remains
__Of Lillies and Remains*, 2012 :*__ Skull of a victim of the massacre carried out by the FDLR in Busurungi in 2009. The skull was secretly taken to Chambucha at the request of surviving relatives, so that it could be documented without reprisal on the villagers of Busurungi by FDLR. The skull was placed by the photographer in wet grass near a riverbank and dressed with cut flowers, a memento mori.
Richard Mosse06Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams
__Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams*, 2012:*__ A young girl wraps her arms in her clothes to keep warm in the early dawn in Busurungi, Walikale Territory, North Kivu. Dozens of her neighbors and family members were killed in attacks by the FDLR in 2009.
Richard Mosse07Heartbreak Hotel
__Heartbreak Hotel*, 2012:*__ A hut under construction in Busurungi, Walikale Territory, North Kivu.
Richard Mosse08Only Love Can Break Your Heart
__Only Love Can Break Your Heart*, 2012:*__ FDLR rebel commander with a baby from the Tembo tribe in Busurungi, Walikale Territory, North Kivu. The FDLR massacred almost one hundred Tembo villagers here in 2009. In the background, members of Mai Mai Kifuafua, a Tembo defense militia, watch tensely. This photograph was taken in February 2012. Shortly afterward, Mai Mai Kifuafua joined with the Raia Mutomboki and drove the FDLR from this remote enclave.
Richard Mosse09Lac Vert
__Lac Vert*, 2012 :*__ Villagers wash clothes and children swim in a lake formed in the crater of an extinct volcano. This lake is allegedly the site where bodies of Mobutu’s political opponents were dumped after execution.
Richard Mosse10A Dream That Can Last
__A Dream That Can Last*, 2012:*__ M23 rebels standing with a crowd of civilians at a rally in Mabenga, Rutshuru Territory, North Kivu. The M23 held propaganda rallies, inviting local and foreign press, and demonstrating their force -- police as well as military -- in front of often unwilling crowds.
