amani festival

Enrique Makasi's hometown of Beni in eastern Congo is under frequent siege from rebels, and music is the way he tells the world what is happening. Performing before tens of thousands at the Amani Festival in the regional capital, Goma, the 26-year-old singer hopes to give voice to the hundreds slain and build solidarity to promote peace. [...] Nearly 36,000 people gathered in Goma over the weekend for the three-day festival of music and dance aimed at promoting peace and boosting the eastern Congo's generally negative global image.