At the end of every year, Frederick Mwenengabo of Fredericton organizes a humanitarian trip to the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
During last year’s trip, on Dec. 16, Mwenengabo felt sick, so he was resting in the hotel. He then decided to go to the HEAL Africa Hospital in the city of Goma. When he found the hospital closed, he began to head back to the hotel in his car.
That was when he, along with his brother and a friend, were kidnapped by armed individuals.
“We were told, ‘If you move, we will shoot,'” he said.
Mwenengabo is a citizen of both Canada and Congo, also known as Congo-Kinshasa. He has been living in New Brunswick since 2009 and has long spoken out against human rights abuses in his home country.
A conflict in the eastern region of Congo has led to millions of deaths since the war began in the late 1990s. Almost seven-million Congolese have fled their homes because of it, according to the United Nations.
In 2012, he went on a hunger strike to try to persuade government officials to boycott a Francophonie summit in Kinshasha, the capital of the central African country.
Mwenengabo spent months in captivity and was only recently released. It wasn’t until Wednesday, a few days after his arrival back home, that he finally felt free.
“It just came to me that, ‘you are in Fredericton … it’s now OK.'”
But these days have been very difficult. Mwenengabo said he is often dizzy and sometimes loses consciousness, has stomach pain and no appetite, among other problems.
He suffers from bad dreams and can only sleep for an hour or two at a time.
“I’m seeing everything I’ve gone through,” he said.
How it happened
Mwenengabo said after being driven away from the scene of the kidnapping, his captors threw his friend and brother into the road and continued on.
He was put in another vehicle, with armed soldiers all around him. But from there, he doesn’t remember much, though he does remember being asked political questions, such as what politicians he was in contact with and whether he would be running for president in 2028.
Mwenengabo said he doesn’t want to remember everything he went through during those months of torture and mistreatment.
In addition to the physical torture, Mwenengabo said, he was put through psychological trauma. At one point, he said he was told that his mother had died.
“It was so difficult for me,” he said. “Saying it is easy, but living it is different.”
When Mwenengabo was told he would be released, he still believed he would be killed. But the next thing he knew, he was at the National Intelligence Agency being given his passport, computer and phone.
Back in Fredericton
During his captivity, Mwenengabo’s adopted sons spoke out about his kidnapping and the ransom demands they had received.
Green Party Leader David Coon also spoke in the legislature, urging people to call on the Canadian government to take steps in ensure Mwenengabo’s freedom.
Since his return, Mwenengabo has been staying with Coon and his wife, Janice Harvey.
Earlier in the week, Coon told CBC News that it was federal government that managed to ensure Mwenengabo’s release in the end.
“We don’t know exactly what happened,” he said.
“But whatever it was, they finally figured out a way to free Freddy in a very difficult situation … where the normal practices that the Government of Canada would use in negotiating the release of a kidnapped Canadian were not available to them.”
CBC News asked Global Affairs Canada if it was involved in Mwenengabo’s release and what will come next in terms of meetings with him or the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
In a statement, a spokesperson said Global Affairs Canada was aware of Mwenengabo’s return and consular assistance was provided to him and his family. But the spokesperson said no further information would be disclosed.
Coon said Mwenengabo is welcome to stay with his family as long as he wishes until he finds a permanent place to live.
He said since his return, Mwenengabo’s sons have been by his side.
“I hope anyone who ever finds themself in this situation will continue to believe, even if it gets bleak and very dark, that people will be fighting for them,” said Coon.
- Family calls on Canadian government to help Fredericton man kidnapped in Congo
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Mwenengabo said he hopes to speak to the federal government about relations with Congo.
But despite everything he has been through, Mwenengabo said he will still continue to take every opportunity to help people and give back.
And he does plan to return to his home country one day.
“Not going back is responding to their threat, and they will have succeeded what they want to do,” he said.
“Nothing will deter me.”
With files from Rachel Cave
This story was originally published in CBC News on June 7, 2024.
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