Why Isn’t The DRC On Trump’s Travel Ban? My Theory

Intro

The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a complicated place that has seen some of the worst wars in recent decades, yet remains one of the most beautiful nations, filled with beautiful people. About a year ago, I had the opportunity to visit Kivu, where someone told me something very interesting: “We loved Trump, not this Biden guy”, and I think there might be a bigger picture here. 

Trump’s New Travel Ban

Not to get too wrapped up in political mess (as I really couldn’t give a fluff (I care about the people of the country)), but Trump recently announced a travel ban from citizens coming from the following nations: 

Full Travel Ban (12 countries):

• Afghanistan

• Myanmar

• Chad

• Republic of the Congo

• Equatorial Guinea

• Eritrea

• Haiti

• Iran

• Libya

• Somalia

• Sudan

• Yemen

Heightened Restrictions (7 countries):

• Burundi

• Cuba

• Laos

• Sierra Leone

• Togo

• Turkmenistan

• Venezuela

Now let’s be honest, most of these travel bans are not in place to necessarily “keep people out of the country,” but because they oppose what the current president supports. Perhaps the only one you could argue with is Haiti, which is ongoing a horrific humanitarian crisis. 

Afghanistan is filled with beautiful people as well!

Do I think this is fair? Absolutely not. Do I believe people should be allowed to enter illegally into any country in the world? No, as it is literally the law that you have to get a visa to any country in the world (yes, there are a few exceptions). However, I was recently in Aden, Yemen, and met a man who had his whole family in the USA for the past 10 years (legally). For the past 6 years, he has attempted to go through the right channels, but the consulate in Djibouti will not meet with him, not even respond. In my eyes, I see this as an all-or-nothing aspect. 

Whatever, that is not the point of this post haha. 

What About The DRC?

A lot of the countries listed above are ones that are “Level 4 Do Not Travel”, which also happens to be more political than safety-wise. However, the one that I was intrigued by was the DRC because it was missing, and this is my theory: 

• When I was in Kivu, a man told me that they liked Trump because “he traded with the country well, not just provided aid and took materials” (their words, not mine). Supposedly, previous presidents or whatnot haven’t done that. With such a rich country, Trump sees that he needs the DRC. 

• Additionally, if you think about it, trading so much with the DRC and then adding them to this travel list would be a horrible look and would probably loosen up ties. 

So to quite literally sum up what this travel ban is, “countries which seem unstable and not economically profitable got banned, while those who were deemed unstable but the USA traded with weren’t”. 

This country is a heap of fun

To me, it’s a small win for the people of the DRC, as the amount of Primus beers I have shared is remarkable. Extremely kind people whom I wish the world for. However, it’s sad to see the likes of Libya (don’t get me started on Libya, ha), Yemen, Myanmar, and Iran on this list. I’ve met so many people from these countries who have tried to follow the right process, but to no avail. At least give them a yes or no… 

Final Thoughts

Trump recently announced a travel ban for 19 countries across the world, and it’s what we all thought. It’s not necessarily about “keeping people out of the country”, it’s more to do with who the US trades with/who supports the USA. The one small win is that due to the extensive trade of copper and cobalt in the DRC, they have been kept off of the list. 

Gosh, one day I wish for a peaceful world. People are beautiful, not just numbers.