by Juakali Kambale – SANF 08 No 74
Regional and African leaders have pledged to become more involved in diplomatic efforts to prevent a blown out crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo in the wake of a deteriorating political situation in the eastern parts of the country over the last three months.
Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete, who is the African Union (AU) Chairperson said that the continental organisation was ready to take a leading role in the restoration of peace in the eastern province of the DRC.
Kikwete made the pledge during recent talks in Dar es Salaam with the British and French Foreign Ministers, David Miliband and Bernard Kouchner respectively, prompted by current developments in the vast African nation.
The AU chairperson stressed that swift action was needed to avert further escalation of the humanitarian crisis in Northern Kivu Province — which the AU Peace and Security Council recently described as “tragic.”
Kikwete said that the AU was ready to make sure that the area was peaceful and called for support from the region and the international community.
“It is our hope [that] the AU meeting in Nairobi [on 7 November] will come up with the roadmap on the way forward,” Kikwete said.
The Summit is seen as a key step in defusing the crisis with plans to bring the DRC President, Joseph Kabila and Rwandan President, Paul Kagame to the negotiating table.
“The AU is seriously concerned over the latest developments and wants warring parties in the DRC to implement the 29 October 2008 ceasefire in line with the Nairobi and Goma Accords,” Kikwete said.
A ceasefire declared on 29 October by rebel leader General Laurent Nkunda following the retreat of government forces is so far holding out but civilians have continued to flee Goma triggering intense regional diplomatic activity aimed at containing the humanitarian crisis.
The Southern African Development Community (SADC) is expected to discuss the conflict situation in the DRC at a full Summit set for 9 November 2008 in South Africa.
This decision was reached after the SADC Troika on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation met in Zimbabwe on 27 October 2008 and agreed that “an Extraordinary Summit be held to specifically deal with the current developments in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the political situation in Zimbabwe.”
SADC says it is currently unable to send troops to the DRC unless the government has officially put in a request for assistance.
However, last week the DRC sent envoys to most SADC Member States to apprise them on the developments in Goma.
Fighting broke out on 28 August between government troops and Nkunda’s National Congress for the Defence of the People (CNDP), violating a ceasefire reached under the Goma Peace Accord signed in January this year.
The agreement called for an immediate cessation of hostilities, disengagement of troops and the creation of a buffer zone. The accord marked an important step towards restoring peace and stability in the DRC.
Nkunda said his CNDP is protecting Congo’s ethnic Tutsi minority from the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), a militia led by Rwandan Hutus who fled into the DRC after the 1994 genocide in neighbouring Rwanda.
The rebel leader however said that his forces are willing to talk with Kabila if the government brings in a neutral mediator.
“We want them to accept that we can have a neutral mediator, so that we can really have peace talks,” Nkunda said.
According to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), more than one million people have so far fled Goma, despite rebel forces declaring a ceasefire.
There are fears that the recent outbreak of fighting in the Goma Province may deteriorate into a Third Congo War, after the Second Congo War also known as the Great War of Africa that broke out in August 1998.
One of the largest wars in modern African history, the Second Congo War directly involved eight African countries, as well as 25 armed groups.
The then president of the DRC, Laurent Kabila, sought help from fellow SADC Member States who responded by sending in troops which prevented the rebel offensive on Kinshasa.
The governments of Angola, Namibia and Zimbabwe sent troops to support Kabila against rebels who were supported by Rwanda and Uganda.
The regional intervention saved the government and pushed the rebel frontlines away from the capital.
Other African nations joined the conflict in support of Kabila, notably Chad, Libya and Sudan leading to a ceasefire in 2000.
A UN peacekeeping force was subsequently deployed, but clashes persisted.
