Another bout of bloody clashes between Congolese Tutsi rebels and government forces, accompanied by vicious looting has sent the hapless civilians of eastern Congo’s North Kivu province once again running for their lives. Tens of thousands of people have fled the fighting, bringing to nearly 1 million the number of people displaced by fighting in North Kivu alone since Congo’s first ever democratic elections two years ago.
The fighting on the border between Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda has triggered the usual round of recriminations between the two countries’ governments. Foreign envoys are jetting back and forth between Kinshasa and Kigali. The United Nations and European Union are both considering sending in extra troops to help the U.N. peacekeeping force, already the world’s biggest at 17,000-strong.
But nobody seems really sure how to stop the violence, end the misery and secure lasting peace for the people of North Kivu.
French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner and British Foreign Secretary David Miliband are due to meet Congolese President Joseph Kabila in Kinshasa today (Saturday) and travel to the eastern city of Goma, threatened by an offensive by Tutsi rebels this week.
What can be done to end eastern Congo’s vicious circle of violence? Who, if anyone, holds the key to regional peace in Africa’s Great Lakes? And should the United Nations, or the European Union, send more troops to stop the fighting and help stem the humanitarian disaster?
Trackback
25 comments so far
Previous | 2 | 1 | Next
Maybe because the US, China are making $$$ off of this war. US doesn’t go anywhere unless there is a profit to be made
- Posted by CandyThe answer to the qestion is theoretically easy: to send peacemaking troops, aid for people etc. Unfortnately - this won’t help - Congo (or, Africa) needs to help itself. No matter how loud Eropean/American governments speak - it’s still not their war, no real danger faced by their countries and also - not too much to loose… Yes, they can pacify Congo but does Congo want to prove them that they can’t cope with the independence they’ve gained not such a long time ago? Do you really want France to come back?
- Posted by beataSalute!
A web site calling for the U.N. peacekeeping mission in the Congo (known by its French acronym MONUC) to immediately arrest Laurent Nkunda to face justice for war crimes and crimes against humanity, has been launched according to project coordinator, Amede Kyubwa.
The web site, http://www.arrestNKUNDAnow.org , provides information about war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by troups under Nkunda ’s command since 2002 . The website is also launching a petition calling on concerned people around the world to demand that MONUC immediately arrest Nkunda for war crimes and crimes against humanity. The U.N.’s biggest peacekeeping mission will soon be over 20,000 in Congo “must ensure that those responsible for serious violations of human rights and international humanitarian laws are brought to justice” said Mr. Kyubwa.
Nkunda is accused of multiple war crimes and crimes against humanity of which most cases are well documented by various human right organzations including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch. In September 2005, the Congolese government issued an arrest warrant for Nkunda, accusing him of numerous war crimes and crimes against human rights. Human Rights Watch, for example, which has been calling for his arrest for war crimes and crimes against humanity since February 2006 has documented summary executions, torture and rape committed by soldiers under the command of Nkunda in Bukavu in 2004 and in Kisangani in 2002. Also armed groups loyal to warlord Nkunda have been repeatedly accused of using rape as a weapon of war and the recruitment of child soldiers, some as young as 12 after the abduction from their homes.
According to Mr. Kyubwa, NKunda continues to be involved in the committing of crimes in DRC, and in particular in the province of North Kivu, where again groups armed acting under his command are reportedly responsible for killing civilian systematically in the town of Kiwanja. The continuing horrific killing of civilians testifies that Human Rights Watch was absolutely reasonable in its warning then in 2006 and it’s today. “So long as Nkunda is at large, the civilian population remains at grave risk”
The website http://www.arrestNKUNDAnow.org encourages concerned people around the world to sign a petition to demand that MONUC immediately arrest Nkunda for war crimes and crimes against humanity. For more information please call the project coordinator in the United States , Amede Kyubwa at (916) 753 5717 or email: arrestkundanow@hotmail.com
- Posted by josephAfrica is very far away from finding the solution for this lastest waves of war in Congo and if RD of Congo in this moment represents the worst state of affair for any country in Africa, it should say that this year’s turmoil in Cameroon, Kenya, Zimbabwe and etc have highlighted the fragility of the socio-political stability that prevails in the continent.
But if we focus on COngo at this present time, anyone with awareness of the geo-political situation in this region would soon understand that citing the protection of Tutsis, or blaming the Hutus are pitiful excuse. In truth, these are proxy wars which have been present in Congo since its struggle for Independence.
Can the West and the UN help? It is unlikely as so far no one seems to acknowledge the role that French, British & American companies fighting for Congo’s Minerals is playing in this atrocity. Because, these same companies operating in these regions are the main arms’ providers for this war and it is irrefutable that such war creates instability and further weakens the negotiating power of the Congolese government.
But what of the African Union, well this institution is very much a very elitist body which is constituted by dictators would have little regard for the plight of the people and somewhat continue to keep a blind eye in the MafiAfrica which are creating unrest across the continent to focus African Minds on Peace and stability while sending a powerful mesage to African government that they have the might and power to do and undo their regime
In the short term, we will at best get another patch-up agreement, which may be the only way forward given the current African political elites lack the vision and belief of the continent as it should be. In the long term, Africans need Democracy and the freedom of expression to effectively offset the the argument of force, which is killing millions of innocents, displacing many millions more and further condemn the future of Africa to prolong poverty, disease, lack of education.
That said, things would only change for the best and long term if African politicians are made to realise that the African people and its needs matters. For too long, African leadership are relied on Western aid and have so forgotten or failed to realise that they should be about building infrastructure necessary to development in order to create the employments and hence taxation.
In the meanwhile, our demise provide a brilliant opportunity for some to win international acclaim by means of well orchestrated and selected snapshoots
- Posted by Francis Ngalepeople should not think about it, just go and help, this is more than genocide. this is the nazi style of killing. they already killed more than 5 million, how much is enough to call it shameful genocide? if you want to wipe the all region why dont you say it. Rwanda is behind this mass murder, Kagame is protected by the big people. we are waching you and we have our family there to.
- Posted by kitanga