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Congo (Kinshasa): Recent Documents
Congo (Kinshasa): Recent Documents
Date distributed (ymd): 991110
Document reposted by APIC
+++++++++++++++++++++Document Profile+++++++++++++++++++++
Region: Central Africa
Issue Areas: +political/rights+ +security/peace+
Summary Contents:
This posting contains several recent documents concerning the
peace process and human rights in the Democratic Republic of
the Congo. For recent news please refer to:
http://www.reliefweb.int/IRIN/archive/drc.htm and
http://www.africanews.org/central/congo-kinshasa
+++++++++++++++++end profile++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Democratic Republic of Congo
Final Declaration from the Workshops of the Churches and Civil
Society, October 4-9, 1999, Kinshasa
[Source: Inter-Church Coalition on Africa (ICCAF), Toronto, an
ecumenical organization involved in research, lobbying, and
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We, members of Civil Society and the Churches, delegates from
all the provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo,
meeting at the Nganda Catholic Centre in Kinshasa, from
October 4 to 9, 1999, to examine the Lusaka Peace Accord and
to prepare for our participation in the Inter-Congolese
Dialog:
- Considering the war currently being waged on Congolese
territory;
- Having closely followed the accounts of delegates coming
from all the provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
about the grave situation facing our people;
- Considering that Accord signed at Lusaka has been, from
beginning to end, a text of a people desiring peace above all
else;
We condemn the aggression against our country by the Rwandan,
Ugandan and Burundian armies, aided by certain Congolese
compatriots and we demand the withdrawal of these aggressors.
We hail and support the Lusaka Cease-Fire Accord which marks
an important stage on the road to a lasting peace in the
Democratic Republic of the Congo;
We congratulate those who created and signed it for their
willingness to put an end to this absurd and devastating war;
We exhort all parties to respect the Accord in all its
provisions;
We call on all the warring parties to abstain from any acts
suggesting willingness to continue the war, particularly
movement of troops and military equipment towards potential
battle zones;
We ask that the Government of the Congo
- consolidate the cohesion of the Congolese people
- reform and open up the political arena
- give precedence to peace negotiation through constructive
diplomacy which will effectively defend the integrity and
sovereignty of our country
- take economic management measures to reasssure all those
involved in socio-economic affairs, and to guarantee the
Congolese people a minimum standard of living in spite of the
war.
We ask the Congolese in the RCD and the CLM:
- to do everything they can to put an end to this war which
puts our national sovereignty in others' hands
- to stop the looting and destruction of our country by the
Rwandans, Ugandans and Burundians, and the multiple violations
for human rights.
To the Congolese people:
- We appeal to the patriotism of every Congolese so that no
son or daughter of this country will ever help foreigners to
destabilize the country.
- We make a solemn appeal to the whole Congolese people, in
the East as in the West, the North as in the South, to make a
common front and to stay united in the one resolve to work
together for national reconciliation, for territorial
integrity, and national sovereignty.
We demand that the UN Security Council
- Make available the money, supplies and personnel
necessary to implement the Lusaka Peace Accord;
- We make a heartfelt appeal to the international community
for emergency humanitarian aid for those who are victims of
war;
- We invite the Security Council to set up a Commission of
Inquiry into the violation of Congolese territorial integrity
and into the looting of Congolese resources;
- We ask the international community to set up the financial
mechanisms to reconstruct the economy of the Congo following
the National Dialog.
- We hope for the speedy summoning of a Regional Conference
for the countries of the Great Lakes region to find a
definitive, lasting solution to peace in Central Africa.
Finally, we assert that the Churches and Civil Society are
already prepared to participate in the National Dialog and to
make a constructive contribution to it. May God protect the
Democratic Republic of the Congo and the lives of its people.
Press Briefing
PRESS BRIEFING BY SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR ON HUMAN RIGHTS,
DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO
Source: http://www.un.org
5 November 1999
At a Headquarters press briefing this morning, the Special
Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Democratic
Republic of the Congo, Roberto Garreton, said that during the
month of April, the United Nations Commission on Human Rights
(UNHCR) had renewed the mandate of the old joint mission to
check the allegations of massacres undertaken by the rebel
forces in the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of the
Congo. The Government of Mr. Kabila had banned the mission's
enquiries. But the mission would be carrying out its task
again as soon as it was safe to do so. For the moment, that
was not possible, since the territory where the massacres had
taken place was still in a state of war despite the
cease-fire. But the war was not over, and it was not safe to
send a mission there. It was important at this juncture, he
had, to say that the United Nations had not forgotten the
victims of the so-called war of liberation of 1994-1997.
He said that the cease-fire, achieved after many tortuous
discussions between the various parties and countries
concerned, was the result of African efforts, for it was
mainly African countries such as Zambia, The Republic of South
Africa, and Libya as well, that had thrown enormous effort
into establishing a cease-fire. However, the cease-fire was a
very fragile thing; it would appear that there were countries
and groups on the lookout for an excuse to break it.
As far as human rights were concerned, things were much worse
in terms of the frequency of acts of aggression. "What is
going on in the East of the country?", he asked. The Security
Council had apparently decided it was going to talk in terms
of the armies of countries which had not been invited, since
some countries had been invited to send their troops in --
such as Zimbabwe, Namibia, Angola -- while others had not been
so invited -- including Burundi, Uganda and Rwanda. Even more
serious, Uganda and Rwanda had started fighting each other.
Mr. Garreton also stressed the lack of democracy in the
region. In the West of the country there was not even a sign
of emerging democracy. There was one party movement called
The Congolese Rally for Democracy. In the East, there were
de facto parties. That was because Democratic Republic of the
Congo President Laurent Kabila passed a law last January
decreeing that the parties must be 're-established'. They were
to be set up under a new legal provision stipulating that the
Minister of the Interior had the power simply to refuse to
accept a new party even after it had been 're-established'.
The Lusaka peace agreements did have provisions for political
parties, including opposition parties, and Mr. Kabila had
signed it. Mr. Garreton said he had asked him which political
parties would be there at the negotiating table, the so-called
Inter-Congo Dialogue. Mr. Kabila replied that they would be
the political parties set up under the law, all those who had
're-established' themselves under the new law.
As for the situation for human rights activities, it was very
serious, he said, and they ran huge risks. Their liberty,
their freedom and their lives were at risk.
A correspondent asked about the role that the United Nations
might play at this moment. Referring to the victims of the war
of 1996-1997, who had been massacred by Alliance des Forces
Demogratiques de Liberation (AFDL) troops, he said that
investigations into those facts had not yet taken place. It
was necessary to confirm that the atrocities had occurred and
that the responsible could be tried. The AFDL had a Rwandan
component and a Congolese component. When Kabila first arrived
in Kinshasa, the AFDL had taken power with Kabila at its head.
A year later the two had separated. At the moment, Mr. Kabila
admitted that the massacres had been committed. Mr. Kabila
also agreed to cooperate with the joint mission. Mr. Garreton
emphasized that there were new scientific methods that made it
possible to establish what had happened even after much time
had passed. He expected cooperation in carrying out those
investigations and successfully establishing the identity of
the perpetrators.
Asked about a possible deployment of United Nations
peacekeepers, Mr. Garreton said that only a few days ago Mr.
Kabila sent a letter to the Secretary-General offering
guarantees of security for the military observers who would be
sent to the region. However, there were difficulties in the
part of the country which was occupied by the rebels. It would
be difficult to guarantee security there. The United Nations
was morally committed to send troops, he said.
Asked about the possibility of finding evidence of other
massacres committed by other nations in more recent fighting
in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and about where Mr.
Kabila stood, Mr. Garreton answered that such investigations
would be part of his mandate. As far as Mr. Kabila was
concerned, he said that he had the duty to believe him. Mr.
Kabila had said he was prepared to cooperate. However, any
lack of cooperation would be reported -- while, on the
contrary, his collaboration would be welcomed.
UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
Integrated Regional Information Network (IRIN)
for Central and Eastern Africa
Tel: +254 2 622147; Fax: +254 2 622129;
e-mail: irin@ocha.unon.org
[This item is delivered in the "irin-english" service of the
UN's IRIN humanitarian information unit, but may not
necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations. For
further information, free subscriptions, or to change your
keywords, contact e-mail: irin@ocha.unon.org or Web:
http://www.reliefweb.int/IRIN . If you re-print, copy, archive
or re-post this item, please retain this credit and
disclaimer.]
Central and Eastern Africa: IRIN-CEA Weekly Round-up 44
covering the period 30 October - 5 November 1999
DRC: 500 UN observers recommended
UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan on Tuesday recommended the
extension to 15 January of the mandate of the UN observer
mission in the Congo (MONUC), due to expire on Saturday, with
the added deployment of up to 500 military observers. In a
report to the UN Security Council, Annan said the deployment
should be led by a soon-to-be-appointed special
representative. The conclusions of technical survey teams
should allow Annan provide the Council with further details of
the possible establishment of a UN peacekeeping operation by
15 January, the report added.
DRC: Government "preparing people for war"
The DRC government appears to have embarked on a propaganda
campaign in an apparent bid to prepare people for the possible
resumption of fighting, analysts told IRIN on Friday.
Government ministers have been issuing strong warnings to
Rwanda and rebels in the east that the DRC will not go into
the next century as an "occupied" country. Now, according to
Gabonese radio reporting from Kinshasa, slogans have been
appearing on giant billboards in the city declaring "peace has
to be earned". "People are no doubt being prepared
psychologically," the radio observed.
DRC: US "deeply concerned" by military activities
The US on Tuesday expressed its concern over reports of
military movements and violations of the Lusaka ceasefire
accord. "The US is deeply concerned by reports of military
preparations, including the movement of troops and materiel by
forces on both sides," news organisations quoted State
Department spokesman James Rubin as saying. "These movements
are provocative and risk being used as a pretext for a
resumption of fighting," he said.
DRC: POW agreement signed
Parties involved in the DRC conflict on Wednesday signed an
agreement in Lusaka, paving the way for the release and
exchange of prisoners of war (POWs). An ICRC spokesman told
IRIN it was now up to each of the governments involved to
notify it of the number and names of the POWs they are holding
so it can help arrange their release.
DRC: Some 6,000 deaths in war's first year
The UN Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in the
DRC, Roberto Garreton, has said that by the end of the first
year of the conflict, it was estimated some 6,000 people had
lost their lives, many of them civilians killed in retaliation
for Mayi-Mayi or Interahamwe attacks on RCD-controlled towns.
Another 500 people remained missing, according to his latest
report, issued on Tuesday. Meanwhile, the bombing of civilian
populations in rebel-held towns was among the most
"deplorable" acts carried out by the government and its allies
in 1999, Garreton said. Some 6,000 children are in military
service in government-controlled territory, and the use of
children in warfare is even more frequent in the case of the
RCD, Garreton added.
IRIN-CEA Update 796 for the Great Lakes
(Monday 8 November 1999)
DRC: Bemba declares ceasefire "null and void"
Leader of the rebel Mouvement de liberation congolais (MLC)
Jean-Pierre Bemba has described the Lusaka ceasefire accord as
"null and void", following alleged attacks by government
forces. The Ugandan 'New Vision' daily quoted Bemba as saying
government troops attacked his forces at Dongo on the border
with the Central African Republic, but were "easily repulsed".
"Now the ceasefire is null and void," he said. Bemba added
that this was the second attack on Dongo in a week. He said
that since he signed the Lusaka agreement on 1 August, his
troops had been attacked in Gbadolite, Makanza and Libanda.
DRC: JMC chief says accord not dead
The chairman of the Joint Military Commission (JMC), Algerian
General Rachid Lallali, said on Monday he had not been
officially informed of any renunciation of the Lusaka
ceasefire agreement by Bemba at the weekend, but that, if
true, it would not mean the end of the peace process. Lallali
told IRIN he had heard allegations of ceasefire violations but
these would be dealt with when the OAU deployed some 30
military observers to the DRC to begin the ceasefire
verification process. "By the weekend, we will have the means
to be present in the field - to investigate, to check and to
monitor these ceasefire violations... We need to start
working, we need to start being present in the field," Lallali
told IRIN.
DRC: UN military officers extended
The UN Security Council on Friday extended the mandate of 90
UN Military Liaison Officers (MLOs) to help implement the
Lusaka ceasefire accord, but it did not authorise the proposed
deployment of 500 military observers. The mandate of the MLOs,
whose deployment to the DRC and regional capitals was
initially authorised in mid-August for a three-month period,
was extended until 15 January 2000, a UN statement said. UN
Secretary-General Kofi Annan had recommended last week that
the Council also give prior authorisation for the deployment
of a 500-member UN observer mission to the DRC as part of the
second phase of UN involvement in the peace process.
DRC: "Wobbly" commitment to peace accord
Annan's spokesman, Fred Eckhard, told journalists after
Friday's Council meeting that there was "no mention of moving
to the second phase, at least not now". He noted that the
deployment of the initial 90 MLOs had not yet been completed,
and it was proving difficult to overcome the "deep suspicions"
of the UN within the DRC. "As to the parties to the peace
agreement, we're trying to hold everyone's feet to the fire as
far as their commitment to the agreement, but that's quite
wobbly," Eckhard said. Meanwhile, Zambia's Secretary for
Defence Brigadier-General Timothy Kazembe told Reuters on
Friday that the fielding of UN observers would "probably come
after three to four months" because the regional JMC would
need time to put in place a secure environment for the
deployment of foreign troops.
IRIN-CEA Update 797 for the Great Lakes
(Tuesday 9 November 1999)
DRC: Four JMC working groups to work on crucial issues
The Joint Military Commission (JMC) charged with implementing
the Lusaka ceasefire agreement has established four working
groups on its crucial aspects, which are expected to present
their findings to the next full JMC meeting in the Zimbabwean
capital Harare from 30 November. The different groups are to
consider: the determination of humanitarian corridors and the
exchange of prisoners of war; mechanisms for the disarmament
of armed groups and civilian Congolese in illegal possession
of arms; mechanisms for the disengagement of rival forces; and
for the orderly withdrawal of foreign forces, according to a
press release from the JMC meeting held in Lusaka from 31
October to 5 November.
DRC: UN peace envoy in Kinshasa
The UN Special Envoy for the DRC Peace Process, Moustapha
Niasse, has arrived in Kinshasa for three days of talks with
the government, UN spokesman Fred Eckhard said on Monday. His
consultations will focus on the deployment of UN personnel to
help implement the Lusaka ceasefire agreement, and other
issues related to the peace process, the spokesman said. While
in Kinshasa, Niasse will also meet with representatives of the
unarmed opposition and civil society, he added.
This material is being reposted for wider distribution by the
Africa Policy Information Center (APIC). APIC's primary
objective is to widen international policy debates around
African issues, by concentrating on providing accessible
policy-relevant information and analysis usable by a wide
range of groups and individuals.
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