Congo News Agency: Breaking News from D.R. Congo

The Security Council extended on Wednesday MONUC’s mandate in the Democratic republic of Congo until May 31, 2010. The 15 members of the UN body unanimously adopted resolution 1906 calling on peacekeepers to “use all necessary measures” to protect civilians.

The resolution asks the Secretary-General to conduct a strategic review of the situation in the DRC and MONUC’s progress toward achieving its mandate and to determine, in close cooperation with the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and MONUC, the modalities of a reconfiguration of MONUC’s mandate.

Resolution 1906 “demands that all armed groups, in particular the Forces Démocratiques de Libération du Rwanda (FDLR) and the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), immediately cease all forms of violence and human rights abuse against the civilian population in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in particular gender-based violence, including rape and other forms of sexual abuse.”

The Security Council asked the Congolese government to “ensure the full implementation of its “zero-tolerance policy” with respect to discipline and human rights violations, including sexual and gender-based violence, committed by elements of the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC)” and urged that “all reports of such violations be thoroughly investigated, with the support of MONUC, and that all those responsible be brought to justice through a robust and independent process.”

The resolution also asked “the Secretary-General to continue to fully investigate the allegations of sexual exploitation and abuse by civilian and military personnel of MONUC, and to take the appropriate measures set out in the Secretary-General’s bulletin on special measures for protection from sexual exploitation and sexual abuse.”

In its latest report on the situation in eastern Congo published on Monday, Human Rights Watch gives a few recommendations to the notoriously infamous rebels of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR):

·      Cease immediately all attacks on civilians.

·      Take all necessary measures, including making public statements, to ensure that FDLR     forces do not commit human rights abuses and violations of the laws of war.

·      Carry out investigations into war crimes committed by FDLR forces and take appropriate disciplinary measures against any member of the FDLR, regardless of rank, found responsible.

·      Stop blocking the return of Rwandan refugees to Rwanda. Support the establishment of safe humanitarian corridors to allow refugees to return home.

Maybe, you are asking yourself if this is a joke. No, it’s not. Human Rights Watch has actually called on the FDLR, a terrorist organization known for its atrocities in eastern Congo for more than a decade, to “investigate” its members for war crimes.

Be assured, after the FDLR complies, they will report their findings, arrest those responsible, and make them available to the Congolese authorities, or the Rwandan authorities, or maybe send them to a more neutral venue like the International Criminal Court.

Breaking News: the FDLR respond to Human Rights Watch

Dear Human Rights Watch,

After reading your recommendations, we, the leadership of the FDLR, have decided to cease immediately all attacks on civilians.

We have carried out an investigation into our actions in eastern Congo. We have concluded that we are indeed a terrorist organization, culpable of vicious crimes, and we will turn ourselves to the International Criminal Court.

We will no longer stop Rwandan refugees to return to Rwanda. Of course, if Rwandan refugees returned home, this would cut into our main recruiting base, but be assured, we will comply anyway, because you have kindly asked us to do so.

We will even go further than you have asked us, we will also name all those among us who were involved in the Rwandan genocide and turn them to the Rwandan authorities.

Sincerely,

Ignace Murwanyashiaka, Straton Musoni, FDLR leadership

Back to reality

The FDLR is one of the most brutal rebel force that Africa has ever known. They have been branded as terrorists by the United Nations, the European Union, and the United States.

In its report, Human Rights Watch writes, “On November 17, 2009, the FDLR president, Ignace

Murwanashyaka, and his deputy, Straton Musoni, were arrested by authorities in Germany

for their role in alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by FDLR forces

under their command in eastern Congo between January 2008 and July 2009. They were also

charged with belonging to a terrorist group.”

Human Rights Watch also writes in the report that, as recently as August 10, the group had a “meeting” with Ignace Murwanashyaka. The group also reveals that it had other “various individual and group meetings with FDLR commanders and low-ranking combatants.”

Yes, Human Rights Watch admits it has held meetings with the leaders of a known terrorist group.

No wonder Human Rights Watch think they can change the FDLR rebels into saints with recommendations. After all, they have looked into their eyes and seen their souls.

It is, of course, pure lunacy to think that the FDLR rebels can investigate themselves, stop attacking civilians, and become model citizens of the Great Lakes region, just because Human Rights Watch says so. This is the most naïve recommendation, and there are many, included in this report. This is like asking Osama Bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri to investigate Al Qaeda members and punish them for committing terrorist acts.

This time, Human Rights Watch was careful to include in its report a detailed description of the atrocities committed by the FDLR. Its previous reports had focused on the alleged atrocities of the Congolese Armed Forces (FARDC), barely mentioning the FDLR.

This approach has led the Congolese Government to issue strong responses to the group’s claims. The Congolese Government has said that Human Rights Watch has an “hidden agenda” in eastern Congo. With the revelations that the group has been meeting with the terrorists of the FDLR, few would blame the government for making such statements.

With the arrest of FDLR leaders by German Authorities, and the report by UN-mandated experts detailing the atrocities of the FDLR and their international support network, Human Rights Watch can simply no longer afford to issue one –sided reports on the situation in eastern Congo without further losing its credibility.

During a press conference in Mbuji-Mayi on Sunday, President Kabila was asked about wire reports that the Congolese government has asked the United Nations to provide a pullout plan for its peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUC).

“We have very good relations with MONUC. When will MONUC go? I do not know, but we have very good relations. There have been some differences here and there, but for now, we have very good relations with MONUC”, he said.

He added that “MONUC’s mandate will be renewed for another 6 months in December. The desire of the Congolese government is to receive a disengagement plan for MONUC by June 30, 2010, because we believe, and it’s a fact, that since the beginning of this year, there has been a marked improvement in the security situation in the East.”

President Kabila said he hoped to receive the pullout plan by the end of the year. “Based on this plan, we will eventually discuss with MONUC the practicalities of its gradual disengagement”, he said.

MONUC’s current mandate expires in December. It is expected that the U.N. Security Council will extend the peacekeeping mission for only 6 months this time instead of a full year as usual.

The Democratic Republic of Congo will be celebrating the 50^th anniversary of its independence on June 30, 2010. Some analysts have suggested the government wants to show it no longer relies on the 20,000- strong U.N. peacekeeping force to maintain security in the country.

MONUC was established by the U.N. Security Council in 1999. The largest for any current U.N. peacekeeping operation, its annual budget has grown to more than 1 billion U.S. dollars.

A report by a group of experts, mandated by the United Nations Security Council to investigate on the situation in eastern Congo, has found that a vast international network that spans more than 25 countries is helping the Rwandan Hutu rebels of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) continue their atrocities in the region.

The U.N. report says the network of people, most of whom are living in Europe - but also in Africa, Asia, and the United States, is helping the rebels buy arms and transfer money in violation of a United Nations embargo against the FDLR.

A briefing on the report by the sanctions committee on Congo was due to be presented to the U.N. Security Council in a closed-door meeting on Wednesday. The briefing was postponed because of the sensitive evidence in the report against some member states said to be providing material support to the FDLR.

The report says a military operation launched by the Congolese Armed Forces (FARDC), with the backing of United Nations mission in the Congo (MONUC), has failed to rein in the rebels.

The report says the rebels have returned to most of the areas they had been chased from by the FARDC. They have also carried out reprisal attacks against the population.

Most of the FDLR rebels were involved in the Rwandan genocide in 1994 before fleeing to eastern Congo. They have since committed numerous atrocities against the Congolese population.

The report says the rebels continue to traffic mineral resources from the areas under their control, providing them millions of dollars to fund their operations. International mining companies are buying minerals from regional suppliers linked to the FDLR.

Tin ore giant Thailand Smelting and Refining Company (THAISARCO), a subsidiary of British metals group Amalgamated Metals Corporation (AMC), said in September it was suspending purchases from Congo.

Global Witness said in a press release on the U.N. findings on Wednesday that AMC and Malaysian Smelting Corporation (MSC) are “among the persistent offenders.” The group’s Campaigns Director Gavin Hayman said “They have been named time and time again in reports by the Group of Experts and Global Witness, yet continue to use suppliers and middlemen who buy from mines controlled by armed groups.”

The report also accused people, including government officials, in two neighboring countries, Tanzania and Burundi, of helping the FDLR. The UN experts say they have evidence of phone calls between these officials and elements of the FDLR. Burundi is also named as a rear base for the rebels.

Both countries denied the U.N. findings on Wednesday, while saying they would investigate.

The report says most of the people helping the FDLR are living freely in Europe. 21 phone numbers in France alone were found to be in regular contact with FDLR military satellite phones in 2008.

The U.N. experts say some attacks by the FDLR were directly coordinated from Europe.

FDLR leader Ignace Murwanashyaka and his deputy Straton Musoni were arrested by German authorities on November 17 on suspicion of crimes against humanity and war crimes committed in eastern Congo.

Two NGOs based in Spain are also named in the report as dealing with the FDLR.

This is not the first U.N. report linking the FDLR, and other armed groups operating in eastern Congo, with illicit trade of minerals with international companies.

While the international community continues to spend hundreds of millions of dollars on peacekeeping and humanitarian missions in eastern Congo each year, the rebels committing the atrocities against the population in the region continue to be funded by individuals and companies based in the donor countries, operating freely and enjoying complete impunity.

TP Mazembe have defeated Heartland of Nigeria 1-0 in Lubumbashi to win the Africa Champions League.

 Before a sell-out 35,000 crowd at Kenya Stadium that included President Joseph Kabila, Mazembe put the pressure on Heartland from the start but the score remained unchanged until Victor Ezuruike put the ball into his own net at the 72nd minute.

After losing 1-2 in in the first leg in Owerri last Sunday, Mazembe only needed a 1-0 score to clinch the Africa Champions League for the third time because of their away goal.

Mazembe reached the CAF Champions League finals a record four consecutive years from 1967 to 1970. They won in 1967 and successfully defended the following year.

The win comes with a 1,500,000 US Dollar prize-money and a ticket to represent Africa at the FIFA World Club Championship slated for the United Arab Emirates in December.

Four days after Congo Government spokesman Lambert Mende lambasted Human Rights Watch about what he called “exaggerated” allegations on the situation in eastern Congo and the Congolese Armed Forces (FARDC) military operation (Kimia II) against the Rwandan Hutu militia (FDLR), the NGO responded with new allegations against the FARDC and their Rwandan Defense Force (RDF) allies in another operation (Umoja Wetu) earlier this year against the FDLR.

The NGO is now claiming that Congolese soldiers killed “at least 270 civilians between the towns of Nyabiondo and Pinga in a remote part of North Kivu province since March. Many of them had been killed during two massacres in August at Mashango and Ndoruma villages.”

The NGO claims that “Congolese army soldiers had deliberately killed at least 505 civilians from the start of operation Kimia II in March through September.”

The NGO now also claims that “another 198 civilians were deliberately killed by Congolese army soldiers and their Rwandan army allies during an earlier five-week joint operation, known as Umoja Wetu, in late January and February.”

Human Rights Watch has published countless “reports” on the situation in eastern Congo.

Lambert Mende told the BBC’s Network Africa programme yesterday that “there is no day that can pass without Human Rights Watch accusing our government or our army or our police.” And that, “Human Rights Watch is working for Human Rights Watch and not for the Congolese people.”

The Congolese Government, mainly through its spokesman, has claimed it is under “attack” by the NGO. It has accused the NGO of making “unfounded” allegations, and even having an hidden “agenda” in eastern Congo.

In an interview on Top Congo FM on July 2, 2009, responding to another damning “report” from the NGO, Lambert Mende said that if Human Rights Watch “has a score to settle with (President) Joseph Kabila, they shouldn’t try to use the situation in eastern Congo to do it. They are simply trying to weaken and demoralize us in our existential right of resistance against terrorist movements.”

He also accused the NGO of turning a blind eye on the atrocities of the FDLR, most of whom committed the Rwandan genocide in 1994, before fleeing to eastern Congo where they have since been accused by other respectable NGOs and the United Nations of committing numerous crimes against the Congolese population.

Lambert Mende told Top Congo FM that “Human Rights Watch has said almost nothing against the FDLR and LRA (Ugandan militia) that are attacking us. All the attacks from Human Rights Watch are aimed at the Congolese government. Enough is enough.”

He accused the NGO of pursuing a hidden agenda in the Congo. He said he wondered why the NGO has focused its “attacks” on the Congolese Government, which is only trying to protect itself against “terrorist groups.”

On Wednesday, responding to a call made by the NGO for the Congolese army to stop its military operation against the FDLR, Lambert Mende said it is “nonsensical” for the NGO to call for a return to the “status quo.”

He said that some NGOs are more interested by the “effects” of war instead of solving its root cause (FDLR).

More than 5,400,000 people have died in Congo over the last decade, in big part due to the presence of the Rwandan Hutu refugees and militiamen (FDLR) who fled to eastern Congo after the Rwandan genocide.

The current Rwandan authorities used the presence of the FDLR in eastern Congo as a pretext to invade the region during the Second Congo War. After withdrawing their troops in 2002, they supported the Tutsi rebels led by warlord Laurent Nkunda, who also claimed that he was protecting “his people” against attacks from the FDLR.

Laurent Nkunda and his men wreacked havoc in the region before the Congolese and Rwandan governments decided to mount a joint military operation (Umoja Wetu) to attack the FDLR. Umoja Wetu also led to the arrest of Laurent Nkunda by the Rwandan army.

Since then, the FARDC have launched a military operation (Kimia I) against the FDLR in North Kivu province that has led to an improvement in the humanitarian situation of the population. A second phase (Kimia II) is now underway in South Kivu province to finally rid the area of this scourge of the FDLR that has led to so many deaths in the Great Lakes region.

The United Nations News Service reported on October 16, 2009 that:

The top United Nations envoy to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) today voiced optimism that calm could soon return to the country’s volatile eastern region, while noting that a number of challenges still remain.
“There is now a real prospect that the conflicts that have long blighted the eastern Congo can be ended,” Alan Doss, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for DRC and head of the UN peacekeeping force there, told the Security Council.

Highlighting progress on a number of fronts, he stated that operations by the Congolese Army, known as FARDC, in North Kivu, South Kivu and Orientale provinces have significantly eroded the capacities of the Hutu rebel Forces démocratiques de libération du Rwanda (FDLR) and Ugandan rebel Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA).

He also said that it would be a mistake to stop the military operation against the FDLR now. Clearly, Mr. Doss doesn’t agree with Human Rights Watch approach.

By only “attacking” one side of the conflict, the Congolese government, the NGO often gives the impression of protecting the other side, the FDLR. Are human rights violations one-sided?

The NGO has recently been criticized in an op-ed article in the New York Times by its founder, Robert Bernstein, for this kind of approach about the Israeli palestinian conflict.

“As the founder of Human Rights Watch, its active chairman for 20 years and now founding chairman emeritus, I must do something that I never anticipated: I must publicly join the group’s critics,” he wrote.

“Human Rights Watch had as its original mission to pry open closed societies, advocate basic freedoms and support dissenters. But recently it has been issuing reports on the Israeli-Arab conflict that are helping those who wish to turn Israel into a pariah state.”

“Only by returning to its founding mission and the spirit of humility that animated it can Human Rights Watch resurrect itself as a moral force in the Middle East and throughout the world. If it fails to do that, its credibility will be seriously undermined and its important role in the world significantly diminished.”

During a press conference on Thursday in Kinshasa, Government spokesman Lambert Mende blasted what he called an “avalanche of corrosive reports being poured lately” by NGOs about the situation in eastern Congo.

He said in a statement that, in response to these reports, he has written a booklet to put in context the situation in eastern Congo, stressing its history, people, resources, but also its social and security problems which are fueling “the fertile imagination of some humanitarians and members of the media looking for catastrophes and sensational stories to sell”.

Lambert Mende said that, historically, massive violations of human rights in Democratic Republic of Congo began in the early 90s, with the arrival of Rwandan Hutu refugees in the North-East of the country after the Rwandan genocide. This influx heightened insecurity at the DR Congo-Rwanda border.

He said that, after 5.400.000 deaths due to war and its consequences during the last decade, some NGOs are only focused on its immediate effects and not on solving its causes, at the risk of letting the same effects occur over and over again.

“Those who are always telling others what to do, as if they know the Democratic Republic of Congo better than the Congolese themselves”, are suffering from “the illusion of immediate knowledge” that usually affects “amateur ethnologists”, he said.

He said that these NGOs have drastically changed their position since January 2008. First, they called on the government to sign the Goma peace accords with armed groups to stop the fighting and protect the population. Now, he said, they are claiming that these populations are suffering even more than when they were living under the control of these armed groups.

He reminded the NGOs that the Goma peace accords called for all armed groups to disarm and for those who refused to be disarmed by force.

“Today, the Government, with the support of MONUC, is busy restoring State authority throughout the national territory, particularly in the East and North-East”, he said.

He added that the NGOs that are now calling on the government to stop its military operation (Kimia II) against Rwandan Hutu militiamen (FDLR) are the same ones who have documented the numerous atrocities committed by the FDLR against the local population since they crossed the border from Rwanda in the 90s.

It is “nonsensical” for these NGOs to call for a return to the “status quo”, he said.

He also said that several headquarters of the FDLR have been destroyed during Kimia II and the militiamen have been forced to abandon regions rich in mineral resources which they occupied and used to fund their operations.

“The remaining FDLR are now cut off from all their sources of income, tens of thousands of displaced people in North and South Kivu have been able to return home. The military structure of the FDLR has been permanently destabilized. More than 10,000 Rwandan Hutu refugees, who were the FDLR recruitment base, have been repatriated. Relations between Rwanda and the DRC have improved. The CNDP and other armed groups have integrated the FARDC”, he said.

He also said that, “It is legitimate for the Government to question the intentions of NGOs that, regardless of this progress, constantly strive to produce ultra-negative reviews of FARDC operations”.

He said that, even though some members of the FARDC have been involved in acts of violence against civilians, it’s an “exaggeration” to put the FARDC in the same basket as these “armed terrorist groups”.

“The reform of the judiciary initiated in DR Congo is a priority for the ruling majority. Who can say otherwise after the decrees on the Judiciary by the Head of State and the ongoing recruitment of 1,000 new judges by competition?”, he asked.

“Operation Zero Tolerance against corruption and other anti-values continues “, he said.

He also said that, “Just for the year 2008, 3453 police and soldiers were detained in our country, either as convicts or as defendants”. He added that, “It should be noted that these soldiers and police officers were prosecuted or convicted for crimes related mainly to cases of murder, sexual assault, and robbery with violence”.

“Why does Human Rights Watch choose to ignore this data?”, he asked.

“In an army of around 130,000 soldiers, these figures represent around 2% of the FARDC.
Can a government honestly be accused of condoning impunity when it imprisons 2% of its soldiers in time of war?”

“The minimization of the successes of Operation Kimia II, as well as the omission of the cost in lives made by FARDC soldiers killed in this operation (55 until October 14), captured by the FDLR (7) or wounded (20), gives an idea of the true ideological predispositions of the authors of Human Rights Watch report”, he said.

He said at the end that, “it is useful to note that despite all of this; the human rights NGOs are not the enemies of the Congolese Government, which in any event does not consider them as such. The Government continues to believe that the work of these support structures, when properly done, can help the Government to improve services to the population”.

The 14th summit of the Heads of States of the Economic Community of Central African States (CEEAC) ended in Kinshasa on Saturday.

Seven Heads of States attended the summit, Théodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo of Equatorial Guinea, Denis Sassou Nguesso of the Republic of Congo, Idriss Deby Itno of Chad, Fradique Melo de Menezes of São Tomé and Príncipe, François Bozize of the Central African Republic, Ali Bongo Ondimba of Gabon and Joseph Kabila of the Democratic Republic of Congo.

They were joined by Prime Minister Philémon Yang of Cameroon, 2nd Vice-President Gabriel Ntisezerana of Burundi and Foreign Minister Assuncao Afonso de Sousa Dos Anjos of Angola.

The summit focused on issues related to regional integration, peace and security, the environment, health and infrastructure.

On climate change, the Conference of Heads of States and Governments pledged to deploy all efforts to reverse the gradual disappearance of Lake Chad.

Shifting climate patterns and increased demand on the lake’s water from the local population have caused it to shrink considerably over the past 40 years.

The Conference also noted progress towards the building of a bridge between Kinshasa and Brazzaville.

The controversial project has been opposed in the DRC by Members of Parliament from the Bas-Congo Province who fear the bridge would favor the Port of Pointe-Noire in the Republic of Congo over the Port of Matadi in the DRC as the main entry point for goods in the region.

President Idriss Deby Itno was named new Chairman of CEEAC (also known as ECCAS), replacing President Joseph Kabila. The next summit will be held in 2010 in Djamena, Chad.

TP Mazembe reached the Champions League final for the 5th time on Sunday despite loosing 0-2 to Al-Hilal of Sudan at home in Lubumbashi.

Al Hilal came into the game determined to redress their 5-2 loss in the first leg in Omdurman. They needed to win by a margin of 4-0 to advance to the final.

Al Hilal’s Zimbabwean striker Edward Sadomba scored a goal at the 25th minute and followed with another seven minutes later.

Mazembe did not play well for a team that was expected to win at home as they had done in the tournament this year before today’s game.

The Crows will face Heartland of Nigeria in the final. The first leg will be played on the weekend of 31 October - 1 November  in Nigeria and the second leg a week later in Lubumbashi.

TP Mazembe Englebert reached the CAF Champions League finals a record four consecutive years from 1967 to 1970. They won in 1967 and successfully defended the following year.

TP Mazembe have positioned themselves as the favorites to reach the final of the CAF Champions League by beating Al Hilal of Sudan 5-2 in Omdurman on Sunday in the first leg of the semi-finals.

Mazembe came back from behind twice with goals from Basisila Lusadisu and Mulota Kabangu before going ahead with goals from Dioko Kaliyutuka and repeats from Kabangu and Lusadisu.

Facing a 3 goals deficit in the return leg to be played on October 18 in Lubumbashi , Al Hilal will need a complete collapse of the Congolese side  to advance to the final. Mazembe have not lost at home in the tournament so far this year.

In the other semi-final, Heartland of Nigeria beat domestic rivals Kano Pillars 4-0 in Oweri.

Barring any surprises, Heartland and Mazembe look set to clash again in the final after splitting a series in Group B earlier in the tournament with both teams winning 2-0 at home.

Mazembe reached the CAF Champions League finals four consecutive years from 1967 to 1970. They won in 1967 and successfully defended the following year.