MONUC Press Review - 9 December 2005
And yet, today, "Friday, the CIAT [International Committee In Support of the Transition] is expected to hold further talks with [representatives of] the UDPS [Etienne Tshisekedi's opposition party], RCD and MLC, the main political groups," Le Potentiel reports. This meeting's objective is "to find here and now a formula for integrating Etienne Tshisekedi's party into the current power-sharing government structure," according to La Tempête de Tropiques. These consultations involving the "prominent forces in the [current Congolese] political landscape are an outcome of last November's Kinshasa visit by a delegation of the United Nations Security Council," Le Potentiel says. During that visit, French ambassador Jean-Marc de la Sablière, who led the Security Council delegation, clearly recommended that "nobody should exclude another from the process and that nobody should exclude himself from it," Le Potentiel recalls.
With respect to the issue over the constitutionality of "the amnesty law [passed by the National Assembly], the head of State has referred the matter to the Supreme Court to decide (...)," Le Palmarès reports. And only after the Supreme Court's "decision shall I known whether or not this [amnesty] law will be promulgated," La Tempête des Tropiques quotes Joseph Kabila as having said. It is worth recalling, however, that "the National Assembly had already referred the same issue to the Supreme Court, on which occasion the Court stated it had no authority to decide the case," Le Palmarès writes.
Meanwhile, "the national president of the MLC, [Jean-Pierre Bemba] just appointed François Muamba Tshishimbi, the [current] Minister of Budget, to replace Olivier Kamitatu as secretary-general of the [party]," Le Potentiel announces. Olivier Kamitatu has been removed from the MLC after being accused of insubordination, diversion of party members, and secret negotiations with third-parties. "Will he [François Muamba] also replace him [Olivier Kamitatu] as president of the National Assembly?" wonders Le Potentiel, recalling however that Olivier Kamitatu has already said he "remains the president of the National Assembly."