UN
United Nations Peacekeeping
3 Mar
2009
MONUC seriously concerned about renewed violence in the Great Lakes region with the recent
Gatumba massacre
Renewed tension in the Great Lakes region after the killing of over 160 Congolese refugees in Gatumba during the night of Friday to Saturday, gives cause for serious concern to the United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUC) which called for a sense of responsibility from all the DRC political and military stakeholders as well as the neighbouring countries. « The current tension in Eastern DRC and the Great Lakes region must urgently be defused and, to this end, a flurry of diplomatic activities is going on, such as the Wednesday Summit meeting held in Tanzania by six African Heads of States among whom: Presidents Thabo Mbeki of South Africa, Joseph Kabila of the DRC and Domitien Ndayizeye of Burundi. » Ms. Patricia Tome, Head of MONUC Public Information office, made the announcement on Wednesday in Kinshasa during the UN Mission?s weekly news conference.
She also indicated that the International Support Committee to the Transition known as CIAT held its second extraordinary meeting early Wednesday after the one of Sunday at MONUC headquarters in Kinshasa, in order to assess the real diplomatic and military situation.
Given that the transitional process in DRC is in its « critical» phase, Ms Tome underscored that the reactions of the International Community were indicative of a generalised concern, which is the result of the series of inflammatory declarations and threats recently broadcast in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Great Lakes region. She considers that « the mutual accusations made through medias, the threats of intervention issued by some political and military stakeholders sparked off the dangerous rhetoric, likely to spread panic among the populations and to lead to a toughening of positions''.
The Head of MONUC Public Information says that the bellicose comments about the Gatumba massacre « are issued at the wrong time'' and warned all those who are indulging in the dangerous game of fuelling tensions would be heavily responsible for what will happens next.
Ms. Tome further indicated that the United Nations Operation in Burundi (ONUB) and the Human Right Field Office in Burundi have initiated preliminary investigations into the Gatumba massacre, with MONUC's technical support. The board of enquiry, she added, is composed of 16 people backed by military observers. ''Their report will be submitted to the Security Council early next week'', she further indicated.
Asked about the withdrawal of the 'Rassemblement Congolais pour la Démocratie' (RCD) from the transition, announced by the press, Ms Tomé indicated that Vice-President Azarias Ruberwa's statement from his Goma fief exactly said « the transitional process was at a standstill», and should mark a pause during the mourning period, which MONUC took note of; RCD's statement did not mention any withdrawal from the transitional Government, she said.
Referring to the issue about the reinforcement of MONUC's mandate and its extension, Ms Tome indicated that the United Nations Secretary General, Kofi Annan made his recommendations in a report submitted to the United Nations Security Council last Monday. The recommendations, which are still under consideration, deal with the increase of the UN Mission's military strength from 10,800 to 23,900 troops, to be mainly deployed to Ituri, the Kivus, Katanga, Kasaï and Kinshasa.
Given that the transitional process in DRC is in its « critical» phase, Ms Tome underscored that the reactions of the International Community were indicative of a generalised concern, which is the result of the series of inflammatory declarations and threats recently broadcast in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Great Lakes region. She considers that « the mutual accusations made through medias, the threats of intervention issued by some political and military stakeholders sparked off the dangerous rhetoric, likely to spread panic among the populations and to lead to a toughening of positions''.
The Head of MONUC Public Information says that the bellicose comments about the Gatumba massacre « are issued at the wrong time'' and warned all those who are indulging in the dangerous game of fuelling tensions would be heavily responsible for what will happens next.
Ms. Tome further indicated that the United Nations Operation in Burundi (ONUB) and the Human Right Field Office in Burundi have initiated preliminary investigations into the Gatumba massacre, with MONUC's technical support. The board of enquiry, she added, is composed of 16 people backed by military observers. ''Their report will be submitted to the Security Council early next week'', she further indicated.
Asked about the withdrawal of the 'Rassemblement Congolais pour la Démocratie' (RCD) from the transition, announced by the press, Ms Tomé indicated that Vice-President Azarias Ruberwa's statement from his Goma fief exactly said « the transitional process was at a standstill», and should mark a pause during the mourning period, which MONUC took note of; RCD's statement did not mention any withdrawal from the transitional Government, she said.
Referring to the issue about the reinforcement of MONUC's mandate and its extension, Ms Tome indicated that the United Nations Secretary General, Kofi Annan made his recommendations in a report submitted to the United Nations Security Council last Monday. The recommendations, which are still under consideration, deal with the increase of the UN Mission's military strength from 10,800 to 23,900 troops, to be mainly deployed to Ituri, the Kivus, Katanga, Kasaï and Kinshasa.
