UN
United Nations Peacekeeping
6 Mar
2009
Press Review
Today's local papers raise all a risk of fresh hostilities between the Congolese Armed Forces 'FARDC' and General Laurent Nkunda's dissident troops, at a time when an assessment of the Transition is being made.
Information received from eastern DRC, notably in the military area, are far from brilliant with regard to the tense climate prevailing between Brigadier General Félix Mbuja Mabe, commander of the 10th military region and Laurent Nkunda, commander of the insurgent soldiers, LE PALMARES reports.
''Violation of truce and illegal occupation of Minova district by insurgents'' is at the back of this situation. General Mbuja Mabe accused Laurent Nkunda's troops of attacking regular troops and spreading terror among the local population, the paper says, adding that the Commander of the 10th military region does not rule out ''a strong retaliation'', to enforce respect of the MONUC-brokered truce. General Mabe considers that ''MONUC must demand an explanation from those who keep violating the truce'', the paper indicates.
For L'AVENIR, the appeal for the respect of the truce is ''one way of calling into question the international community's attitude which may be construed as a tacit accomplice with a group of resistant people to the DRC peace process''. ''Laurent Nkunda must be arrested and account for his abuses''. L'OBSERVATEUR, which broaches the same subject, wonders why the insurgents who captured the town of Bukavu on 2 June continue ''leading a happy life in Minova'' and ''how long before the out-laws will be neutralized by the Government whose mission is above all to secure people and their properties''.
Referring to the ongoing Transition's assessment in the presidential circle, the National Defence Council and the Government, LE PHARE announces that big decisions are expected next week, as mentioned in the report of the ''weeklong marathon meetings held by the Transition's government last week''. The paper says the various points in RCD's claims were respectively transmitted to the presidential circle, the National Defence Council and the Government for considerations. ''Each institution will have to deal with particular issues, propose solutions as well as identify relevant actors and duties for each one of them and the appropriate resources''. This will lead to the framing of a ''more concrete, concerted and consensual'', roadmap, the paper says.
LE POTENTIEL goes back over the 6-8 September marathon cabinet meetings, highlighting that it was ''three days wasted''. The paper highlights that the ten issues included in the agenda of the Cabinet meeting would mainly request ''donations and loans'' to be secured by the government, ''without which no visible effect will be noted in the country's development''. The paper says there was ''no concrete measure on salary increase for civil servants'on the electoral process nor insecurity in eastern DRC'no allusion was made to the revised 2005 budget''.
LE POTENTIEL further announces that the Independent Electoral Commission (CEI) has opted for voters' census, as a mode of voters' enrolment the DRC elections. The CEI chairman is quoted by the paper as highlighting that the benefits for such a mode of census are, amongst others, ''the easy counting of the persons who have the right to vote, setting up of centres of registration, timing for collecting and processing data which was cut down to 6 months, reliable electoral list, establishment of long-term electoral cards and the relatively reduced costs for its achievement''.
In another development, LE PALMARES announces the launching of a systematic search of vehicles in all the main roads of the town of Bukavu. Initiated by the Congolese Armed Forces 'FARDC', the operation is hailed by the population, reports the paper, which mentions MONUC resentment, indicating that the UN Mission is allegedly opposed to this operation, which it considers as being the source of ''harassments''. ''Monuc argues that humanitarian convoys must not be searched to avoid decay of perishable products such as medicines from emergency relief'', but General Mbuja Mabe, commander of the 10th military region, ''rejects Monuc's arguments'', the paper says.
''Violation of truce and illegal occupation of Minova district by insurgents'' is at the back of this situation. General Mbuja Mabe accused Laurent Nkunda's troops of attacking regular troops and spreading terror among the local population, the paper says, adding that the Commander of the 10th military region does not rule out ''a strong retaliation'', to enforce respect of the MONUC-brokered truce. General Mabe considers that ''MONUC must demand an explanation from those who keep violating the truce'', the paper indicates.
For L'AVENIR, the appeal for the respect of the truce is ''one way of calling into question the international community's attitude which may be construed as a tacit accomplice with a group of resistant people to the DRC peace process''. ''Laurent Nkunda must be arrested and account for his abuses''. L'OBSERVATEUR, which broaches the same subject, wonders why the insurgents who captured the town of Bukavu on 2 June continue ''leading a happy life in Minova'' and ''how long before the out-laws will be neutralized by the Government whose mission is above all to secure people and their properties''.
Referring to the ongoing Transition's assessment in the presidential circle, the National Defence Council and the Government, LE PHARE announces that big decisions are expected next week, as mentioned in the report of the ''weeklong marathon meetings held by the Transition's government last week''. The paper says the various points in RCD's claims were respectively transmitted to the presidential circle, the National Defence Council and the Government for considerations. ''Each institution will have to deal with particular issues, propose solutions as well as identify relevant actors and duties for each one of them and the appropriate resources''. This will lead to the framing of a ''more concrete, concerted and consensual'', roadmap, the paper says.
LE POTENTIEL goes back over the 6-8 September marathon cabinet meetings, highlighting that it was ''three days wasted''. The paper highlights that the ten issues included in the agenda of the Cabinet meeting would mainly request ''donations and loans'' to be secured by the government, ''without which no visible effect will be noted in the country's development''. The paper says there was ''no concrete measure on salary increase for civil servants'on the electoral process nor insecurity in eastern DRC'no allusion was made to the revised 2005 budget''.
LE POTENTIEL further announces that the Independent Electoral Commission (CEI) has opted for voters' census, as a mode of voters' enrolment the DRC elections. The CEI chairman is quoted by the paper as highlighting that the benefits for such a mode of census are, amongst others, ''the easy counting of the persons who have the right to vote, setting up of centres of registration, timing for collecting and processing data which was cut down to 6 months, reliable electoral list, establishment of long-term electoral cards and the relatively reduced costs for its achievement''.
In another development, LE PALMARES announces the launching of a systematic search of vehicles in all the main roads of the town of Bukavu. Initiated by the Congolese Armed Forces 'FARDC', the operation is hailed by the population, reports the paper, which mentions MONUC resentment, indicating that the UN Mission is allegedly opposed to this operation, which it considers as being the source of ''harassments''. ''Monuc argues that humanitarian convoys must not be searched to avoid decay of perishable products such as medicines from emergency relief'', but General Mbuja Mabe, commander of the 10th military region, ''rejects Monuc's arguments'', the paper says.
