SECRETARY-GENERAL WELCOMES ACCORD ON POWER-SHARING IN DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO

SECRETARY-GENERAL WELCOMES ACCORD ON POWER-SHARING

IN DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO

The following statement was issued today by the Spokesman for Secretary-General Kofi Annan:

On 17 December, in Pretoria, the Congolese parties signed an accord on an all-inclusive power-sharing arrangement for the transition government in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, following intensive negotiations mediated jointly by the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for the Inter-Congolese Dialogue, Moustapha Niasse, and the Government of South Africa.

The Secretary-General welcomes this long-awaited progress in the Congolese peace process as a significant step towards lasting peace in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Great Lakes region as a whole.  He praised the Congolese parties for their courageous decision to find a peaceful solution to end the suffering of the Congolese people and embark upon a path to reconciliation, reconstruction and development.  He also commends his Special Envoy and the Government of South Africa for their untiring efforts to help the Congolese parties reach this accord.

The Secretary-General hopes that this accord will be endorsed without delay at a plenary session of the inter-Congolese dialogue, to be convened by the Facilitator, Sir Ketumile Masire.

The Secretary-General pledges that the United Nations will continue to support the peace process in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which promises to enter a transition period, that would, in turn, lead to free, transparent and democratic elections.

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