PRESS CONFERENCE BY PEACEKEEPING DEPARTMENT ON SITUATION IN DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO

PRESS CONFERENCE BY PEACEKEEPING DEPARTMENT ON SITUATION

IN DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO

The situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, as a result of security and military developments, as well as the country’s ongoing voter registration process, had changed in the past few months, United Nations peacekeeping officials told correspondents at a Headquarters press conference today.

Providing an update those developments, François Dureau, the Director of the Situation Centre explained that there had been much concern, as the end of the transition period approached, that the 30 June deadline could trigger unrest and violence.  The cut-off data had passed, however, without any major incident.

Regarding the overall security situation, he said the western and central parts of the country were relatively calm.  The voter registration process had started and had even been completed in some areas, including in Kinshasa.  There was one small hot spot in the western part of the country, namely Mbuyi Mayi, a major diamond mining town in Kasi Occidental, which had been the subject of high political tension before the 30 June deadline and was still a hot spot in terms of discussion regarding the registration process.  He was concerned about the situation there and the role of the major opposition party, the UDPS (Union pour la Démocratie et le Progrès Social), which had been reluctant to participate in the voter registration process.

Regarding the eastern part of the country, he said the situation in Ituri remained relatively calm, whenever United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC) and the Government Forces, or FARDC (the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo), were deployed.  In locations where MONUC or the Government Forces were not deployed the situation was still very volatile.  The Disarmament and Community Reintegration Programme had concluded at the end of June with the disarmament of over 15,000 combatants -- a major success.  The voter registration process had started in Ituri on 25 July.  It was now in full swing in Bunia and Aru in the north, and had started also in Mahagi, south of Aru.

Concerning military operations, he said the Mission had not seen any large scale operations in Ituri in the past few months.  A few small-scale operations had taken place west of Bunia.  That did not mean that MONUC was not actively engaged in ensuring security and stabilization in Ituri, but that Government Forces had taken on more activities in that regard with the Mission’s support.  The integrated brigade deployed there in March 2005 was now fully involved with ensuring security along with the Ituri brigade.

He said an estimated 50 militia leaders were still operating in Ituri, along with some 1,200 militia combatants, which was much less than the situation a few months ago.  The main militia group, the UPC-L movement, or Union des Patriots Congolais-Lubanga, appeared to have lost most of its capacity after a joint MONUC-FARDC operation that was conducted on 24 June.  At the beginning of August, militia elements belonging to the three other major groups, had increasingly threatened the security of the area of Boga, south of Bunia, and it appeared there had been an initiative by the remnant militias to unify their efforts to create the MRC or the Mouvement Revolutionnaire Congolaise, which aimed to disrupt the international community’s efforts in Ituri and the extension of State authority in the district.  In that regard, MONUC had engaged in extensive dialogue with Ugandan authorities on the presence of Ituri-armed group leaders in Uganda, and Kampala specifically.

In the meantime, arrest warrants had been issued by the Ituri District Prosecutor for some of the ex-militia leaders, and MONUC had urged the Transitional Government to pursue the issuance of international arrest warrants against them, he added.

Turning to the Kivus, he noted that in early June, because of the improving situation in Ituri, the eastern division had shifted its efforts towards the Kivus, allowing two Kivu brigades to gradually increase their defensive posture.  During July, a number of operations had been conducted and six Forces Démocratiques de Libération du Rwanda (FDLR) camps had been destroyed by MONUC and FARDC, resulting in FDLR combatants leaving the area.  Other operations had been conducted in other areas.  The same pattern of operations had applied to North Kivu and the general area of a national park.

Those operations, he noted, had been conducted with the aim of warning the FDLR combatants that they had to leave the area and regroup in sites marked by MONUC for disarmament, demobilization and reintegration.  The operations in which six camps had been identified and then destroyed by MONUC were conducted without a single shot being fired.  MONUC had carried out a robust action with minimal use of force.  All operations had been conducted along with community outreach programmes, especially in South Kivu. 

Regarding the status of the FDLR, he said there had been a number of discussions regarding the future of its leaders and combatants.  So far, there had been no concrete follow-up regarding the Rome Declaration, where the leaders had committed to enter the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration programme and repatriation towards Rwanda.

Focusing on the political aspects of the peace process, Margaret Carey, Principal Officer of the African Division in the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, explained that the registration process had started on 20 June in Kinshasa and was gradually moving throughout the country.  She hoped that the process would be finished by the end of September, although the timetable might be extended, due to several logistic issues. 

Registration would be followed by the holding of a referendum for a new constitution on 27 November, which had already been approved by Parliament, she continued.  That would be followed by the adoption by the Parliament of the electoral law, which had been drafted and was under consideration.  That action would set the precise timetable for the election dates, which were scheduled to take place in March and April, with the idea of inaugurating a new government in May.

While the registration process was moving forward, it faced major logistical problems in getting electoral material out to the field, she said.  It was particularly a problem for the Independent Electoral Commission, which was still a fledgling organization.  Even though its $285 million had been fully pledged by donors, not all the money was in the bank.  Although the process was an incredible logistic challenge, it was nevertheless moving forward.  MONUC was doing its best to help the process.

The key for MONUC, she said was the Secretary-General’s request in his 2 August report for additional logistic, police and military resources.  His recommendations in that report were before the Security Council for its consideration.  While it seemed that requests for police and logistics would be favourably considered, it was August in New York, Europe and Kinshasa, and not a lot was happening on the political side.

On the Ituri situation, she said there had been several positive exchanges between Government representatives and representatives of Uganda’s Government.  The Ugandan Government had said that any Ituri armed elements would not be welcomed on Ugandan territory.  On the FDLR, no concrete progress had been made on the Rome Declaration and there had not been a significant increase in the number of repatriations.

Asked whether Uganda and Rwanda had stopped interfering in Ituri, she said that reports indicated that arms were still going into Ituri, and that Ituri armed groups were still being trained.  The reports indicated that arms were flowing over the borders from Uganda in particular.  It was circumstantial, not hard evidence, however.  There had been a good meeting this past with officials in Kampala on the issue of armed groups in Ituri.  The situation seemed to have taken a step in the right direction in the last week. 

Asked to elaborate on her response, she said the circumstantial evidence, which pointed all in one direction, was that there were arms flow and training coming from Ugandan territory.  She was not saying it was the Government of Uganda, but Ugandan territory that was being used for the movement of arms flows.

Regarding what the United Nations was doing to try to stop those arms flows, she noted that the Security Council was seized of the matter.  There had been a number of discussions on the possibility of individual sanctions.  In terms of Ituri, the movement of arms and training of Ituri armed elements threatened the security of Ituri and the people living there.  It was important to remember that Ituri had been a “no man’s land” for a long time and had never had a strong Government structure.  The Mission was trying to work with the Transitional Government to establish a government in Ituri, which would continue to be a security issue without governance.

She was confident that the timetable for elections would “stick”, she said in response to another question.  There was a great deal of good political will both among the Congolese and among their partners in the international community.  Because of the history of the country, the road and communication system, it would not be an easy process, but she believed the electoral timetable would be generally observed. 

On the issue of the FDLR, she noted that most of the discussion had happened between the FDLR, MONUC and the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.  She believed it was important to start looking at bringing Rwanda in a little bit more.  Of course, the Government of the DRC and MONUC had had extensive consultations with Rwanda, and Rwanda had consistently indicated its goodwill to move forward on those issues.  In terms of the practical side, however, it might be useful to bring Rwanda in to talk about the practical aspects of repatriation.  Rwanda had been involved in all discussions, she added.

Asked how many peacekeepers were needed for the elections, she said the Mission currently had 16,700 troops in the country at the current time.  The Secretary-General had asked for another brigade from the Council.  The Council would consider that in September.  An additional five foreign police units had been requested to carry out more focused training in politically sensitive areas.

While it was a huge country, the security threats were pretty defined, she added.  The security needs differed throughout the country.  In some areas, for example, it was a question of social disturbances.  In defined areas of threat, however, while maybe not fully comfortable, the Mission had what it needed.  Cooperation with governments and other donors was very strong at this point.  The passing of the 30 June deadline had shown that the Mission could handle the security risks.

How long did it take to deploy troops, once approved by the Council? another correspondent asked.  Responding, she said that in her experience, the shortest deployment was two to three months, when the Bangladeshis had moved into Ituri after Artemis had left.  The Department was working with troop contributors to ensure that if and when a resolution was adopted, it could move troops quickly.

Responding to a question on the issue of sexual abuse, she said that was not a MONUC specific issue, as much as it was a general peacekeeping question.  Regarding the measures that the Secretary-General’s Special Representative had put forward to stem and prevent sexual abuse, MONUC troop contributors were on board and were working closely with civilians to ensure that those measures were implemented. 

On the issue of repatriations from MONUC, she said troop contributors had assured the Mission that disciplinary action had been taken.  The Department was leading ongoing consultations with troop contributors, and consultations were going well.

How many civilian casualties had there been and how many displaced persons were there? a correspondent said.

Responding, she noted that according to most recent projections, there had been some 4 million causalities from the war in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.  That was from 1998 to the present.  There were indications that thousands continued to die every month from conditions associated with the conflict.  The Mission expected the new Government to change that.  The objective of the elections was to ensure the participation of all the political parties and to have a transparent process.  The true stemming of the conflict would require the building up of Congolese security forces so that the country could protect itself from various levels of threat.  Those were long-term issues.  The elections would only be a step in the process, not an end.  Political support would need to continue after the elections.

In response to another question, she said she would not compare the Congo to Darfur at all. 

Had the Council given the Mission what it needed to do the job? a correspondent asked.  The Council had been generous with MONUC, she replied.  Council members had their own budgetary constraints.  The Department followed the adage of the Brahimi report, namely to tell the Council what it needed to know, not what it wanted to know.  MONUC needed the troops the Secretary-General had asked for.  Consultations on the matter continued.  It was mostly a financial issue for some Council members.

The violence in the country was geographically specific, she added.  By working with national forces, it had been possible to create a certain amount of security.  Ituri would not last, however, unless the Government started getting serious about setting up civilian operations there.  The situation in the Kivus and Ituri was much better.  But it was a matter of building up Congolese Government and security forces, so that the United Nations could pull out sometime.

Asked to describe foreign police units, she said they consisted of 125 people and operated under agreed rules of engagement.  All police were treated as civilians, and the buck stopped with the Secretary-General’s Special Representative.

Was there any evidence that “clepto-cratic” practices were diminishing? a correspondent asked.  Responding, she said Member States, donors and the Secretary-General were concerned regarding the issue of corruption in Government.  In that regard, the Government, in consultation with the European Commission, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, had agreed to the recommendation to establish a joint commission on economic management.  That commission would be a major step forward for the country and for its future Government.  The fact that there had been both an acknowledgement of the problem and the willingness to deal with the issue represented a great change.

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