SECURITY COUNCIL PRESS STATEMENT ON DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO

 

Following is a statement given to the press on the Democratic Republic of the Congo, delivered by Security Council President Jorge Voto-Bernales ( Peru):

The members of the Security Council welcomed, as a further important stage in the peace consolidation process, the announcement by the Independent Electoral Commission, on 15 November 2006, of the official provisional results of the second round of the presidential election in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and commended the considerable efforts undertaken by the Congolese people and institutions, with the support of the international community, with a view to the holding of free, fair and transparent elections.

The members of the Security Council appealed to the sense of civic responsibility of the Congolese people, so that the electoral process could continue in a calm and peaceful climate.

The members of the Security Council called again on the parties to the second round to comply with all confidence-building measures to which they have agreed since August 2006, including the joint statement issued by the two presidential candidates on 7 November, calling on their supporters to remain calm and avoid violence as they wait for the final results, and vowing not to challenge the outcome of the polls by force.  They stressed that electoral disputes should be settled through legal procedures only.

The members of the Security Council condemned the violent incident that took place in Kinshasa on 11 November 2006, in which four people lost their lives.

The members of the Security Council called on all political actors to refrain from any provocation, incitement to hatred or recourse to violence.  They stressed that neither the Congolese people nor the international community would understand or accept a return to violence following the election.

The members of the Security Council reiterated the historic character of these elections and of the forthcoming installation of a democratically elected Government.  They recalled that the international community stands ready to continue its support for peace consolidation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

* *** *

For information media • not an official record