   |
|
afrol News, 9 September - The peace agreement between Uganda and Congo Kinshasa (DRC) is perceived to be more than a piece of paper. The head of the United Nations Organization Mission in Congo Kinshasa (MONUC) now joins other UN heads in hailing the peace accord, which he sees as a realistic effort to end hostilities. Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni and Congolese President Joseph Kabila recently signed a peace accord at a ceremony in the Angolan capital of Luanda. The accord also outlines the withdrawal of Ugandan forces from neighbouring Congo. Also Rwanda is preparing the withdrawal of its troops from Congo. Speaking to journalists last Friday, MONUC leader Amos Namanga Ngongi said both President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda and President Joseph Kabila of Congo Kinshasa had "shown they could make the necessary efforts to bridge their differences." Earlier this week, also members of the UN Security Council have welcomed the signing of the Luanda Agreement on troop withdrawals and on the cooperation and normalisation of relations between Congo and Uganda. They had also observed that the process of withdrawal of foreign troops from Congo was actually "moving ahead". Still, the Security Council was "extremely concerned" over the situation in the eastern part of Congo, where Ugandan troops and allied local rebels still are in control. Fighting was still going on in the region, despite the peace accord, and the civilian population was suffering enormous consequences. The Security Council members further stressed that the cessation of fighting in that region was necessary "in order for MONUC to be able to move ahead with the disarmament, demobilisation, reintegration, return or resettlement of armed groups," Ambassador Stefan Tafrov said, requesting the parties involved "to create the conditions that will enable MONUC to carry out its mission." Security Council members also demanded the cessation of the massacres in Ituri, and particularly in Bunia, and recalled that as long as its troops were occupying these areas of Congo, Uganda was "duty-bound to ensure the protection of the population," according to the statement. - They call on all States in the region to bring their influence to bear so as to put a stop to the massacres in Ituri, Ambassador Tafrov noted on Friday, and "appealed to all parties to work together to find an all-inclusive solution in respect of the results of the inter-Congolese Dialogue." Sources: Based on UN
sources and afrol archives
|
