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NEWS ON CONGO 041: 1/2 Negotiations and war [Posted: 15.04.02] NOTE: On websites with information on the DR Congo and for some contact addresses, see endnote last in "NOC 042", the continuation of this posting. New here is that the Mai-Mai movement, which is fighting the aggressors in the east, now has its own website, at http://www.congo-mai-mai.net. INTRO NOTE: The items 041 and 042 contain the following parts: In 041: A: On the imperialist war against the DR Congo (same text as in intro note to "NOC 040", 23.03.02) B: Two articles (in my translation from the French) from the Kinshasa newspaper l'Avenir, Thursday 11.04, on the ongoing negotiations respectively on the war In 042: C: A message from Kigali (capital of Rwanda) by the news agency AFP, Sunday 14.04 (in translation) D: Some more information on the most recent events, and an attempt at analysis of the present situation in connection with the negotiations at Sun City, South Africa [Texts in B and C and informations in D according to postings to the discussion groups congokin_opinions and CONGOTRIBUNE and to the DR Congo's Permanent Mission at the UN; addresses see endnote.] A. ON THE IMPERIALIST WAR AGAINST THE DR CONGO In the DR Congo, then called "Zaire", an uprising against the Mobutu dictatorship which had oppressed and fleeced the people in favour of imperialism since 35 years back started in late 1996 and was victorious on 17.05.1997, when the pre- sent state, the Democratic Republic of Congo, was founded. The liberation struggle was led by Laurent-Désiré Kabila, who also became the first president of the DRC. The DR Congo from the start set itself the goal of freeing the country from imperialist exploitation and building up an actually democratic form of government in it, thereby also setting up an example for all of Africa and for simi- larly exploited countries elsewhere. Because of this, the US and other imperialists instigated a war of aggression against that country on 02.08.1998 by three neighbouring states, a war which so far, directly or indi- rectly, has cost the lives of over 3,000,000 people and which still continues. One-half of the DR Congo today is under fo- reign occupation. The people in the whole country continues to suffer enormously. It very much needs the support of the people in all other countries. After the foul murder of L-D Kabila on 16.01.2001, his son, Joseph Kabila, was installed as president; a government led by J. Kabila has continued the struggle against the aggres- sion since then. Since some weeks back now, a conference is being held in Sun City, South Africa, in which attempts by the imperia- lists to gain control over the whole of the DR Congo by so- called "peaceful" means are confronted by the strivings of the Congolese people and the country's lawful government to retain the independence of the DRC. The UN Security Council on 19.03 by its Resolution 1399 (2002) condemned the recent military seizure by the aggres- sors, in flagrant violation of the present armistice, of the city of Moliro in the south-east of the DR Congo, and demanded the immediate and unconditional withdrawal of the forces of the so-called "RCD-Goma", one of the aggressors' puppets, from that city. B. TWO ARTICLES IN THE NEWSPAPER L'AVENIR, KINSHASA, THURSDAY, 11.04.2002 L'Avenir: *Sun City. A republican front to save the Congo* Kinshasa, 11.04.2002 At the moment when everyone hoped for a solution, even if a late one, of the Congolese crisis, the Rassemblement congo- lais pour la Démocratie (RCD/Goma) [the RCD, which has been acting as a military muppet of one of the invading countries, Rwanda, a large part of it based at Goma in occupied eastern DR Congo - RM] has sounded a note different from those of the other participants in the negotiations. It rejects as a whole the South African president's proposal. [That is, the first proposal by Mbeki for an agreement, put forward on 10.04. He on the next day, 11.04, put forward a second, after consultations with the aggressor-friendly so- called "mediator", Masire, one clearly more favourable to those Congolese so-called "rebel" organizations which have helped the Rwandan and Ugandan invaders. The negotiations at Sun City were scheduled to last until 12.04. On 11.04, it was also proposed that they would be extended until 18.04. This has been accepted by all the participating parties. - RM] One thus is back at the starting-point. And given the time which there is left for the delegates to pack up and go, one fears that one will return empty-handed to the country, with all those consequences which this means. The Congolese public opinion can see in this the irresponsible behaviour of those who aspire to govern the DR Congo. In connection with the pro- posal of president Thabo Mbeki, it becomes clear who fears the peace process and who is thus blocking the work at Sun City. The RCD proposes that the post of president of the Republic should go to the non-armed opposition and that Joseph Kabila should have the vice-presidency. [For the proposed interim pe- riod until elections can be held in all of the DR Congo. - RM] The reason advanced for this by the RCD/Goma is that the war- ring parties have not managed to come to an agreement on de- signating a single person at the head of the country. In that plan which it has suggested, the RCD/Goma proposes that the premiership should go to itself and that the MLC [Congolese so-called "rebel" organization which has been acting as a mi- litary muppet of the other main invader, Uganda - RM] should have the presidency of the Parliament. In the other plan it has put forward, the RCD/Goma suggests that it should have the presidency of the Republic, that the MLC get the premiership and the government get the presidency of the transitional Parliament. Besides, the RCD/Goma rejects not only the proposal of Thabo Mbeki but also that of the MLC, for a three-headed presidency. In clear terms, the RCD has only one plan, that of wanting the presidency of the Republic to go to the political opposi- tion, for obvious reasons which have been stated more than once. The RCD/Goma would like to see Tshisekedi [a member of the so-called unarmed opposition, who represents foreign inte- rests in the DR Congo since a long time back - RM] as presi- dent of the Republic. It does not want this in the interest of the RCD as a whole but for those of the Banyarwanda community [people of Rwandan nationality living in the eastern DR Congo - RM], to whom Tshisekedi plans to give Congolese nationality as a whole group. There are many incoherences in this reasoning, since, in order to get Congolese nationality, this community would have to count on law texts which would be elaborated either by the [inter-Congolese] Dialogue (which is no longer possible) or by the transitional Parliament. Tshisekedi, even if he were to become chief of state, would not, one hopes, decree such na- tionality contrary to the laws and contrary to the will of those who may want to decide otherwise on these matters. If that were the case, what then would be the point of the new political order? In reality, the concern of the RCD, with its weak arguments, is elsewhere. If the presidency of the Republic had been given to the political opposition, as it demands, this move- ment would have sought another reason to block the peace pro- cess, which has never been on its agenda. Only misled people can see this movement as a credible negotiation partner. The RCD/Goma has never been anything else than a mouthpiece of the Rwandan president. Also, that which the RCD/Goma rejects is not in reality the plan for power-sharing but that entire program of peace pro- posed at Sun City in which the retreat of the foreign troops is an important part. It should be rembered that Paul Kagame [strongman of Rwanda - RM] has stated that, whether there is an inter-Congolese dialogue or not, his troops will stay in the DR Congo. And the best way to make them stay, that is to find a pretext of conflicting views among the Congolese. The position of the RCD/Goma thus serves as a pretext for Kigali [capital of Rwanda - RM]. The support by the RCD/Goma to the political opposition is also a false crutch, a way of fooling the public opinion and above all to exploit the naivité of a number of Congolese po- titicians. The RCD/Goma, rejected by the people in the terri- tories under Rwandan control, needs a crutch somewhere. And it is the UDPS/Tshisekedi that offers it one. But how effec- tively? The conclusion one may draw after a day full of emo- tion and, at one moment, full of hope, is that the carrots are cooked at Sun City. The delegates will return to Kinshasa and elsewhere without a solution, because Kagame, with the complicity of certain compatriots of ours, wants this. What will happen now? It is true that, according to the rules drawn up for the Inter-Congolese Dialogue, all decisions are to be taken by consensus. But this is not sufficient to give a decisive role to the bad faith demonstrated by the RCD/Goma. The posi- tion of the leaders of that movement are known. Will the Con- golese let them do what they want with this country, for which the leaders of the RCD/Goma have never demonstrated any love whatsoever? It is at this moment that all Congolese politicians must sum- mun up what remains in them of nationalism. The MLC, the RCD/ML, the RCD/N [other groups within the so-called RCD - RM], the government of the Republic and the nationalist par- ties, the actual such, will they cross their arms, confronted with the cynicism of Paul Kagame, and sound the requiem for the DR Congo? The answer to this question, the result of a scrutiny of one's heart, perhaps will save this country, the only one that the Congolese have, while those who are blocking the peace have two. It is now or never for the camp of the fatherland to take position. Tshisekedi declares himself solidaric with the RCD/Goma. There was no doubt that the RCD/Goma, in order to lay out a bait for the UDPS [a "non-armed" "opposition party"; see also under D below - RM] would refuse to accept any plan, even the most reasonable, that did not propose Tshisekedi for the pre- sidency of the Republic. On this point, thus, the proposal by Thabo Mbeki, which relaxed the atmosphere at Sun City, had no chance of leading to anything as far as that movement was con- cerned. The RCD/Goma thus said no. And immediately after the press declaration by that rebel movement, the UDPS, through Valentin Mubake, declared to the press that it too adhered totally to the position of the leaders of that movement. This proves that this party does not have a voice of its own but is making itself purely and simply into a mouthpiece of the RCD/Goma. Ther reasons for this marriage between the UDPS and the RCD/ Goma are well-known. On the one hand, this alliance has as its objective to blackmail the government by flaunting the threat to launch an offensive against Mbuji-Mayi [city in the Kasaï- Oriental province in central DR Congo, important as a diamond- mining centre - RM]. And the leader of the UDPS firmly be- lieves that such blackmail may carry fruits. Tshisekedi too believes in Paul Kagame's will to put him into power. On the other hand, the reason advanced is rather that hidden inten- tion of Kagame's which, unfortunately, seems to be escaping the attention of the UDPS's leader. It is that of Rwanda's reaching Mbuji-Mayi, where the diamond makes people dream. In addition to its interest of pillaging the riches of the DR Congo, Rwanda with a conquest of Mbuji- Mayi wants to deprive the Republic of important resources of income by diamond exports. Such a conquest could permit it to envisage an advance, with Congolese means, towards the capital, Kinshasa, because it is by arriving in Kinshasa that Tshisekedi could get his reward, in fact the payment for his treason. What is taking place at Sun City above all shows Kigali's de- sire to settle the Congolese question with a military victory. An ending of the Dialogue in catastrophe certainly would give it such an occasion sought for, prepared for and obtained. Such a project could only be twarthed by a reorganization of the FAC [Forces Armées du Congo - the Congolese government's miltary forces - RM] which must be in a position to make the necessary reply to the APR ["Armée Patriotique Rwandaise" - the Rwandan army - RM], which is fighting for the RCD/Goma. It also is a question for the international community, which has had much time to understand this project of Kigali's con- cerning the Congo, to take up a just position or else to let Congolese kill each other, with possible domino effects of this war in the entire region of Africa. - - - - - - L'Avenir: *War in DRC. 6,000 Rwandan soldiers ready to take Lumumbashi* Kinshasa, 11.04.2002 While the Congolese are entangling themselves at Sun City, Paul Kagame's Rwanda is sharpening its arms. According to in- formation from a reliable source, at least 6,000 Rwandan sol- diers are now proceeding towards Lubumbashi [important city in the Katanga province, in the extreme south of the DR Congo - RM]. Having left the South Kivu, soldiers of the APR are telling all who want to listen that their problem is to settle accounts with the commandant Masunzu, a Tutsi military comman- der who has deserted the ranks of the RCD and has taken up a position on the Minembwe plateau. In reality, according to our sources, these soldiers of the APR have already crossed the frontier of South Kivu, ready to attack in the direction of Lubumbashi. Our source reports that they at present are hiding "in the mountains of northern Katanga", which would permit them to avoid the attention of the MONUC [a small contingent of "observer troops" sent to the DR Congo by the UN to oversee the ceasefire - RM], which has observers stationed at Kalemie. We have said this over and over again: Paul Kagame has other things to occupy himself with than the inter-Congolese Dia- logue. In an earlier issue, we informed our readers that the master of Kigali has recruited Al-Qaida mercenaries in Soma- lia. These have been stationed in three military camps at Bu- jumbura [capital of Burundi - RM]. We in the same columns have reported their depart from Burundi towards the DR Congo. That is, Kagame does not spare his means. He wants at all costs to get control over all of the Congo and to impose on Kinshasa a man totally committed to the cause of "International Tutsi Power". The government should make all necessary preparations for protecting Lubumbashi, the city that is to house the tran- sitional Parliament. Speaking of this, the Congolese armed forces must be on the highest alert to defend the fatherland now in danger. Because it is obvious that at that moment when there in an agreement under way at Sun City on how the transition rule will look, Rwanda will, one more time, shuffle the cards. It is in fact strange to note that since 72 hours back, the RCD/Goma at Sun City is not raising its voice for anything else than finding fault with all possibilities for an agree- ment between the warring parties in the DR Congo. This is not a good sign. It is not impossible that during the latest sum- mit at Lusaka dedicated to the Congolese crisis, Kagame gave precise instructions to his weathercocks to block everything. Which may be why Azarias Ruberwa, the cranky general-secretary of the RCD/Goma, has fled from the meetings. Once and for all, the government must prove that it can de- fend the fatherland in danger. Big diseases, it is said, re- quire big remedies. Kagame is the disease ravaging the DR Congo. The FAC must be prepared at all points to rout the APR. Thisis the only way to show Kagame that there is a real power in Kinshasa. Because, if Lubumbashi falls, nothing could pre- vent the APR from marching on the capital. The hour, thus, is grave. At the last minute... When we were going into print, a correspondent contacted us to report that since the day before yesterday, on Tuesday, 9 April, violent combats had taken place in the village of Ganga, 25 kilometres from Rungu, in the Orientale province, between the troops of the Rassemblement congolais pour la dé- mocratie - Mouvement de libération (RCD-ML) of Mbusa Nyamwisi and those of the Mouvement de libération du Congo (MLC) of Jean-Pierre Bemba, with Mbusa Nyamwisi trying to retake the city of Isiro and its surroundings, which are being defended by the men of "Baby Bemba" [so nicknamed to distinguish him from his father, a capitalist who is co-operating with the go- vernment of the DR Congo - RM]. Also, for lack of logistics, the troops of the MLC are taking possession of all vehicles, fuels and other provisions which they are finding on their way. This piece of news has been confirmed by independent sources, notably the Catholic news agency Misna. The question which remains to be put is that, whether it is impossible for the Congolese to dialogue without silencing the cannon and the sound of marching boots. S. Nkundiye and Fr. Cirume / L'Avenir [Continued in "NEWS ON CONGO 042"] --------------------------- ANTI-NATO INFORMATION LIST ==^================================================================ This email was sent to: archive@jab.org EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?a84x2u.a9617B Or send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] T O P I C A -- Register now to manage your mail! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/register ==^================================================================
