|
Congo factions sign deal, but Kabila absent By Alistair Thomson
SUN CITY, South Africa (Reuters) - Congo's warring factions signed a political settlement after four years of conflict Wednesday, though the absence of President Joseph Kabila and a top rebel leader cast a shadow over the deal. The government, rebel groups and opposition parties agreed to a transitional government to rule the country for up to 2-1/2 years until its first democratic elections in four decades. But the absence of two of the three main faction leaders and the accusing speeches of some parties undermined the optimistic pronouncements of a new era for the former Zaire. Fighting still rages in the anarchic east of the vast country, raising grave doubts about whether the deal will hold. "His (Kabila's) refusal to celebrate the end of the war with the other Congolese ... worries us," said Adolphe Onusumba, leader of the biggest rebel group, the Rwandan-backed Congolese Rally for Democracy. Africa's third-biggest country was plunged into conflict in 1998 when Rwanda and Uganda backed an uprising in the east in a campaign to overthrow the Kinshasa government. At its peak, six foreign armies were drawn into the free-for-all for Congo's mineral wealth, and two million people are believed to have died, mainly from hunger and disease. The absence of Jean-Pierre Bemba, leader of the Ugandan-backed Congolese Liberation Movement, was also noted during the ceremony at South Africa's plush gambling resort of Sun City. Congolese Liberation Movement Secretary-General Olivier Kamitatu, who signed for the group, said Bemba could not attend because he had back pain. "This day is a day of hope. The hope of the return of peace in the Democratic Republic of Congo," Kamitatu said. But he added: "It is a day of challenge. The challenge of reconciliation. The challenge of reconstructing our country." U.N.-appointed mediator Moustapha Niasse read out a congratulatory note from U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan and added: "You have been visited by the angels of peace." ELUSIVE PEACE Thousands of foreign troops have left the Congo since a peace deal was signed in Pretoria last year. But a lasting peace still looks elusive, with a confusing medley of rebel groups and government proxies fighting in the lawless forests of eastern Congo, and no detailed agreement on military reform and the security of the interim leadership. Kabila, who took over when his father Laurent was murdered in 2001, did not make the journey to South Africa. "His presence is not necessary. He has the mammoth task of ruling the country while we are here," Congo Information Minister Kikaya Bin Karubi told South African public radio. Analysts said Kabila's absence raised questions about his commitment to the pact, reached after more than two years of on-and-off talks, known as the Inter-Congolese Dialogue. Kabila will continue as president under the interim administration, with four deputies named by his own government, the two biggest rebel groups and the political opposition. Each deputy president is to head a section of government, but after months of talks the political opposition have failed to agree on their candidate. A number of other obstacles stand in the way of peace. Wresting local commanders from lucrative mining operations that some have operated for years will be a serious test for the political will of the new government. PLUNDERED MINERAL WEALTH A U.N. report last year accused the Rwandan, Ugandan and Zimbabwean military of plundering the former Belgian colony's vast reserves of diamonds, gold and base metals. It said multinational mining firms were also involved. The rebel leaders must also be convinced to leave the relative security of their northern and eastern fiefdoms and return to the capital, Kinshasa. The broad principles of military reform, bringing rebel fighters into the national armed forces, have been agreed, as has the idea of a neutral international force to guarantee security in Kinshasa under the auspices of the United Nations. But the warring parties have still to agree on the finer points of the new army structure -- and whether the Congolese Rally for Democracy rebel group should head the land army as proposed. It is unclear who will provide troops to a U.N. force for Kinshasa, given the
problems already encountered finding troops for a monitoring force for the Congo
known as MONUC.
The Mulindwas Communication Group
"With Yoweri Museveni Uganda is in Anarchy" Le groupe de transmission de Mulindwas " avec Yoweri Museveni, Ouganda est dans anarchy " |
