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Congo
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POLITICS
Belgium wants to reestablish its cooperation links with Congo RDC.
Other
countries should follow suit and even go further
«Follow Belgium’s example», said Quebec’s Prime Minister when visiting Brussels in July. Congo’s citizens were very happy to welcome Belgium’s Prime Minister to Kinshasa on 30 June this year — his visit was not an empty one. Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt was fully aware of the people’s misery — the result of a decade of violence. His mission was to see how and when to reestablish cooperation links with Congo RDC and proposed a long-awaited package of help.
In so-doing, Belgium’s prime minister clearly showed he was opposed to a feeling coming from certain quarters in Kinshasa that Belgium should not help Congo as long as President Joseph Kabila is in power. Taking a closer look at the situation, it’s hard to understand this point of view from the Opposition, who seem to be always ignoring the people’s sufferings. Faced with the indescribable misery in the east of the country, how can such opinions be held by Congolese? There are even some among our country’s citizens who, at the single offer of a ministerial post (let alone becoming President!), are ready to sell their parents, their children and even their country, down the river. This is the origin of Congo’s mushrooming rebellions leading to sheer madness. Corruption has reached such a state!
No wonder that nowadays, Congo is so much in need of assistance — and yet it’s a country that has everything going for it — climate, water, minerals, agriculture, not to mention the lush flora and fauna. Congo is a country nearly as big as the European Union; a country which has unbelievable riches and which ought to be capable of helping other countries in need. But what’s happening? Congo itself is in dire need! But with the high degree of the existing corruption (fortunately not among everyone), everything becomes possible and that’s a pity.
So, let’s take our hats of to Belgium’s Prime Minister who has taken the people’s interests to heart, in spite of what the Opposition says.
Foreign occupation
An International Conference for Peace in Africa was held in Butembo (north-east Congo) from 27 February-1 March 2001. Participants correctly described Congo as being under «foreign occupation». In no uncertain terms, they called for the departure of all foreign troops from the national territory. They utterly condemned all idea of the «balkanisation» of Congo. Once these foreign forces have gone, true inter-Congolese dialogue can get off the ground; the Mayi-Mayi can come in from the bush and the people can get down to work. That’s how the Congolese urgently wish to be helped.
The United Nations Security Council has already met several times to discuss the question of the departure of foreign troops from Congo. Resolutions have been taken but nothing’s happened. Congo’s bishops have also evoked the same theme in different ways and at different times. Their latest pronouncement was in early July this year. The people have spoken, the bishops have spoken, the United Nations has spoken...but to no avail.
Now that Belgium is presently holding the European Union’s presidency, we hope that this will encourage it to do everything possible to help Congo get out of its present mess. Of course, economic assistance is all-important. But this must be followed (or preceded) by the immediate departure of foreign troops. It’s humiliating to have entered the third millennium under foreign domination and occupation.
In saying this, we don’t mean to retract on the Lusaka Agreements — on the contrary — these Agreements stipulate the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Congo RDC. Article 3, Section 15 of the ceasefire is clear: «Nothing in this Agreement must, in any way, militate against the sovereignty and the national integrity of the Democratic Republic of Congo». But the continued presence of foreign troops on Congo’s soil, makes nonsense of this Article.
We think that foreign troops are still in Congo because there’s either a tacit agreement by the international community or double-dealing by some powerful countries. The example of Iraq in 1991 (far better equipped than Rwanda, Uganda and Burundi together) is still fresh in people’s memories. In December 1990, the United Nations Security Council passed appropriate sanctions against Iraq and these took effect in Baghdad in January 1991. Here, we’re not talking about Angola, Zimbabwe and Namibia, because they’ve already declared their intention of withdrawing their interests from Congo, as soon as that country becomes free again from foreign occupation. It would be enough for the European Union or the United States to be decisive (with an appropriate mention of sanctions whenever withdrawal doesn’t take place), and Rwanda would stop declaring: «We’ll never leave Congo as long as our country’s security is under threat». President Kabila has clearly stated: «Rwanda’s security will be ensured by understanding and cooperating (and not by colonisation) with neighbouring countries».
Congo and the Great Lakes
Congo’s problem must be seen within the context of the Great Lakes’ situation. Everyone knows that Rwanda’s real difficulty is not security, but population density — there’s too many people in a tiny area. But it’s no solution to violate the territorial sovereignty of neighbouring countries! And when speaking about «dialogue», it shouldn’t be just a case of «inter-Congolese dialogue», but a conference for the entire Great Lakes region preceded by local conferences in Congo, Rwanda, Burundi and Uganda. Each of these countries needs to come to terms with itself before coming to terms with its neighbours.
It would be a major error to force Congo into an individual dialogue situation, leaving aside any reference to neighbouring countries. «No man is an island» is as true here as anywhere else. War in one country brings trouble in neighbouring countries. Besides, there cannot be real dialogue in an atmosphere of domination. So, even cooperation (except for humanitarian aid) becomes difficult —well-nigh impossible.
For the above reasons, we think that those Congolese who are rushing to take part in the Inter-Congolese Dialogue (under the surveillance of Rwanda, Uganda, Burundi, Zimbabwe, Namibia and Angola), are nothing more than opportunists seeking their own interests — not that of the people. Such «dialogue» is destined to fail. In any case, it would be nothing short of a masquerade and an insult to the entire nation.
Countries which love Congo RDC must work within the framework of the Lusaka Agreements i.e. to put forward the sovereignty and integrity of the country before all else.
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