Democratic Republic of the Congo
Expected Council Action
Council members are expecting a briefing in March following Secretariat visits to the DRC. No Council action is expected at this time. But Council members are likely to use this opportunity to further develop their thinking for the negotiations on the future configuration of MONUC over the following weeks. The anticipated trip of the Council to the region (covering the DRC, Uganda and Rwanda) in mid April is also expected to play a role in the process. The MONUC mandate expires on 31 May 2010.
Key Recent Developments
Instability continues in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The Rwandan opposition group Forces démocratiques pour la libération du Rwanda (FDLR) seems to be the primary problem. However, other armed groups and the limited scope of national authority are contributing factors. Sexual assaults, theft, destruction of civilian property and abductions continued to be committed by all belligerents. Approximately ninety percent of human rights abuses in North and South Kivu provinces are reportedly perpetrated by the FDLR or by government forces. According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs an estimated 1.36 million persons are displaced in the Kivus. Armed fighting and rampant banditry restrict humanitarian operations. Poor roads further hamper assistance.
Deadly attacks against civilians by the Ugandan rebel group the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) in Orientale province also continue There are currently approximately 467,000 internally displaced persons there, including 298,000 in the two LRA-affected districts of Haut-Uele and Bas-Uele. An estimated 195,000 of these were displaced during 2009.
On 2 February, the Secretary-General announced the appointment of European Commission Vice-President Margot Wallström as his Special Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict. Wallström said the DRC would be one of the first places she would visit in her new role. The UN Population Fund reported an estimated 8,300 women were raped in the Kivus in 2009. Armed groups, including the Congolese army (FARDC), committed the majority of the rapes.
On 16 February, UN Organization Mission in the DRC (MONUC) officials in Kinshasa briefed Council experts in a closed meeting via video-conference on the Integrated Strategic Framework (ISF) and on MONUC’s protection strategy. The ISF, once finalised, will guide the UN system (MONUC and UN Country Team) in the coming three years towards meeting its overall strategic objective of ensuring that the DRC is capable of sustaining essential sovereign functions to uphold national unity and peace. The four key elements of the ISF include: addressing conflict; stabilising conflict-affected areas; consolidating peace; and initiating a viable development process. On each of these elements, tasks critical to achieving success have been identified along with the commitments made by the government and the necessary configuration of the UN system to support the ISF. On the protection strategy, Council members were briefed on its key objectives, which included improving information databases, improving coordination to better identify current and future risks, improving access to justice and promoting the rule of law. Also on 16 February, the MONUC Force Commander, Lieutenant General Babacar Gaye, briefed Troop-Contributing Countries (TCCs).
On 18 February Council experts were briefed by the Director of the Africa II Division in the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, Raisedon Zenenga, ahead of the technical assessment mission to the DRC. The briefing also included options currently under consideration for the future configuration of MONUC. TCCs were briefed on 18 February.
On 19 February, President Joseph Kabila reshuffled his cabinet, changing twenty posts. It seems no posts were allocated to former rebel groups whose units have been integrated into the national army. Former Congrès national pour la défense du peuple rebels reportedly expected roles as part of the peace agreement that ended fighting in eastern Congo in March 2009. The cabinet was also reduced to 43 posts from 54 posts.
Human Rights-Related Developments
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In a joint report issued on 21 December 2009, the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and MONUC detailed a number of atrocities committed against civilians by the LRA. The report notes that in some cases the terror inflicted by the LRA in various parts of Orientale province was compounded by troops belonging to FARDC. The report urged the Congolese government and its foreign military allies to “conduct a realistic assessment of their capacities to defend and protect civilian populations” and, with assistance from the international community, to implement “a military operation that takes into account the duty to protect civilians.” |
Key Issues
An unresolved issue is how to respond sensitively to Kinshasa’s proposals for a MONUC withdrawal but responsibly given the ongoing acute security and stability issues. An important issue for the Council is getting clarity on what role the DRC would like to see MONUC playing in the future and how this dovetails with the UN’s ISF in the DRC. A related question is what level of support the government envisages from MONUC for the forthcoming elections.
Underlying Issues
Stability and security in eastern DRC remain critical problems. Fundamental to this is the ongoing presence of the FDLR, the need to properly reintegrate former combatants, security sector reform and the need for effective control over military forces. A key question is the role the UN can play in all of this.
Continuing UN support for the FARDC (particularly elements responsible for human rights violations), seems likely to continue to be a serious problem for the UN and Kinshasa.
Looking ahead, related regional issues include the risk of deterioration in the security and political situations in neighbouring Burundi, Central African Republic and Sudan in the lead up to elections in 2010 and 2011.
Options
No Council decisions are expected in March. However, the expected interaction between Secretariat officials and Council members will further the discussion on the future configuration of MONUC.
For options in this regard, please see our February 2010 Monthly Forecast.
Council Dynamics
Council members seem to be adopting a wait-and-see approach at this stage. Most members seem keen to maintain security sector reform as a high priority for MONUC.
Despite the government’s request for a withdrawal timeframe, there seems to be some comfort amongst Council members that this will not lead to a hasty withdrawal.
France is the lead country on the DRC in the Council.
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Selected Security Council Resolutions |
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Latest Presidential Statements |
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Secretary-General’s Reports |
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Other |
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Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of Mission |
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Alan Doss (UK) |
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MONUC Force Commander |
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Lieutenant General Babacar Gaye (Senegal) |
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Size, Composition and Cost of Mission |
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Duration |
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30 November 1999 to present; mandate expires on 31 May 2010 |
